International Socialist Review (1900)
Chicago, Illinois | |
| Language | English |
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The International Socialist Review was a monthly
Loyal to the
After American intervention in the European World War in 1917, the International Socialist Review came under increasing pressure from the U.S. Post Office Department and United States Department of Justice. Its loss of mailing privileges at the hands of the Wilson administration's Postmaster General, Albert S. Burleson in 1917 sounded the death knell for the publication. The magazine died early in 1918, chiefly due to this government pressure. A brief attempt to revive the publication as The Labor Scrapbook under the editorship of Mary Marcy, Kerr's chief lieutenant, proved unsuccessful in 1918.
Publication history
Simons period (1900–1908)
International Socialist Review was edited from 1900 to 1908 by
The tone of the early Review was temperate and the policies advocated modest. The publication was fully reflective of what one historian has called "the rather moderate
From its beginnings in the summer of 1900, the publication managed to achieve a modest circulation of about 4,000, about three-quarters of which obtained the publication by mail rather than via sales at
Post-Simons period (1908–1918)
Due to a disagreement over fundamental principles, with Simons' views becoming steadily more moderate while those of his employer became increasingly radical, publisher Charles H. Kerr fired editor Simons in 1908.[1] Kerr worked to make the previously dry and academic publication into what he called "the fighting magazine of socialism," making use of dramatic photography in telling the story of contemporary labor struggles against the forces of capitalism. As historian Allen Ruff notes, the revitalized Review took a very different form than its predecessor:
"Liberally illustrated with 'action fotos' and original graphics, the revamped ISR carried firsthand reports of major strikes, lockouts, organizing drives, and employers' offensives as well as theoretical and political discussions. Kerr's work with longtime associates Mary and Leslie Marcy and an editorial board including left-wingers
William D. "Big Bill" Haywood, Frank Bohn, and poet/illustrator Ralph Chaplin raised the Review's circulation from nearly 6,000 in 1908 to over 40,000 by 1911."[1]
The Review soon became the major organ of the "left wing" of the Socialist Party, which was critical of what it perceived to be an obsession of many national figures in the party with ameliorative reform.
The moderate wing of the Socialist Party was at times sharply critical of The International Socialist Review. Writer Robert Hunter declared in 1911 of the Review:
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"It has sneered at
Political Action, advocated rival unionism, and vacillated between Anarchism and Proudhonism. The constant emphasis The Review lays on Direct Action and its apparent faith that a revolution can be evoked by Will or Force is in direct opposition to our whole philosophy."[4]
The Review was, in fact, very sympathetic to the
Prominent staff members
- Max S. Hayes
- Charles H. Kerr
- Mary Marcy
- A.M. Simons
- Ernest Untermann
Index of volumes
Volume First issue Last issue Editor Online availability 1 July 1900 June 1901 Simons Archive.org 2 July 1901 June 1902 Simons Archive.org 3 July 1902 June 1903 Simons Archive.org 4 July 1903 June 1904 Simons Archive.org 5 July 1904 June 1905 Simons Archive.org 6 July 1905 June 1906 Simons Archive.org 7 July 1906 June 1907 Simons Archive.org 8 July 1907 June 1908 Simons/Kerr Archive.org 9 July 1908 June 1909 Kerr Archive.org 10 July 1909 June 1910 Kerr Archive.org 11 July 1910 June 1911 Kerr Archive.org 12 July 1911 June 1912 Kerr Archive.org 13 July 1912 June 1913 Kerr Archive.org 14 July 1913 June 1914 Kerr Archive.org 15 July 1914 June 1915 Kerr Archive.org 16 July 1915 June 1916 Kerr Archive.org 17 July 1916 June 1917 Kerr Archive.org 18 July 1917 February 1918 Kerr Archive.org
References
- ^ a b c d Allen Ruff, International Socialist Review, in Mari Jo Buhle, Paul Buhle, and Dan Georgakas (eds,), Encyclopedia of the American Left. First Edition, New York: Garland Publishing, 1990; pp. 374-375.
- ^ a b Herbert G. Gutman, "The International Socialist Review: Chicago, 1900-1918," in Joseph R. Conlin (ed.), The Radical Press in America, 1880-1960. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1974; vol. 1, pg. 82.
- ^ a b Gutman, The International Socialist Review, vol. 1, pg. 83.
- ^ Quoted by Gutman, The International Socialist Review, vol. 1, pg. 83.
Further reading
- Allen Ruff, "We Called Each Other Comrade": Charles H. Kerr & Co., Radical Publishers. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1997.