Published: Klassekampen’s International Bulletin, journal of the Workers’ Communist Party (Marxist-Leninist) of Norway
Reprinted: North America News Service, July 16-29, 1973.
Transcription, Editing and Markup: Paul Saba
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The Socialist Youth League (marxist-leninist) (SYL) agreed to change the name of the organisation to RED YOUTH on their Congress recently. SYL has a long and proud history. (It was founded in 1963 as the youth league of the left-social democratic party, Socialist Peoples Party (SF). The fifth Congress of SYL agreed to study marxism-leninism-Mao Tsetung thought in the entire organisation. The sixth Congress agreed that the organisation should be based on this ideology. This led to a split with the “mother-organisation”, SF, and at the same time a great deal of the SF-members broke out and founded Socialist Work-and Study Groups. This organisation has been most of the core of the MLG, which has now founded the WCP.)
The style of work and the duties of the members have been those of an elite organisation. The members of SYL have, through thorough discussions, agreed to expand the organisation to become a broad, communist mass-organisation for youth, based on different styles of work and activities than before. This is only possible now when we have a communist workers’ party in Norway–the WCP(m-l). Earlier, SYL had to carry out several of the tasks that the party now will attend to. Now the SYL can put all its efforts into the work among the youth in our country.
The change of name is a result of this. The youth league has chosen a name which says where it stands politically and at the same time showsthat the youth league is an organisation different from SYL.
RED YOUTH will surely continue the good sides of SYL by leading the struggles of the youth on different issues. No one should doubt that RY still will head actions against injustice and oppression. But the work and the life of the organisation will differ greatly from what has been. There will no longer be great demands on the members, and the work will be voluntary. Great emphasis will be put on creating RED milieus where the youth feel at home, on starting activities like theater groups, singing groups, RED parties, study groups and so on. The work and life of the RY will also aim at getting thousands of new members.
The developing of this type of organisation has been carried out for a good while already. One sign of this is that SYL during the last half of 1972 more than doubled its membership. However, it is now after the Congress that the RY has taken its new name that the work to build the new type of organisation starts in full. In the time to come, local branches of RY will set out to develop red milieus, start lots of activities and gather large numbers of youth around them. We are counting on other red and progressive youth to rally around this line, carry it out, take up the struggle against oppression and injustice and strengthen the RED YOUTH.
RED YOUTH is the youth league of the WCP. The members have through discussion agreed that WCP is the only truly revolutionary party in Norway, and that it is correct to support that party. This does no however, mean that RED YOUTH will be dictated by the Workers’ Communist Party. RED YOUTH is an independent organisation where the members decide the policy at all times.
About one half of the members of the leading board are school-students (most of them secondary or high school students), about one fourth are young workers, and about one fourth are students.
Between 40 and 50% are girls. Roughly one half of the leading Board members live outside Oslo, the capital of Norway. The first plenary session of the leading board elected Helge Øgrim chairman.