I hope you will forgive me for opening this testimonial with a bit about myself. My name is Thomas Scripps. I’m 17 years old and a member of the Socialist Equality Party in Britain. And it is down to the determined and sharp commentaries of the WSWS that I can say that today.

Coming to socialism in the years 2008-9—as have many of my generation—I was disappointed and to some extent demoralised by the lack of perspective offered by many so-called left wing and socialist parties. The clear analysis offered on the WSWS was not only an exceptionally rare (I’d go so far as to say unique) find but also an example of the very highest level of Marxist thinking. Simply the inclusion of multiple languages raised it above the narrow nationalism—farcically opposed to the global nature of the internet—of so many other sites, and to the level of ingrained internationalism indicative of a genuine and powerful socialist movement. The breadth of topics and depth of discussion, too, reminded me of the respect shown for working people’s understanding so prominent in Marxist literature.

When I first started reading the site regularly, I was astonished at the resounding sense of each article. At no other time in my life did I feel I was really drawing together a concrete idea of how the world functioned. Initially dubious about the necessity of revolution, this was put forward article by article, case by case. That is one of the key strengths of the website: its ability to put forward the arguments for socialism and revolution on a daily basis, based on daily world events, demonstrating through factual example the inescapable logic of its conclusions.

Continued reading eventually gave me the confidence in my own understanding to apply for membership of the Party and it has since been my very great honour to write for the site. Despite my close association, though, what continues to astound and impress me is the persistence, the clarity and the quality of publication.

My political consciousness has been shaped and continually sharpened by the precise analysis of world events offered on the site every single day: the WSWS is a tool of immense political power. As I have learned more about the history of the socialist movement, it has strengthened me to draw the parallels between the immense collaborative effort and intellectual community the WSWS represents and the international socialist organisations of the past.

In a world dominated by the multi-million media of the elite, a non-corrupt news publisher committed to the defence of the working class—and the exposure of assaults against it—is essential. As the time comes for a mass movement, the revolution will look to the WSWS for direction and its performance so far shows that it is more than up to the task.