This post was originally published on Human Rights Centre Blog.
-
Carla Ferstman On 7 January 2025, almost 9 months ago, former Presidential candidate in Venezuela and Essex alumni Enrique Márquez (He graduated from the University of Essex with a masters’ degree in Electronic Systems Engineering in 1994), was arrested by unidentified armed men. He has remained detained ever since with only minimal communication with his […]
-
I gotta get back to doing stand-up comedy. I mean the **** is so smelly and deep no matter where you look. Don’t you just love those countless television and radio commercials showing Americans how those lovely corporations are there to help you? I mean, everything being sold, even healthcare and medicines, is there to make our lives better. Thank God they haven’t yet taken away the listing of side effects on most of the drugs Big Pharma insists we need to take in order to live. (Of course, there are cases when a [slight] percentage of us are in quite dire straits, in actual life and death struggles). How about those commercials where everyone taking the newest miracle drug dances around with each other like they did on VE Day 1945?
The car commercials are great. Especially when the average price of a new car or SUV or pickup truck is well over $50k, or with a BMW or Mercedes well over $70k. Factor in the overwhelming number of working stiffs out there, duh, like 90% of us, who have trouble affording a $20k used car. The bandits in corporate Amerika have the whole deck rigged when $20k a year covers about six month’s rent for so many families. We haven’t even gotten to health care costs yet:
A few years ago my wife, who was not yet eligible for Medicare, was costing us $7k a year in hospitalization insurance premiums. For the first time in her life she gets a kidney stone. Knowing how much an ambulance costs ($ 600-700 for the ride over to the ER) she was in so much pain she could not literally get out of bed. Between the ambulance and the ER charge ( and let me say that everyone involved in caring for her, from the paramedics to the nurses and doctor, were top shelf human beings). The next month we get a bill for over $2500 as Blue Cross only paid like $400 or $500 of the $3000 visit to the ER. You see, technically she was not admitted to the hospital, only to the ER. Blue Cross was shrewd enough to call their plan Hospitalization, so we got squat!
It seems like the politicians, from both parties, have copied the accident attorneys with their mantra: “I’m out there fighting for you!” No boxing gloves needed for these jokers. We should know by now that the Republicans are only out there fighting for YOU when they send undocumented laborers away from their **** jobs. They are fighting to keep the top bracket of Americans (duh, like less than one percent of us) from paying their fair share, as the rest of us pay through the nose for housing, food, clothing, doctor bills etc. Let’s call a spade a spade (No pun intended). The Republican Party has a history of making sure that people with black (and now brown) skin don’t live near us white people or go to school with our kids… except the high school football and basketball stars who they find a way in. Now, the Democrats, who say they “Feel your pain,” with 10% few exceptions suck up to their corporate or billionaire donors and turn a blind eye to the needs of us working stiffs. Instead of fighting to stop funding phony wars and other foreign interventions, they go right ahead with this empire. Lip service is what they decide to give us.
So, that is why this writer says you must be careful where you step when you walk outside of your little cocoon.
The post Please Don’t Step In It! first appeared on Dissident Voice.This post was originally published on Dissident Voice.
-
As it does every 11 September, Catalonia’s independence movement commemorates the date in 1714 when Catalonia heroically lost the war against Castile and was subjugated against its will.
Its institutions, which were more democratic than those of Castile, were abolished. Its respectful confederalism between Catalonia, the Balearic Islands, the Valencian Country and Aragon became a simple and impoverishing dependency on Madrid. Its Catalan language, with its rich literature and lively popular use, was banned and persecuted. Trade with the Mediterranean gave way to the conquest of America; thousands of Catalans were humiliated by being forced to destroy their own homes and thousands more were mercilessly murdered.
Catalonia has never accepted this situation and has always wanted to regain its full sovereignty, but it has suffered constant imposition and repression. Now Spain is part of the EU and claims to be a democracy, so it would not be appropriate for it to bomb and subjugate Barcelona as it has done in the past. For this reason, since 2010, a powerful independence movement has emerged which, every 11 September, has organised the largest mass demonstrations in Europe. This 11 September, three large demonstrations were held across the territory: Barcelona, Girona, and Tortosa.
Catalonia’s independence: young people are rising up
These demonstrations, despite being massive and unthinkable in other parts of the world, had two notable features. On the negative side, there was slightly less turnout than before the 2017 referendum (this can be considered normal given that there have been 15 consecutive years of mass demonstrations). And on the very positive side, more and more young people are demonstrating:
These are young people who were unable to vote in the 2017 referendum, but who are deeply convinced that Catalonia needs to break free from Spain if it is to survive and have a better future. They clearly perceive that the Spanish state considers us its property and treats us like a colony.
The independence movement must find a way to overcome Spain’s refusal to allow a democratic solution (because they know that Catalonia would vote to leave). Spain wants to force us to remain part of its state, something that is unjustifiable in a democracy.
At the same time, we are also disappointed with the EU, which has allowed Spain’s abuse. Spain is trying to marginalise the Catalan language so that Spanish ends up being the language spoken in Catalonia. It is also strangling the Catalan economy, reducing funding for Catalan infrastructure and social services, coercing Catalan politics, prosecuting pro-independence activists, organising clandestine operations to defeat Catalan independence, illegally spying, infiltrating police into social movements.
All this makes a political solution seem more complicated, but at the same time, it makes Spanish imposition unbearable, especially for young people. And many people already live mentally outside Spain, oblivious to the unifying elements of banal Spanish nationalism.
Spain cannot hold Catalans captive
The fact is that Spain does not want to resolve the conflict, but rather wants us to accept the status quo as inevitable. However, we Catalans are the descendants of one of the greatest medieval nations that ruled the Mediterranean, and our desire for freedom is unshakeable. That is why, despite the continuous waves of migration that have arrived in our country, recently at some of the highest rates in the world, this immigration has been successfully integrated into Catalan society rather than diluting it and causing the Catalan language to disappear.
Sooner or later, Spain will have to accept that it cannot keep Catalonia captive against its will. The desire for freedom of Catalan nationalism, which is resistant, would be reason enough to justify the need for freedom, but in addition, Catalan society has ways of being and doing things that are too different from those of Madrid, where, around the monarchy and an aggressive and domineering Spanish nationalism, an extractive economic class is articulated that vampirises the entire state for its own benefit.
That is why it is important to know that Catalonia will not stop fighting until it achieves freedom.
Featured image and additional images supplied
This post was originally published on Canary.
-
No CCF Government will rest content until it has eradicated capitalism and put into operation the full programme of socialized planning which will lead to the establishment in Canada of the Cooperative Commonwealth.
— 1933 Regina Manifesto
During two months of campaigning to lead the NDP we’ve questioned the foundation of our economic system more than all branches of the party over the past few years. But our position has deep roots in the NDP/CCF and is more relevant than ever as capitalism destroys the prospect for human survival.
In a recent hit piece labelling me a “perennial gadfly” National Post columnist John Ivison mockingly noted, “Engler is campaigning on a platform to abolish capitalism.” At the more liberal end of the corporate press, Toronto Star reporter Mark Ramzy buried my candidacy in a long piece devoting significant attention to the more capital friendly contestants, simply noting I was running “for the leadership on an anti-military and anti-capitalist platform.” The Western Standard, Queen’s Journal, Rebel, Left of the Box and others have all described me as an anti-capitalist candidate and hundreds of thousands have read or watched my launch commentary, releases and videos saying I’m running to challenge capitalism. In recent days thousands of “capitalism can’t be fixed” leaflets and posters for the Toronto launch of a ten-city national tour have been distributed.
Aside from this recent flurry of anti-capitalist rhetoric, it’s remarkable how little discussion in NDP circles there has been of our wealth-concentrating, ecologically destructive economic system. But challenging capitalism is more important than ever.
