Leon Trotsky. The Crisis of the French Section (1935-36).

Contents

Introduction

Prologue: Trotsky and the French section before July 1935

Part I

Exit from the SFIO (July-November 1935)

Preface to Part I

A false idea (July 3, 1935)

Bourgeois politicians and the People’s Front (July 11, 1935)

Conflicting slogans (July 22, 1935)

How to transform ‘La Verite’ (July 26, 1935)

The expulsion of the French youth (July 30, 1935)

Our cohabitation with the reformists (August 1, 1935)

‘Labels’ and ‘numbers’ (August 7, 1935)

No concessions on the International (August 10, 1935)

After the Toulon events (August 11, 1935)

The perspective of soviets (September 7, 1935)

No evasions on the independent party (September 13, 1935)

The path to political suicide (September 13, 1935)

SFIO discipline and the Fourth International (Published 1935)

Pivert’s relation to Blum and Zyromsky (September 16, 1935)

Our political line and our tactics (September 16, 1935)  

A dangerous symptom in our ranks (October 3, 1935)

Third-rate aides of imperialism (October 26, 1935)

Introduction to Fred Zeller’s pamphlet (November 7, 1935)

On organizational problems (November 1935)

Party and soviets (November 1935)

Slogans of revolutionary action (November 1935)

Committees of action and the masses (November 13, 1935)

A serious lesson for the future (November 1935)

Take to the open sea! (November 21, 1935)

Turn to the masses! (November 25, 1935)

For committees of action, not the People’s Front! (November 26, 1935)

Part II

Split (November 1935-March 1936)

Preface to Part II

A call for action by the IS (November 28, 1935)

What is a ‘mass paper’? (November 30, 1935)

A capitulation to the centrists (December 3, 1935)

A letter to the International Secretariat (December 3, 1935)

An abdication of principles (December 4, 1935)

Molinier’s latest adventure (December 4, 1935)

Committees of action versus elected communes (December 6, 1935)

Critical remarks on ‘Revolution’ (December 9, 1935)

A turn to the right (December 11, 1935)

Against false passports in politics (December 16, 1935)

A clarification (December 20, 1935)

The ‘political basis’ of ‘La Commune’ (December 23, 1935)

Lessons of the SFIO entry (December 30, 1935)

The appeal ‘To revolutionary organizations and groups’ (January 4, 1936)

Firmness and concessions (January 7, 1936)

Reply to conciliators (January 8, 1936)

Bureaucratic pigheadedness (January 14, 1936)

A new situation exists (January 31, 1936)

Molinier’s new ploy (March 1, 1936)

The most inept policy imaginable (March 4, 1936)

Part III

Reunification and new split (June-July 1936)

Preface to Part III

Introduction to ‘The Mass Paper’ (June 7, 1936)

Terms for collaboration with the French section (June 12, 1936)

The first number of ‘Lutte ouvriere’ (June 18, 1936)

A matter of life and death (June 19, 1936)

New stage in the French revolution (June 21, 1936)

More difficulties in the French section (July 11, 1936)

Notes from an interview by Molinier and Desnots (July 1936)

A hasty formulation on the People’s Front (July 19, 1936)

Epilogue: Trotsky and the French section after July 1936

Appendix A

The mass paper, by Nicolle Braun [Erwin Wolf]

I – Background of the crisis

II – Serious indications of a crisis

III – Centrism as a touchstone

IV – The split

V – ‘La Commune’

VI – The policy of the GBL

Afterword

Appendix B

Comments by Pierre Frank