VITTORIO POMA 

Magnani e l'Unione Socialista Indipendente: una strategia per la sinistra italiana 

N.4/1986

Summary — The essay reconstructs the political experience of one of the many movements belonging to the area of independent socialism and which developed in the ‘50s. The Independent Socialist Union (USI) was created in 1951 by two communist Members of Parliament, Valdo Magnani and Aldo Cucchi, in disagreement with their party on the topics of international politics and of the bureaucratic organization of the top leaders. From 1951 to 1953 (date of the foundation congress of USI) it was called Italian Workers Movement (MLI) and wanted to constitute a reference point for all the working forces and for those wishing to restore a political and organizing unity to the polyedric socialist movement. The USI, stemmed from the coalition of MLI, autonomist socialist and social-Christian, gave a remarkable contribution to the socialist struggles concurring in blocking the " law-fraud " at the general elections of 1953, being very active in the trade-unions, taking a stand on important questions such as the settlement of the territory of Trieste, the setting up of the European Defence Community (CED), the numerous reforms in the social field. The political action of the USI turned, particularly, towards linking again the great number of minor socialist groups with an only one Socialist Party, with the ambitious project to attain to the realization of the socialist alternative to the conservative government forces. Fears, distrust and incomprehension did not permit to overcome the discord within the socialist area, so that the small movements were gradually driven towards the confluence in the PSI. In March 1957 the second and last congress of the USI declared the dissolution of the Union and the co-optation of some of its exponents on the Central Committee of the Socialist Party. In the panorama of the Italian political forces during the difficult phase of transition from Centrism to Centre-Left, it is impossible to take no notice of the presence and the role of the USI. Its main purpose was to trace out " an Italian way to socialism ", relying on the originality of the national schemes, without severing the links with the historical tradition of the Italian workers movement.