Communist Party of Texas

Political party

Communist Party of Texas

Founded| 1919 (1919)
Headquarters| Houston
Youth wing| Young Communist League
Ideology| Communism
Marxism–Leninism
Political position| Far-left
National affiliation| Communist Party USA
Colors|  Red
Texas Senate|

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Texas House of Representatives|

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The Communist Party of Texas is a political party in the U.S. state of Texas. It is a member of the Communist Party USA and operates as a state district.[1] The party is headquartered in Houston.

The Communist Party's aim is the abolition of private ownership and control of capital and the construction of a classless, moneyless, and stateless society thereafter. Its most recent state conference was held in January 2018. The party has city clubs in Austin, Dallas, Houston, Lufkin, and San Antonio.

According to the Texas law, passed in 1954, it is illegal for any public official (elected or otherwise) to be a communist,[2] which makes it difficult for the party to participate in elections.[3] However, the narrow definition of "communist", added in 1993 as Section 557.021, as "a person who commits an act reasonably calculated to further the overthrow of the government, by force or violence or by unlawful or unconstitutional means and replace it with a communist government" at least opened the window for a non-violent, non-criminal communist to run.[2][3][4]

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Constitution of the CPUSA
2. ^ a b "Government Title 5, Chapter 557. Sedition, Sabotage, and Communism". Texas Statutes. Retrieved 2021-01-19.
3. ^ a b Cofer, Cody L. (April 22, 2016). "Commies Beware… Chapter 557 of the Texas Government Code is Here!". CoferLaw. Fort Worth Criminal Defense Lawyers. Archived from the original on 17 May 2016.
4. ^ Bonewell, Shaffer Allen (2019). Manipulating Fear: The Texas State Government and the Second Red Scare, 1947-1954 (PDF). Masters thesis. Denton, Texas: University of North Texas. p. 107\. Archived (PDF) from the original on 15 August 2021.

## External links

[edit]

* Official website

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Communist Party USA

Nominees|

| Presidential|

* William Z. Foster (1924; 1928; 1932)
* Earl Browder (1936; 1940)
* Charlene Mitchell (1968)
* Gus Hall (1972; 1976; 1980; 1984)

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Vice Presidential|

* Benjamin Gitlow (1924; 1928)
* James W. Ford (1932; 1936; 1940)
* Mike Zagarell (1968)
* Jarvis Tyner (1972; 1976)
* Angela Davis (1980; 1984)

Leaders|

* C. E. Ruthenberg (1919–1920; 1922–1927)
* Alfred Wagenknecht (1919–1921)
* Charles Dirba (1920–1921)
* Louis Shapiro (late 1920)
* L. E. Katterfeld (1921)
* William Weinstone (1921–1922)
* Jay Lovestone (1922; 1927–1929)
* James P. Cannon (1921–1922)
* Caleb Harrison (1921–1922)
* Abram Jakira (1922–1923)
* William Z. Foster (1929–1934)
* Earl Browder (1934–1945)
* Eugene Dennis (1945–1959)
* William Z. Foster (1945–1957)
* Gus Hall (1959–2000)
* Sam Webb (2000–2014)
* John Bachtell (2014–2019)
* Rossana Cambron & Joe Sims (2019–present)

Prominent members|

* Bernard Ades
* William Albertson
* Herbert Aptheker
* Max Bedacht
* John Bernard
* Walter Bernstein
* Marc Blitzstein
* Ella Reeve Bloor
* Anne Burlak
* Peter Cacchione
* Benjamin J. Davis Jr.
* Shirley Graham Du Bois
* Bella Dodd
* Richard Durham
* Albert Goldman
* Elizabeth Gurley Flynn
* Harry Haywood
* Dorothy Ray Healey
* Manning Johnson
* Oakley C. Johnson
* Claudia Jones
* Antoinette Konikow
* Claude Lightfoot
* Steve Nelson
* Karl Emil Nygard
* William L. Patterson
* Paul Robeson
* Tupac Shakur
* Charles E. Taylor
* Emma Tenayuca
* Richard Wright

Litigation|

* Albertson v. Subversive Activities Control Board
* Aptheker v. Secretary of State
* Communist Party v. Subversive Activities Control Board
* De Jonge v. Oregon
* Dennis v. United States
* Kent v. Dulles
* Keyishian v. Board of Regents
* Noto v. United States
* Scales v. United States
* Smith Act trials
* Watkins v. United States
* Yates v. United States

State parties|

| Current|

* Georgia
* Maryland
* Texas

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Defunct|

* Alabama
* Hawaii

Related articles|

* American Committee for Spanish Freedom
* Bill of Rights socialism
* Browderism
* Communist Labor Party
* English-language press
* International Publishers
* Language federation
* Left Wing Section of the Socialist Party
* Lincoln Battalion
* List of Communist Party USA members who have held office in the United States
* National conventions
* New York Workers School
* Non-English press
* People's World
* Red diaper baby
* San Francisco Workers' School
* Soviet Negro Republic
* Relations with African Americans
* Ware Group
* Yokinen Show Trial
* Young Communist League USA
* Young Pioneers of America

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Political parties of Texas

Major parties|

* Democratic
* Republican

Ballot-qualified minor parties|

* Green
* Libertarian

Other minor parties|

* Communist
* Constitution
* Socialist

Political party strength in Texas

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