Capitalism is a system of minority and class rule that is based on the private ownership of the means of livelihood. Capitalist collectives (corporations) have socialized labour while operating as privately owned workplace dictatorships that centralize power in the hands of a small elite.
Capitalism is a threat to humanity. The system’s need for constant profit maximization and growth is imperilling human survival. The last three years were the hottest in 100,000 years and CO2 levels are the highest in millions of years. Canadians have among the highest per capita GHG emissions, yet Canadian capital continues to expand its heavy GHG emitting tar sands extraction.
It’s not just the climate crisis. The search for corporate profits is driving mass species extinction, soil depletion, ozone layer thinning, loss of arable land, freshwater depletion and other ecological crises.
Capitalism is imperilling our ability to live on the planet but it’s also destroying our health. The growing health impact of plastics, a late twentieth century corporate invention, is a case in point. Researchers have found that most of us now have as much as a small spoon worth of plastic particles in our brains.
Capitalism also damages our mental health. Incessant messages to buy this and buy that are destabilizing. A staggering amount of resources and ingenuity are devoted to convincing us we need this or that (always more) to be satisfied.
At the same time as it wages a war on our psyche, capitalism alienates us from our labour. It devalues work, generally paying the hardest working people the least. In recent years Canadian capital has waged an unrelenting war on working class organizations, driving Canada’s private sector unionization rate to its lowest level in 80 years.
As capitalists attack unions, the system concentrates wealth in the hands of an ever-smaller elite few. Canada’s wealthiest family, the Thompsons, have nearly $100 billion. Canada has about 75 billionaires, who control more wealth than millions of Canadians. According to data from the Parliamentary Budget Officer, the richest 1% of Canadians hold 24% of the country’s total net wealth while 53% of all wealth is held by the top 10%.
Wealth concentration is a threat to democracy. Through their ownership of shares, large shareholders have an excessive amount of power within the political system. They buy political parties, own the media, fund think tanks, organize themselves in business lobby groups, amongst other things. In short, they try to mould societies’ political, cultural and economic structure to their benefit.
But my campaign does not just criticize capitalism. It offers an alternative.
One dollar one vote capitalism should be replaced with one person one vote economic democracy. Wherever there’s social labour, there should be community ownership and workplace democracy.
As my late uncle Allan Engler argued in Economic Democracy: The Working Class Alternative to Capitalism the required social change should “be based on workplace organizations, community mobilizations and democratic political action; on gains and reforms that improve living conditions while methodically replacing wealthholders’ entitlement with human entitlement, capitalist ownership with community ownership and master-servant relations with workplace democracy.” (You can watch my father’s series of videos called Economic Democracy or No Democracy — An Anti Oligarchy Manifesto seeking to popularize the themes.)
And these ideas are clearly growing in popularity.
In its first ten days of fundraising my bid to lead the NDP on an anti-capitalist platform has raised over $55, 000. Additionally, we’ve more than doubled the nomination threshold to participate in the leadership race with over 1,000 party members, covering all the party’s regional, equity and age requirements, signing my nomination form.
Despite fulfilling the nomination and financial criteria, there’s a possibility the party brass will block me from the race. But even those who don’t plan to vote for me should reject this type of anti-democratic manipulation. All but the most reactionary party members should want capitalism to be on the agenda in the NDP leadership race.
This is the CCF/NDP tradition. According to the 1933 Regina Manifesto, the aim of the party is to “REPLACE the present capitalist system” while the 1969 Waffle manifesto says, “Capitalism must be replaced by socialism.”
If I’m not allowed to participate in the race don’t expect much discussion of capitalism. If I’m allowed to run expect everyone in the race to be questioning the odious economic system by the end of it.
The post Back to the Future: NDP Must Debate Capitalism again first appeared on Dissident Voice.This post was originally published on Dissident Voice.
Pride in Labour will hold a rally titled ‘Conference Cancelled, Democracy Denied’ outside the Wheel of Liverpool on Saturday 27 September. The group will be there to protest at the Labour Party’s disgraceful decision to cancel the women’s conference.
Labour Party women’s conference cancellation: a move to push trans women to the margins
This cancellation is not just a scheduling issue, it is a deliberate attempt by the party leadership to silence women and shut down democratic debate, particularly on trans inclusion. Labour’s leadership has shown contempt for women members, denying them the right to meet, organise, and hold the party to account.
Avery Greatorex, Co-Chair of Pride in Labour, said:
Let’s be clear: cancelling the Women’s Conference is an attack on women, and especially on trans women, who are constantly scapegoated and pushed to the margins. It’s cowardly and authoritarian. Labour’s leadership is terrified of its own members, so it has decided to shut them out altogether. This is not the behaviour of a democratic party, it’s the behaviour of a leadership more interested in control than liberation. We will not be silenced, and we will not let them divide cis and trans women from one another.
The group is holding the protest outside the Wheel of Liverpool at 3.30pm on Saturday 27 September. Pride in Labour is calling on Labour members, trade unionists, community organisations, and allies to join them to demand democracy, inclusion, and accountability from Labour’s leadership.
Featured image via the Canary
By The Canary
This post was originally published on Canary.
Momentum continues to build around the Irish presidency campaign of independent candidate Catherine Connolly, with Sinn Féin (SF) coming out at the weekend to give their backing to the Galway West deputy. The announcement from SF leader Mary-Lou McDonald on Saturday means that all significant left-wing(ish) parties now back Connolly’s campaign, with the Green Party, Labour, People Before Profit, and the Social Democrats all voicing their support.
Catherine Connolly: Irish presidency campaign takes off
McDonald said:
We [the party’s executive committee] met this morning and the party leadership voted to support Catherine Connolly for President. This followed extensive consultation with our elected representatives and wider party nationally. We have two priorities to get Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael out of government and to keep them out of the Áras [president’s residence]. Today’s decision allows us to do that.
She went on to say that Catherine Connolly would be a “champion for Irish Unity in our time” and:
a voice for citizens with disabilities, the marginalised, and those too often ignored by those in power.
The Green Party’s Roderic O’Gorman TD (Teachta Dála) backed Connolly’s campaign by saying:
As a Party, we have been particularly impressed with how Catherine has placed advocacy against the genocide in Gaza, and the issue of climate change, at the centre of her election campaign.
The Galway West TD’s political stance is certainly well to the left of her campaign rivals, ex-soldier and Gaelic footballer Jim Gavin (selected by Fianna Fáil) and Fine Gael candidate Heather Humphreys, the latter of whom has attracted negative publicity for attending parades held by the sectarian Orange Order.
Connolly speaking out and standing up for social justice
Meanwhile, Catherine Connolly has spoken out forcefully on issues such as any potential alteration to Ireland’s “triple-lock” system which requires consent from the Dáil, Irish government, and United Nations before Ireland can send more than 12 troops abroad.
She warned of the danger posed by the “warmongering military industrial complex” and said:
We will not give it away [our neutrality], and we will not give away the triple-lock, no matter what lies you [the government] tell us, no matter what narrative you spin, we know what’s going on.
In her official campaign statement, Catherine Connolly said neutrality is:
one of Ireland’s greatest strengths, and I will defend it with clarity and conviction.
The former barrister and clinical psychologist has also criticised the failed policies on housing that have stuffed the wallets of landlords but led to homelessness and a lack of affordable homes. She can be seen repeatedly calling for more social housing to be built.
She has also strongly condemned so-called Israel’s genocide in Gaza, refusing to be compromised by the lying mainstream media’s narrative on the topic. On today’s BBC Talkback programme, she refused to rule out Hamas being part of a post-Holocaust government in Palestine, stating that:
Hamas is part of the fabric of the Palestinian people.
