Texas had one of the biggest socialist party chapters in the country
Long before state became a rightwing political stronghold it was defined by cowboys on strike and farmers organizing
TL;DR
- Texas has a forgotten radical political history, including a significant Socialist Party chapter, which has been "purposefully hidden," according to author David Griscom.
- The fence-cutting wars of the 1880s saw cowboys organizing against wealthy landowners using barbed wire to dispossess common Texans, leading to a crackdown by the state.
- Cowboys also organized and went on strike in 1883 for labor rights, with historical records indicating they won their demands, contrary to some historical accounts.
- Texas had the third-largest socialist party in the nation by the early 1900s, challenging the notion that progressive politics are solely a recent import to the state.
- Griscom argues that reclaiming this left-populist history, as seen in some current political efforts, is key to building mass appeal in Texas, emphasizing "people power" over capital.
- Recent electoral successes, like a Democrat flipping a reliably Republican district, suggest a potential for left-populist movements to gain traction in the state.