O O .

There is a crisis in Women's Caucus... To an-ever incrsasire. extent our time is
being spent on internal conflicts.

- For several months , 3 or 4 members of the YS/LSA yaa a ne
Women's Caucus, and working relations between them and other a Aa.
of the Caucus were good. .As the success of bhe abortion oan ee
came clear, the YS/LSA came to see Women's Caucus as Tey. LmpOr a
area of work" and they now forma large minority within Women '¢
who have their own strategy and vote as a block.

At the strategy conference (June 20-21 ) the YS/LSA Po
we continue the abortion campaign as our main priority was defea ae
The conference decided that our priorities would be to organize w

i oe . onl ~ af}
~ around their situation in the work force and in the educational syste

However, since then it has become clear that they are Re
accept the majority decision, and that their strategy is in basic-e
FlLGt with the strategy adopted by Women's Caucus at the conference
and with the concept of an autonomous women's movement.

‘WHY THIS MOTION

, - On Ihursday, June 13, at the general meeting, there was a notice
of motion: Proposed that members of the YS/LSA be excluded from the
Caucus, “PHis’has pee one necessary because it is at present impossible
for the Caucus to Operate as a group.

1. The Caueus has become a debating socicty where non-YS/LSA women ar

forced into rigid ‘positions in order to counter the YS/LSA position.

ae We and, most importantly, new women have always been excluded and
always will be from the YS A/LSA decision-making process. The YS raises
the fear that this motion is undemocratic. This would be true only if
exclusion from Women's Caucus meant exclusion from the women's libera-
tion movement. Women's Caucus is only one group with a specific
Strategy, working towards women's liberation. There are and should be
many other groups with different Strategies within the women’s libera-
tion movement. The YS/LSA women have a strategy different from that
of Women's Caucus, and we cncourage them to establish a group and be-
Gin to organize womén around their strategy. | ° :

5. There exists the fear that once you start excluding one group,
others may be excluded. We fecognize the serious nature of this fear.
However, our motion is an attempt to exclude a group whose structure
is centralized and authoritarian, and whose members are not allowed to
disagree publicly (i.e., within Women (s Caucus) with YS/LSA positions;
Whos¢é membership and decis ion-making meetings are closed and whose
allegiance is SPEAL SRL o- one YO/LSA. We do not know of any other:
ee ae these Charactcristics;. in fact,. the YS/LSA does claim to

e unique. |

WHAT IS THE YS/LSa

YS end LSA (Young Socialists and League for Socialist Action) are ,
cemocratie-centralist “pe proe LON, Whieh means that’all members’ demo~ 1
Cratically participate in discussions and strategy decisions. But the 4
YS/LSA are national organizations, and their Overall strategy is defined