A symbolic position, but an important one now more than ever
While the role of president is largely symbolic, the actions and words of the Irish president are closely followed. The stances on Palestine of the incumbent Michael D. Higgins have often attracted worldwide attention, while Mary Robinson’s position as an overwhelmingly popular left-leaning figure – at times her approval ratings were as high as 93% – probably had some role in Ireland’s shift to becoming a more progressive country.
While it may be difficult to see the significance of who sits in place at the Áras an Uachtaráin (Residence of the President) when a generally inoffensive person takes up the role, the potential presence of an overwhelmingly toxic figure as president perhaps brings the position’s importance into sharper relief.
This year saw thug, rapist, and racist Conor McGregor consider a run at becoming head of state, with all the disastrous implications that would mean for Ireland’s reputation. Thankfully, he didn’t receive the support required to begin his reign of terror/idiocracy.
At the official launch event of Catherine Connolly’s campaign this evening at Wynn’s Hotel in Dublin, Labour’s Marie Sherlock said the:
role of president carries immense moral power and influence” going on to say it “has never been more important…in a world that feels like it’s gone mad.
As the planet burns and a genocide rages on, every political role takes on more importance than may have previously been the case.
Featured image via the Canary
This post was originally published on Canary.
As Your Party hits a stumbling block, grassroots democracy organisation Assemble is stepping up to build a genuine party of the people. And it means one that can win for Palestine, for the climate, and for the people instead of the billionaires.
However, to do so, Assemble will need all hands on deck. It aims to raise £150,000 to train 10,000 volunteers that can run people’s assemblies across the country.
Assemble to the rescue as Your Party falters
Assemble is the sister organisation to Youth Demand and Just Stop Oil that delivers grassroots democracy. It has been in talks with Your Party for months. Crucially, it has been organising on the ground, preparing to deliver a huge training programme to turn local supporters into organisers and facilitators that can run mass assemblies all over the country.
Now the leaders of Your Party, Zarah Sultana and Jeremy Corbyn, are at odds, and only just beginning a process of reconciliation between them. Nevertheless, the people are demanding the project goes ahead. Given this, there is no time to wait.
There is a proposal called ‘Our Party’ which suggests a way forward. It calls to:
implement the founding process of regional assemblies and [democratic sortition] Conference as was originally published by Your Party.
Supporters of Your Party can all agree on this – and Assemble is in service to make it happen. In fact, it’s exactly what the group has been doing for the past 16 months with huge success.
Building the movement from the bottom-up
To achieve this, Assemble plans to galvanise over 10,000 people to help facilitate huge regional deliberative meetings. Already, Assemble has been in discussions with Your Party to create the training program to mass upskill the movement and build it from the bottom-up.
When the centre hesitates, the Left must organise. Assemble says that the “deep and empowering” training programme will cost £150,000:
to infuse the movement with a course of more than five trainings on facilitation, community outreach, anti-oppression, assembly culture and assembly organising.
It’s why it has now launched a crowdfund, so that supporters of Your Party can help make its plan a reality.
Importantly, the group has noted that:
All funds will go to building a democratic organisation owned by its members.
As soon as crowdfunds come in, it plans to spend it on:
- A ‘Mega Training Weekend’ in October. This will involve 500 trained and 500 trainers
- An online training course. Assemble will run regular trainings on facilitation, how to run an assembly, community outreach, respect – and more.
- In-person regional training days. These will train 10,000 facilitators to host regional meetings and listen to the input of 60,000 people.
- Assemblies at universities with Youth Demand, Your Party meetings, and more.
Your Party supporters: Assemble!
Assemble has already kickstarted the training programme. So, supporters can sign up now if they’re ready to tear down and rebuild the UK’s broken politics brick by brick.
The current programme is as follows:
1. Culture of Inclusion & Respect Workshop: Mondays 7pm.
2. Facilitator Training: Tuesdays 7pm.
3. How to Run an Assembly training: Alternate Wednesdays 7pm.
4. How to mobilise training: Alternate Wednesdays 7pm.
5. Building the movement intro Call: Thursdays 7pm.Your Party supporters can help Assemble continue its extensive and ambitious programme to help the party hit the ground running by donating to its crowdfund here.
Featured image via the Canary
By The Canary
This post was originally published on Canary.
Your Party branches in Scotland have united in an open letter to Jeremy Corbyn and Zarah Sultana, urging them to “work together in the interest of the many”. It comes just as Sultana has issued a statement affirming her determination to reconcile with Corbyn and move the party forward in a “unified way”.
Your Party Scotland branches: a letter urging unity
Groups from Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh, Forth Valley, Glasgow, and Lanarkshire have come together to:
demand transparent leadership from those who seek to lead our movement.
Your Party in Scotland have made a series of demands of those leading the process of founding the new party. These include a de-escalation of the serious disagreements seen earlier this week, a relaunch of membership in earnest, and transparency of leadership going forward.
Hundreds of people have already attended public meetings across the country, showing the need for a new kind of politics, which goes beyond a handful of MPs.
The proto-branches say it is now time to work together, towards a founding conference, as we:
fight the encroaching far-right and threats of global fascism.
Your Party doesn’t belong to MPs…
In the letter, published on Friday, the groups wrote:
In Scotland, as across Britain, this is a generational opportunity to build something new. Drug deaths remain at record levels. Rough sleeping and homelessness represent the very worst of a housing emergency. Local councils and services have been hollowed out. Austerity from Holyrood has done little to protect us from the worst indulgences of right-wing governments in London.
Tens of thousands of us, as the public already knows, recognise this cannot go on. Only a radical political programme can start to reverse this societal decline, and there is no time to waste.
Your Party doesn’t belong to MPs: it belongs to all of us. As grassroots organisers we will stay motivated and united. Across Scotland, mass meetings have already been held which shows an undoubted appetite for a new kind of politics – many other groups are in the process of being set up. This public setback cannot be allowed to slow the momentum behind Your Party. The stakes are far too high.
Centring the grassroots of our movement
Already, it seems the Your Party leadership have heard and heeded the call. In her statement, Sultana echoed much of this sentiment and said that her:
motivation has always been to ensure the collective strength of our movement, put members first and
build the genuinely democratic conference and socialist party we so urgently need.Once again, Sultana has stepped up to lead the fledgling left party forward, and importantly, she’s resolved to do it in a way that centres “the grassroots of our movement”.
Feature image via the Canary.
By The Canary
This post was originally published on Canary.
Labour Party officials are attempting to stifle debate on Israel and Palestine at the party conference, to prevent calls for the government to take meaningful steps to end complicity in the Zionist entity’s genocide in Gaza. The disgraceful move comes amid the Labour government’s symbolic, but largely tokenistic – and entirely inadequate in isolation – recognition of recognition of a Palestinian state.
Labour conference sees shameless suppression of motions for Palestine and against Israel
Ahead of the party conference in Liverpool which begins on Sunday 28 September, the Conference Arrangements Committee (CAC) met on Thursday. It decided to rule out more than 30 motions constituency Labour Parties (CLPs) and affiliated organisations had submitted. Shamefully, the CAC ruled out every motion on Palestine.
Contemporary motions at conference have to meet the criteria that the issue must not have been substantially addressed in the National Policy Framework (NPF) Annual Report 2025 which was published on 8 August. It ruled out of order the overwhelming majority of Palestine motions on the grounds that the motions do:
not relate to a new issue not substantially covered in the NPF report.
This is despite the fact many focused on events that took place after the NPF Report was published. This includes the announcement of the Israeli government’s plans to militarily occupy Gaza City on 8 August. And, on the 10 August, Israel murdered five Al Jazeera journalists in Gaza City.
