In 1957 a loose coalition of socialist youth groups met to launch The Young Socialist, a monthly newspaper which was strongly influenced by young members of the Socialist Workers Party (SWP). The newspaper became the focus of such factions as Young Socialist Clubs, National Young Socialist Supporters, and the Young Socialist League, all of which merged in 1969 to form the Young Socialist Alliance (YSA). Based on the socialism of Marx, Engels, Lenin, and Trotsky, YSA's working philosophy on high school and university campuses was to build a broad base of support through a network of local chapters, subordinate to the authority of the national organization.
Although organizationally independent, the YSA maintains a fraternal relationship to the Socialist Workers Party. YSA members campaign for SWP candidates, follow SWP's lead on most political issues, and raise funds by selling SWP publications.
The Madison local of the YSA was organized and active by 1965, although the major activity commenced with the rise of anti-Vietnam war opposition during the later 1960's and 1970's. The Madison YSA had close connections with other Madison anti-war groups, including Madison Committee to End the War in Vietnam, Madison Area Peace Action Council, and Student Mobilization Committee. Members cooperated with other groups in such local demonstrations as the 1967 Dow Demonstration, the 1969 Mifflin-Bassett Street Action, the October and November 1969 Vietnam Moratoriums, the 1970 GE strike, and the 1970 and 1971 protests of U.S. incursions into Cambodia and Laos. Madison members also traveled to the 1965 anti-war march on Washington and participated in other national events. A women's fraction of the YSA was formed about 1970. Other activities included street sales of The Militant, operation of the Che Guevara Book Store on Gilman Street, and fund-raising campus movies. The Madison local also acted as head-quarters for the state organizer, and YSA efforts on other UW campuses were coordinated from Madison. The formal structure of the Madison YSA was disbanded in 1980.
