International Socialist Organization

The International Socialist Organization was founded in March 1977 by what had been the "Left Faction" of the International Socialists. The faction left the International Socialists due to the faction's unhappiness with the International Socialists policy regarding labor unions. While the International Socialists majority viewed the USSR as a system of bureaucratic collectivism, the Left Faction perceived the USSR to be state capitalist, which was more in line with the thinking of the UK International Socialists. The Left Faction had consulted with the UK International Socialists (which changed its name to the Socialist Workers Party in early 1977) about the factional problems prior to the split. After the split, the International Socialist Organization (ISO) became closer to the UK group than the US International Socialists. The ISO began publishing it's newspaper, Socialist Worker in April 1977.

The ISO was a member of the International Socialist Tendency (IST) which is dominated by the UK Socialist Workers Party. In the 1980's, the IST became unhappy with Barbara and Cal Winslow, the leaders of the ISO. The IST was instrumental in replacing them as leaders of the ISO with a British Socialist Workers Party member named Ahmed Shawki.

The ISO organized primarily on campuses, and had some success. They organized dozens of chapters across the US, mainly based around college campuses, with hundreds of members nationwide. In 2000 the ISO endorsed the Green Party candidate for president, Ralph Nader, and worked on the campaign.

Acrimony had been building between the UK Socialist Workers Party and the US-based ISO for a few years. In 2001, at the prompting of the SWP (UK), the IST expelled the ISO from its membership. The IST recognized a small pro-IST faction that was leaving the ISO as its American affiliate - the faction forming the group Left Turn. Left Turn would leave the IST in 2003, leaving the IST with no American affiliate.

The ISO has fraternal relations with groups such as the Australian Democratic Socialist Perspective tendency of the Socialist Alliance as well as groups in other countries. The ISO has dozens of chapters, mainly concentrated around college campuses, and hundreds of members. It publishes the newspaper Socialist Worker and the bi-monthly magazine International Socialist Review.