The motions also make demands on the Labour Party that the NPF Report does not include. For instance, one calls for an end to all arms trade and military cooperation with Israel. Others urge comprehensive sanctions, and a ban on trade that aides or assists Israel’s violations of international law.
A three-fold increase in Palestine motions: growing anger at the Labour leadership’s position
The number of motions sent to the Labour conference demanding the party takes more action on Israel and Palestine has dramatically increased since last year. In 2024, CLPs and affiliated organisations sent just three motions to conference. This ten-fold increase shows the growing level of anger from the grassroots at the leadership’s position. Recent polling has found that 72% of Labour’s 2024 voters want a full arms embargo on Israel.
Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC) director Ben Jamal said:
Just days after a UN Commission of Inquiry confirmed that Israel has committed and is committing genocide in Gaza, it is shocking that Labour officials are trying to block a large influx of motions in solidarity with Palestine from being debated at this year’s party conference. By continuing to deny that Israel is committing genocide, the government seems determined to ignore the overwhelming evidence as well as growing public outrage at its ongoing failure to take meaningful action to end British complicity with Israel’s crimes against the Palestinian people. The government needs to accept that it cannot simply clamp down and silence those speaking out against Israel’s genocide. Labour Party members must be allowed to debate these issues in Liverpool.
John McDonnell MP said:
With more than 30 motions on Palestine submitted to this year’s Labour party conference, it is clear that party members see Israel’s genocide against the Palestinian people as a major issue that needs to be raised on conference floor. This week’s landmark report by a UN Commission of Inquiry, that concluded Israel is committing genocide in Gaza, should be a wake-up call. The government should join those including Sadiq Khan who have spoken out this week to make clear that what we are witnessing in Gaza is genocide and urgently implement sanctions, including a full arms embargo and a ban on all trade that aids or assists Israel’s crimes against the Palestinian people. Delegates must not be prevented from discussing these issues at conference.
Feature image via YouTube/ the Telegraph
By The Canary
This post was originally published on Canary.
On 18 September, the Newham Independents took another Council seat from Labour:
We are proud to announce that MD Nazrul Islam is the newest Newham Independent Councillor on Newham Council.
It was a stunning victory.
Newham Independents 913 votes
Labour 436 votesWe will continue to build on this victory going into the elections in May 2026
pic.twitter.com/HK0Tcg9sBY— Newham Independents
(@NewhamIndParty) September 18, 2025The cost of the status quo is Newham Independents’ gain
Centrist politicians often claim they’re ‘pragmatists’, and that having strongly held beliefs is ‘student politics’. Increasingly, however, it’s clear our political establishment are the ones who most stubbornly follow their beliefs – namely the failing ideology of endless wars and corrosive neoliberalism.
We’re pointing this out, because the Newham Independents only exist because of Labour’s dogged determination to support Israel through its genocide of the Palestinian people:
Assured win for Newham Independents, a group formed by ex-Lab councillors who resigned over Gaza https://t.co/dBYud93iwH
— Edmund Griffiths (@EdmundGriffiths) September 19, 2025
As Stats for Lefties highlighted, the win for the Newham Independents was decisive:
NEW | Left-wing independents have GAINED another council seat from Labour in Newham
NI – 45% (+45)
LAB – 21% (-34)
REF – 16% (+16)This is the third seat that Newham Independents have gained from Labour in by-elections since 2023. pic.twitter.com/FSk6zy7qkO
— Stats for Lefties
(@LeftieStats) September 19, 2025While the Newham Independents only hold three seats, this victory shows Labour are facing a real challenge in next year’s local elections. Infamously, Labour delayed several local elections this year, postponing them until 2026. The speculation was Labour feared a bad set of results; their polling has only gotten worse since then:
BREAKING | Labour plunge to 16% REF – 34% (-)
LAB – 16% (-3)
CON – 16% (+1)
LD – 13% (+1)
GRN – 12% (-)Via @FindoutnowUK, 17-18 Sep (+/- vs 10 Sep) pic.twitter.com/7f4lU8Om8B
— Stats for Lefties
(@LeftieStats) September 18, 2025
It’s not just Newham, either. Following a successful by-election in Redbridge this past March, Vaseem Ahmed (chair of Redbridge and Ilford Independents) had this to say:Ordinary working people rejected a party that no longer represents them.
Labour’s contempt for ordinary people was exemplified by their inaction towards former ward councillor and Ilford South MP, Jas Athwal, who as leader of Redbridge Labour Council, failed to licence his many rental flats, whilst enacting rules that forced everyone else to do so.
Labour has something of a growing problem with landlords, and this is likely what prompted Zarah Sultana to do the following:
Zarah Sultana has tabled an Early Day Motion calling for a ban on landlords serving as MPs.
— Evolve Politics (@evolvepolitics) September 18, 2025
And speaking of Sultana and Your Party, former MP Claudia Webbe highlighted that the Newham Independents are supportive of the political movement:Meanwhile, this is a stunning victory for @NewhamIndParty and supporters of https://t.co/h3fZLS0tFk https://t.co/TU9s5xyfT3
— Claudia Webbe (@ClaudiaWebbe) September 18, 2025
Problems all over
The problem Labour has isn’t that there are more and more parties to its left and right; the problem is Labour isn’t offering anything people want.
Politicians like the Newham Independents are filling a void left by an increasingly corporatised Labour. The way things are going, we predict Labour will be the fringe party 10 years from now.
Featured image via Newham Independents
By Willem Moore
This post was originally published on Canary.
A new group has launched a grassroots campaign to put democracy at the heart of Britain’s newest left party – just as it has descended into chaos. The Democratic Bloc, formed by would-be members of Your Party, aims to ensure the fledgling group is genuinely democratic, member-led and rooted in the struggles of working people.
‘Your Party’ must be fully democratic and rooted in communities
The campaign is calling for members to build the party from the ground up, with democracy as its foundation, ensuring it never repeats the stitch ups and ‘jobs for the boys’ characterised by Labour. It will bring members together to shape proposals for the party’s founding conference, ensuring the voice of ordinary activists sets the direction from day one.
Its key demands include:
- One Member, One Vote in all elections and decisions, ensuring every member has an equal say.
- Conference sovereignty, with no leadership or committee able to override members’ decisions.
- Open motions and debate, with members able to submit, amend and prioritise policies through a transparent online system.
- Fair membership fees, with concessions for young and low-income members, and funds shared fairly between national, regional, and local levels.
- Democratic accountability, with leaders and officials elected by and accountable to the membership.
- Trade union participation without domination, ending block votes but strengthening links to workplace struggles.
- Open candidate selection, ensuring MPs and councillors are accountable to members, not guaranteed safe seats.
- Dual membership with transparency, allowing collaboration with other democratic parties while protecting the integrity of our structures.
A ‘once-in-a-generation opportunity’ for real change
A spokesperson for The Democratic Bloc said:
This is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to build a new party on the left. But a party without democracy is just another machine for a few at the top. We want to make sure this new party is different, that it belongs to its members, that it is accountable, and that it never repeats the mistakes of Labour. Our campaign is about making sure democracy is written into the DNA of this movement from day one.
The campaign is inviting members and supporters to get involved by joining discussions, helping draft proposals, and organising for the founding conference. However, with Your Party now in chaos, it remains to be seen if this will happen.
Featured image via the Canary
By The Canary
This post was originally published on Canary.
Since the presidential elections in autocratic Mozambique last October that were marred by corruption, according to the opposition and international watchdogs, a nationwide pro-democracy grassroots movement has been notching serious gains. It loosely calls itself Anamalala Ngimi, meaning “We are the solution.”
