The Labour Emancipation League was a
socialist
Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the ...
organisation in
London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
.
The origins of the league lay in the 1880 split from the
National Secular Society
The National Secular Society (NSS) is a British campaigning organisation that promotes secularism and the separation of church and state. It holds that no one should gain advantage or disadvantage because of their religion or lack of it. It was ...
of the
Stratford Dialectical and Radical Club around
Ambrose Barker. In 1881, the Club was forced to abandon its activities, although it remained in existence as the
Homerton Socialist Society.
Barker and Tom Lemon from the Society joined with
Joseph Lane
Joseph "Joe" Lane (December 14, 1801 – April 19, 1881) was an American politician and soldier. He was a state legislator representing Evansville, Indiana, and then served in the Mexican–American War, becoming a general. President James K. ...
and
Frank Kitz
Frank Kitz (1849 – 8 January 1923) was an English anarchist.
Life
Born in the Kentish Town area of London as Francis Platt, he was illegitimate and grew up in poverty.E. P. Thompson and Peter Linebaugh, ''William Morris: Romantic to Revo ...
to hold regular public meetings in
Mile End
Mile End is a district of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets in the East End of London, England, east-northeast of Charing Cross. Situated on the London-to-Colchester road, it was one of the earliest suburbs of London. It became part of the m ...
. These proved a success, and they formed the Labour Emancipation League to continue this work. The first secretary, Aaron Moseley, soon resigned and was replaced by Lane.
The League was influenced by
Marxism
Marxism is a left-wing to far-left method of socioeconomic analysis that uses a materialist interpretation of historical development, better known as historical materialism, to understand class relations and social conflict and a dialectical ...
,
Chartism and
Proudhonism. Its programme called for:
The League soon spread across the
East End of London. In 1884, it joined
H. M. Hyndman's Democratic Federation, which was consequently renamed the
Social Democratic Federation and adopted much of the League's programme. However, in 1885 the East London branch of the SDF was one of several to split and form the
Socialist League.
References
Bibliography
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{{UK far left
Defunct political parties in England
Political parties established in 1881
Political parties disestablished in 1884
Socialist parties in England
Defunct socialist parties in the United Kingdom
1881 establishments in England
1884 disestablishments in England
Mile End