The protests were sparked by Venâncio Mondlane, a 51-year-old political outsider who became the main opposition candidate for president. He began exhorting Mozambique’s youth not to take the fraud lying down during provocative live-streams on YouTube.
“We worked via the medium available in the hands of every young Mozambican — a smartphone — and asked them to lead at a community level,” Mondlane said.
The post Youth-Led Pro-Democracy Movement Makes Gains In Mozambique appeared first on PopularResistance.Org.
This post was originally published on PopularResistance.Org.
In the wake of Charlie Kirk’s death, US right wingers demanded a ‘war on the left’ – but also free speech. Although the American right claim to support freedom of speech, the truth is they only want this freedom for themselves, and that truth has never been clearer.
In response, even right-leaning Democrats like Gavin Newsom are speaking out:
Buying and controlling media platforms.
Firing commentators.
Canceling shows.
These aren’t coincidences.
It’s coordinated. And it’s dangerous.
The @GOP does not believe in free speech.
They are censoring you in real time.
— Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) September 17, 2025
Crack down on US free speech
On Wednesday 17 September, ABC cancelled the Jimmy Kimmel show following some mild criticism of Trump:
Not a big fan of Jimmy Kimmel, but if you think his show should be canceled for this, you’re a hack and a total fraud who should never pretend to care about free speech pic.twitter.com/FSiktbva6y
— Republicans against Trump (@RpsAgainstTrump) September 17, 2025
Now, it’s reported the cancellation happened because the TV networks are terrified of Donald Trump:Rolling Stone is now confirming what we all knew happened with Jimmy Kimmel’s show. According to their reporting, executives at ABC and Disney didn’t think Kimmel said anything outrageous but they feared retaliation from Trump. This is a blatant attack on free speech. pic.twitter.com/Jozg3ELKun— Harry Sisson (@harryjsisson) September 18, 2025
You see this isn’t a sign of a healthy democracy, right?It get’s worse, with attorney general Pam Bondi announcing a crackdown on ‘hate speech’:
Pam Bondi…. “we’re going to start targeting people for hate speech”
ok then…when will you formally charge Trump? pic.twitter.com/gF5ZkN8jQs
— Mark
(@Markfry809) September 16, 2025
Well, this is awkward:Awkward for Pam Bondi. pic.twitter.com/KjeDmy4CNN
— Rick Wilson (@TheRickWilson) September 16, 2025
What will hate speech look like under the Trump regime? Seemingly, anything which hurts Trump’s feelings:BREAKING: In an insane moment, Trump confirms that he will use his power to compel Pam Bondi to go after people who ask him mean questions. “We’ll probably go after people like you because you treat me so unfairly.”
Fascism is here, folks. pic.twitter.com/djlxbYfZTI
— Really American
(@ReallyAmerican1) September 16, 2025
And here’s more on that – a video of history’s softest boy arguing his fellow Americans should go to jail for being mean to him:“They started to scream when I got into a restaurant, something with Palestine. with that. I’ve asked Pam to look into that because they should be put in jail.” – Donald Trump
RIP free speech.
— Spencer Hakimian (@SpencerHakimian) September 15, 2025
People are highlighting how one-sided this all is:
Free speech for Charlie Kirk.
Censorship for anyone quoting him.
The Trump administration in a nutshell. pic.twitter.com/xN6ETEoJGj
— Leia (@TheSWPrincess) September 16, 2025
Speaking of the hypocrisy, Kirk himself took advantage of the freedom to speak ill of those who were brutally murdered:
This is what Kirk said ab the death of George Floyd. Even if one does not like Floyd and even if Floyd was a criminal, should a good Christian say sth like that ab a dead person? Does Jesus not love everybody (also according to Kirk)? Kind of double standards at work here, it… pic.twitter.com/eB47B3O0Ev
— Markus Virgil Hoehne (@HoehneVirgil) September 17, 2025
A Supreme Court justice had this to say:NEW: Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor slams Attorney General Pam Bondi: “Every time I listen to a lawyer-trained representative saying we should criminalize free speech in some way, I think to myself, that law school failed.”RETWEET if you stand with Justice Sotomayor! pic.twitter.com/sO1G2LeEDR
— Protect Kamala Harris
(@DisavowTrump20) September 16, 2025It should be noted that the crack down isn’t universally popular with the right, with some prominent voices speaking out:
Tucker UNLEASHES on AG Pam Bondi with a blistering 3-minute rebuttal to her remarks on “hate speech.”
The monologue version of Tucker is back. This is EXACTLY what we need from him right now.
“There’s free speech and then there’s hate speech. This is the Attorney General of the… pic.twitter.com/1M9B0nmEp7
— Vigilant Fox
(@VigilantFox) September 17, 2025Any trust I had in Pam Bondi just went down the toilet. If you don’t have hate speech you don’t have free speech. If you’re on the right, do NOT be tempted to cheer on the surrendering of the first amendment just because now we’re the ones hearing words that we don’t like. https://t.co/iP1MRr90rs
— JP Sears (@AwakenWithJP) September 16, 2025
There’s more
Vice president J.D. Vance, meanwhile, is instigating a culture of cancelling people – a sort of ‘cancel culture’ if you will:
JD Vance: “When you see someone celebrating Charlie’s murder…call their employer.”
So much for free speech. MAGA now wants people fired for words. pic.twitter.com/XcONUMV0fl
— Republicans against Trump (@RpsAgainstTrump) September 15, 2025
In February this year, the US government fired a DOGE staffer after racist comments came to light. Vance said this in response:I obviously disagree with some of Elez’s posts, but I don’t think stupid social media activity should ruin a kid’s life. We shouldn’t reward journalists who try to destroy people. Ever. So I say bring him back. If he’s a bad dude or a terrible member of the team, fire him for that.
Vance has previously described censorship as “violence”:
Here is Hillary Clinton, calling for civil and criminal penalties for speech she disagrees with.
But why stop at jailing your opponents?
Hillary is calling for censorship, but she’s really calling for violence.
Reject censorship. Reject violence. https://t.co/igs0169OCT
— JD Vance (@JDVance) September 17, 2024
Congresswoman Jasmine Crocket and others highlighted the hypocrisy:
They cry “free speech” when it’s hate, violence, and lies. But the second we tell the truth or call them out, suddenly we’ve gone too far. That, my friends, is what you call selective outrage. pic.twitter.com/G245QhueYV
— Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett (@RepJasmine) September 17, 2025
Suddenly “hate speech” is bad. Suddenly “dehumanizing” people is bad. Suddenly “cancel culture” is good. Suddenly words have consequences.
The modern American right in 2025, folks.
— Mehdi Hasan (@mehdirhasan) September 16, 2025
Others pointed out the futility of treating these people like honest actors:genuine question, but how are we supposed to engage with the right on literally anything anymore. you can point out their hypocrisy around prosecuting free speech and defending a pedophile. you can point to facts and graphs. you can even quote them directly. none of it matters.
— victoria
(@vicwingly) September 16, 2025
Many are highlighting that US figures recently had the gall to lecture Europeans on free speech:I'm old enough to remember US libertarians condemning the UK for much less than what he is now proposing. It was six months ago!
— Bernard Keenan (@bernardkeenan.bsky.social) 2025-09-17T09:59:43.086Z
Funny, 6 months ago a guy looking exactly like him flew to Munich to lecture Europeans about free speech, saying ‘you can’t force people what to think’ even if it’s ‘hateful content.’
Strange how some twins can have such diametrically opposed principles. pic.twitter.com/MK0tnPUpje
— Arnaud Bertrand (@RnaudBertrand) September 16, 2025
The terror of the state
American exports have been in trouble since Trump enacted his tariff regime, but the US is still shipping its main export – authoritarianism:
Free speech banned in Windsor prior to Trump visit https://t.co/1hDPo4A1d1 I cannot see how this accurate photo is ‘malicious communication’ which must be indecent, grossly offensive, or menacing but I guess the police needed an arrest to take it down. pic.twitter.com/XpB54YDicQ
— Paul Lewis (@paullewismoney) September 17, 2025
Let’s not pretend this is a one-way street, though, as Trump is now emulating the UK’s proscription of Palestine Action:
“I am pleased to inform our many U.S.A. Patriots that I am designating ANTIFA, A SICK, DANGEROUS, RADICAL LEFT DISASTER, AS A MAJOR TERRORIST ORGANIZATION…” – President Donald J. Trump pic.twitter.com/irLHCkrX1n— The White House (@WhiteHouse) September 18, 2025
This is what congressional candidate Kat Abughazaleh had to say about the proscription:Trump just designated “Antifa” as a terrorist organization, on par with ISIS and Al Qaeda. As a reminder, “antifa” is short for “antifascist”.
They will use this lie to surveil, imprison, and kill Americans on the left.
This may be our Reichstag Fire moment. Wake up. https://t.co/R4H62O00lT
— Kat Abughazaleh (@KatAbughazaleh) September 18, 2025
Podcaster Matt Lieb, meanwhile, highlighted another free speech issue in America:Here’s hoping all the Democratic politicians shouting about Jimmy Kimmel being canceled will realize that deporting a green card holder and legal resident for protesting Israel is also a free speech issue. pic.twitter.com/HTtn9yiHIN
— Matt Lieb?? (@mattlieb) September 18, 2025
CODEPINK’s veteran protester Medea Benjamin had this to say:
Congressman Darrell Issa claims to be a “champion of free speech” yet he had me arrested for asking about Israel’s attack on Qatar. Speaking truth to power is not a crime.
Call his office (760) 304-7575 – press 1 – and demand Rep. Issa drop the charges. Free speech for all, not… pic.twitter.com/GNr4eAoK5c
— Medea Benjamin (@medeabenjamin) September 17, 2025
Don’t stop
Speaking on why we can’t back down, Turkish-American streamer Hasan Piker had this to say:
the administrations attacks against free speech are clearly coming from a place of weakness, they must present penalties for dissent and strike fear in your hearts. you cannot let them win, we have the numbers and they know this.
— hasanabi (@hasanthehun) September 18, 2025
Piker has a long history of speaking out on causes such as universal healthcare and Israel’s genocide of the Palestinian people. He also streams on Twitch, putting him directly in the anti-free speech firing line:
twitch is not a factor in the tyler robinson investigation at all and yet they want to bring the platform in to the story. there is a sinister reason and i think you all know what it is. https://t.co/pud4gti9TM
— hasanabi (@hasanthehun) September 17, 2025
We at the Canary found ourselves subjected to a similar witch hunt when we began speaking out against Israel in the Corbyn years. Much like our friends in America, we didn’t stop speaking out, because you cannot stop speaking out. The second you do, your enemies will declare victory and announce plans to oppress you even further.Freedom of speech has never been free; the cost is you must fight for it every day.
Solidarity to those who are making their voices heard.
Featured image via Lex (license details)
By Willem Moore
This post was originally published on Canary.
A group of community and union activists including filmmaker Ken Loach, union leader Ian Hodson, Liverpool legend Audrey White, Jewish activist Naomi Wimborne-Idrissi, and more has published an open letter welcoming the coming new ‘Your Party’ – and demanding genuine democracy, which they say is not met by the recent announcement that delegates to the opening conference will be decided by lots.
Your Party must be democratic
The letter, which others are invited to sign, reads:
This group of community and trade union activists has come together in support of a Platform for a Democratic Party. We are determined to do all we can to make the Your Party initiative, announced by Jeremy Corbyn and Zarah Sultana on July 24, a massive success which will change the British political landscape forever. Your Party is one of the most exciting political developments this century. It has the potential to be a beacon nationally and internationally for all those seeking a genuine anti-capitalist and socialist future.
More than 750,000 people have signed up. Our aim in launching this platform is to underline the vital importance of ensuring that their huge enthusiasm and energy is translated into genuine ownership over party structures and policies. We are not quibbling about bureaucratic details. We are insisting on the fundamental political principles required if our party is to resist establishment attacks and build the transformative movement that this moment demands. This must include a mobilising and radical political programme which offers a vibrant, grassroots socialist alternative to the tired, capitalist establishment parties.
We are therefore calling for:
A founding conference convened by a broad committee of local and national representatives.
Those intending to join the new party as grassroots members must have a clear majority of the voting power at the founding conference on the basis of One Member One Vote (OMOV) and must be fully represented in its planning and organisation. The Independent Alliance MPs are vitally important to developing the new party, but the conference organising committee must have an appropriate regional and gender balance, reflecting our political aim of empowering members in their localities. Your Party must not appear to favour MPs or other big names above grassroots activists! Key decisions on responsibilities and processes for convening the conference have to be taken by a committee that is transparent and accountable, otherwise it will not have the confidence of people at the grassroots. They are impatient for the party building process to forge ahead as quickly as possible, but they will lose heart if it is not conducted openly and with their full participation.A Party grounded in democratic participation, with local branch structures in which every single member has a vote.
These branches should be the primary democratic units around which representative decision-making structures are built, allowing delegates to be elected in every area on the basis of OMOV. They should form the bedrock of a bottom-up process solidly grounded in the grassroots membership. Trade unions, and other workers’ organisations and campaigning groups whose members want to join should also have democratic representation within the party. All decision-making forums will need to derive their authority from fully accountable representatives of local branches and regional structures. Members’ voices must not be drowned out by MPs or affiliated organisations. All local groups must have access to the data of members within their locality (taking into account GDPR rules). And all organisers of local groups must have access to other area organisers, via democratically constituted party forums.
Democracy, accountability and transparency.
Our parliamentary representatives must ultimately be servants of the party as a whole and we must ensure that all representatives, at every level, are always subject to democratic accountability, including right of recall and mandatory reselection. At its heart, Your Party must be accountable, transparent and democratic.
Initial signatories:
Eric Barnes, Chair, Social Justice Party
Mike Forster, Kirklees People’s Alliance for Change and Equality (PACE)
Ian Hodson, For the Many
Ken Loach, Film Director
Ben Sellers, founder, The People’s Bookshop
Audrey White, Merseyside Pensioners Association
Naomi Wimborne-Idrissi, For The ManyAudrey White told Skwawkbox:
The statement this week about deciding who can go to the conference by drawing lots is simply not democratic. How can it be representative? How can these random people be held to account? Also I think we should all know who is drafting the documents. Everything must be transparent and driven by the grassroots, we can’t have more of the same central command and control.
Sign here if you wish to add your name.Featured image via the CanaryBy Skwawkbox
This post was originally published on Canary.
The Department of Justice has removed a National Institute of Justice study from its website that showed that white supremacist and far-right violence and terrorism “continues to outpace all other types of terrorism and domestic violent extremism” in the US. The study was available on the DOJ website last week, according to an archive of the page
The study has been replaced by a message that:
The Department of Justice’s Office of Justice Programs is currently reviewing its websites and materials in accordance with recent Executive Orders and related guidance. During this review, some pages and publications will be unavailable. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.
One of Trump’s avalanche of executive orders tells government agencies to scrub any mention of words like “diversity” and “gender” from their sites.
Far-right terrorism study: gone
The deletion of the white terrorism study comes immediately after the assassination of Charlie Kirk, with some saying he was a far-right ‘groyper‘. The study contradicts the Trump regime’s narrative that the left is responsible for most political violence in the country, in order to justify an escalated crackdown on the supposed “radical left.” After Kirk’s murder, Trump immediately blamed the left:
For years, those on the radical left have compared wonderful Americans like Charlie to Nazis and the world’s worst mass murderers and criminals. This kind of rhetoric is directly responsible for the terrorism that we’re seeing in our country today, and it must stop right now. My administration will find each and every one of those who contributed to this atrocity and to other political violence, including the organisations that fund it and support it.
The now-gone study tells a very different – and much more recognisable – story:
Since 1990, far-right extremists have committed far more ideologically motivated homicides than far-left or radical Islamist extremists, including 227 events that took more than 520 lives. In this same period, far-left extremists committed 42 ideologically motivated attacks that took 78 lives.
Similar tactics have been used by the Starmer regime and the Israel lobby in the UK, who have attempted to paint peaceful anti-genocide protest as ‘hate’ and have classified conscientious action against Israel-owned arms factories as terrorism. This false narrative impacts actual policing, where hundreds of pensioners and disabled people have been arrested for ‘terror offences’ for peacefully holding a sign, while far-right rioters and thugs escape arrest and punishment.
Featured image via the Canary
By Skwawkbox
This post was originally published on Canary.
To mark International Day of Democracy, campaigners are calling on the prime minister to overhaul the relationship between government and people and to introduce a radical programme of democratisation.
International Day of Democracy: time to rewire the relationship of Whitehall with the country
In a letter to Keir Starmer, leading democracy and civil society advocates have cautioned the PM against the temptation to hoard power in Whitehall as he seeks to get his government back on track.
Instead, signatories urge Starmer to use ‘phase 2’ of his premiership to “lead a democratic revolution – rewiring the relationship between Whitehall and the rest of the country, and unleashing the full potential of people across the UK.”
Referencing a new report, Democracy SOS, the signatories call on the Prime Minister:
- To go further and faster on devolution, permitting councils to raise much more of their own money, and embedding meaningful citizen engagement at every level of decision-making.
- To crack down on disinformation, including sanctions for social media companies doing too little to combat deceptive material about matters of public interest.
- To cap political donations and restore the independence of the Electoral Commission, ensuring politics serves citizens, not vested interests.
Dr Simon Duffy, director of Citizen Network, commented:
In Northern towns and cities, and in many other parts of the UK, people feel dispossessed, while in London a handful of people make all the key decisions. We have lost hope that the existing political system will address the extreme inequalities and many of us are turning to more extreme alternatives. We really need a different kind of democracy, one that is rooted in our neighbourhoods and town halls. One where ordinary people are allowed to be involved in debating and deciding things for ourselves.
Democracy SOS: an 8-point plan for action
The Democracy SOS 8-point action plan sets out how government can make this shift. But the report also warns of the consequences of inaction. Without serious reform, trust will continue to erode, disengagement will deepen, and those who exploit fear and division will gain ground.
Writer and former head of civil renewal for the UK government, and author of Democracy SOS, Dr Henry Tam said:
A weakened democracy is so much easier for charlatans to exploit and bring in arbitrary rule. If politicians don’t save democracy while they still can, they’ll be the ones to blame when the abuse of power becomes the norm under an unscrupulous regime. We’ve seen it happening elsewhere, and we don’t want the UK to end up the same way. Democracy SOS sums up what leading advocates say urgently needs to be done. The government should act on it.
The report stresses that Britain cannot hope to tackle poverty, climate disruption, housing shortages, or health crises without a functioning democracy that works with – not against – its citizens. Now must be a turning point, it argues, in restoring trust in politics and giving people real power to shape the decisions that affect their lives.
Director of Unlock Democracy Tom Brake added:
Democracy is not a luxury. Without it, the country cannot solve the problems people care about most. The Prime Minister now has a chance to show real leadership by giving citizens the tools, rights and opportunities to bring about the change they want to see. This is his moment to strengthen democracy – not only for today, but for the generations to come.
Featured image via the Canary
By The Canary
This post was originally published on Canary.
You know when you have one of those moments that sticks with you? It was the Majority Conference recently in Newcastle.
I’d just got back to the venue, the impressive Great Hall in the Discovery Museum. The hall was filling up. All the volunteers in their Majority T-shirts. The high-quality slides and audio-visuals. Just the buzz, that a great event was pulled together in just six weeks by a 100% volunteer organisation.
Majority Conference: no egos, no power grabs
A mix of inspirational speeches, interviews, table discussions, and lots of practical training on how to get things done. People volunteering to step up and take on roles. Putting themselves forward as candidates. The whole team was uplifted, all being part of creating a success. No egos, no huffs, no power grabs. A model of teamwork.
We’re gearing up to contest next May’s local elections. We covered how we’ll be running in Newcastle and the rest of the North East. We’re building around the country, too.
We got a lot of coverage, including the BBC and the Guardian. They have a habit of calling it Jamie Driscoll’s Majority Party. The coverage is good, but incorrect on both counts.
It’s not Jamie Driscoll’s. I don’t own it, not the way Reform was a company owned by Farage, or in any other way. Nor do I control it. We’re completely democratic. In fact, every year, the entire membership votes on whether they want to boot out the current leader and elect a new one. I’m not aware of any other political organisation that gives their members such power.
Members get to vote on all key decisions, and have freedom to self-organise. My job as elected leader is half general secretary, managing resources, and half a chief training officer, empowering members and sharing my experience.
A platform to build progressive alliances, not a political party in the conventional sense
Majority is not a party, either. At least not as people usually understand it. The organisation that people join is a social movement, not a registered political party. No one has to leave their current party to join us. So long as you agree with our political values statement, you’re welcome.
There is a separate legal entity that is Majority the political party. We set that up, after discussions with the Electoral Commission, so we can run candidates as Majority if we wish. Or we can back Greens, or independents, or, when it’s ready, Your Party.
Our constitution commits us to seeking progressive alliances. Independent Holly Waddell who previously took a seat of the Tories in Northumberland, and the Green Party’s Sarah Peters who took a seat from Labour, both spoke at the conference. Two young women who stepped up, and got Majority support.
That’s the key. How do you build an organisation that people want to give their time to? It’s not enough to have a party where people think, “Well, I suppose they’re not as bad as the rest”. Without passionate volunteers, you need rich donors to pay the staff. If you need rich donors, you can never truly represent the people who vote for you.
Majority conference members ready to help shape ‘Your Party’
As Your Party takes shape, many of our members will be shaping it. I know I will. I’ll be arguing that to stop a far-right government in this country, we need a progressive alliance. We need radical grassroots democracy. We’re showing it can work.
Some say progressives need to build a social movement. Some say the focus should be on electoral politics. Why can’t it be both? In fact, how can it not be both? Without a broad base in society, we only represent ourselves. We won’t win against big money unless we’re embedded in communities. And without electoral success, how will we change public policy to serve the interests of the many and not the few? Citizens’ assemblies are great place to start.
So many people joined Labour, and went to their first meeting thinking, “Will we be talking about the climate, I wonder, or perhaps the NHS?” Then got there, and someone sold them a raffle ticket. Then a long report from the officers. Then a long and repetitive debate about leaflets. Honestly, it’s less interesting than being at work. And no one got within a mile of making any meaningful decisions. People concluded, “If I am going to make no difference, I can do that much more efficiently at home”. If you want volunteers to step up, you must engage their emotions and their intellect.
Majority is fun. We have reading groups, where everyone gets to develop their ideas in a safe space. We have film clubs. We have very little admin. We’re out campaigning. Against austerity. Against racism. Against genocide. For a sustainable world for ourselves and our kids. And every member gets an equal say. One member, one vote.
Zarah Sultana’s standing ovation: a sign of what’s to come
Zarah Sultana was our keynote speaker at the Majority conference. The hall was so packed people were standing round the edges. Even the venue staff came to listen. She’s a charismatic speaker. She got a standing ovation.
But all she did was articulate what every person in that room, and millions across this country were already thinking. It’s about time Britain was run in the interests of its people, not billionaires.
If we can win in Newcastle in May’s all-out elections, the whole country will look to us and believe it can be done.
Featured image via the Canary
This post was originally published on Canary.
The Canary spoke to Zarah Sultana and Jamie Driscoll after a packed event in Newcastle on 6 September where Sultana received a standing ovation for her powerful speech. And considering all the energy and enthusiasm around the Your Party project, we asked why it’s taking so long to set up the new party‘s founding conference.
Zarah Sultana: Conference must be democratic, with “one member, one vote”
Zarah Sultana understood supporters’ impatience, saying:
This is a political party that people have been desperately wanting for ages… And I understand the desperation in our communities that people just wanna get on with it and start doing stuff.
But we need to just get structures and governance and conference right. And you can’t really jump the process and you can’t really fast track that.
She also emphasised that:
the project we are undertaking is huge. It’s historic. It’s got over 750,000 people already interested
And she asserted:
It’s really important that we have a conference arrangements committee that is gender-balanced – it’s not just led by MPs, it’s regionally and racially diverse.
We need to make sure that conference is democratic. That’s what we’re all desperately wanting. So it has to have one member, one vote.
Everyone’s voice has to matter, she stressed, and democracy has to be “at the heart of this”.
Jamie Driscoll: “everything has to be member-led, member-decided”
Zarah Sultana came up to speak at the conference of Majority, “a progressive coalition of activists and voters who powered Jamie Driscoll’s recent Independent North East Mayoral campaign”. Driscoll has been part of the efforts to build a new mass party on the left.
Responding to the early days of Your Party, he pointed out that “all births are messy”, and that:
The first third of any project is actually pulling together what it is and scoping it out. And we’ve gone from zero and it’s out there.
Then, the next third is pulling the resources together, the people, the governance…
And then actually the last third is the delivery – and people look at that bit and think that that’s the project.
One trade union general secretary, he added, told him “well, our conference takes a year. As soon as we’ve finished, we start the next one.”
He said:
I certainly will be pushing as strongly as I can that everything has to be member-led, member-decided, including the election of general secretary and these sorts of positions.
Ensuring that kind of democratic communication and decision-making, he highlighted, is “gonna involve electronic platforms”, and “anyone who’s dealt with software knows that takes time”.
We’ll be releasing the rest of our coverage of Majority’s Newcastle event over the coming days, including the rest of our interview with Sultana and Driscoll.
By Ed Sykes
This post was originally published on Canary.
On Monday 8 September, Banksy unveiled his latest piece at the Royal Courts of Justice in London. As an obvious critique of Britain using the law to intimidate protesters, the piece quickly proved controversial with UK authorities. Obviously uncomfortable with the message, the police launched an investigation, and the courts deployed what can only be described as an ‘anonymous riot gimp’ to scrub the artwork from the walls:
BREAKING: They're scrubbing @banksy
The court is erasing Banksy's mural just like it's erasing our right to protest. pic.twitter.com/9PSKYcI2Dy
— Good Law Project (@GoodLawProject) September 10, 2025
This chain of events contrasts uncomfortably with the news that the UK government has decided Israel “isn’t committing genocide”.
This means the UK can decide that Banksy’s latest piece is potentially criminal in hours but they can’t call a genocide a genocide nearly two years in.
It’s all so very predictable of this current Labour government.
Banksy: war on piece
Regardless of whether you think Banksy should be allowed to paint on public buildings, he has done for years now, and Britain celebrated him for it. As such, it’s suspicious the police are now finally springing into action. Reporting on the potential criminal proceedings, the Independent wrote:
Banksy could finally see his identity revealed after police launched an investigation into his latest artwork at the Royal Courts of Justice in London.
The Metropolitan Police is examining whether the recent work, which shows a judge in a wig and gown beating a protester holding a blood-splattered placard, is enough to put him in front of the court where his name would be revealed to the public.
Potentially Banksy could away with this by simply not coming forwards? Presumably there are financial avenues the police could pursue to uncover his identity, but if not, we may end up with a situation in which thousands of UK citizens come forwards to claim ‘I am Banksy‘.
Several videos and images have come out of the image being removed, which originally looked like this:
Banksy: *graffitis hundreds of political slogans all over the world for over 25 years*
Police: *silence*
Banksy: *criticises crackdown on anti-genocide activists*
Police: *launch investigation*
Can you see how terrified they are of Palestinian liberation? pic.twitter.com/B645maDoJO
— Tiberius (@ecomarxi) September 9, 2025
At some point the riot gimp donned a high vis jacket, perhaps worried people couldn’t see him defacing the artwork at a distance:
Video of the new Banksy actually being scrubbed off:
An act of sheer vandalism by the state, just to hide their own political embarrassment. pic.twitter.com/6kRsYuWnUY
— Wokerati Marty (@WokeratiMarty) September 10, 2025
Multiplying the symbolism by 1,000%, the shadow of the image they tried to scrub is arguably more powerful than the original:
They removed it. pic.twitter.com/ywzZcOzTmy
— Lesley ☭ (@lesthecroc) September 9, 2025
Complicity
As Skwawkbox reported for the Canary on 9 September:
The UK government, after almost two years of providing political cover for Israel’s genocide and more than a year directly assisting it, has announced its carefully considered conclusion that… you’ve guessed it: Israel is not committing genocide.
People had a strong reaction to this online:
The Labour Party is complicit in the extermination of an entire race. Anyone who remains politically associated with these filth is a collaborator in genocide. https://t.co/dGVzquh6db
— Stats for Lefties
(@LeftieStats) September 8, 2025Unbelievable before the visit of the Israeli President this week British Labour Govt says it’s not ‘Genocide’ in Gaza pic.twitter.com/x2I3oTBsed
— ARTIST TAXI DRIVER (@chunkymark) September 9, 2025
The government explained that it doesn’t consider it to be genocide because:
As per the Genocide Convention, the crime of genocide occurs only where there is specific “intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial or religious group.” The Government has not concluded that Israel is acting with that intent.
We’re not sure where Labour was looking, but it certainly wasn’t at the widely documented instances of senior Israeli politicians making their genocidal intent clear.
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant:
"I have ordered a complete siege on the Gaza Strip. There will be no electricity, no food, no fuel, everything is closed. We are fighting human animals and we act accordingly."
— Maha Hussaini (@MahaGaza) October 9, 2023
Amnesty International reported on this too, stating:
In its analysis, the organization also considered alternative arguments such as ones that Israel was acting recklessly or that it simply wanted to destroy Hamas and did not care if it needed to destroy Palestinians in the process, demonstrating a callous disregard for their lives rather than genocidal intent.
However, regardless of whether Israel sees the destruction of Palestinians as instrumental to destroying Hamas or as an acceptable by-product of this goal, this view of Palestinians as disposable and not worthy of consideration is in itself evidence of genocidal intent.
Many of the unlawful acts documented by Amnesty International were preceded by officials urging their implementation. The organization reviewed 102 statements that were issued by Israeli government and military officials and others between 7 October 2023 and 30 June 2024 and dehumanized Palestinians, called for or justified genocidal acts or other crimes against them.
Of these, Amnesty International identified 22 statements made by senior officials in charge of managing the offensive that appeared to call for, or justify, genocidal acts, providing direct evidence of genocidal intent. This language was frequently replicated, including by Israeli soldiers on the ground, as evidenced by audiovisual content verified by Amnesty International showing soldiers making calls to “erase” Gaza or to make it uninhabitable, and celebrating the destruction of Palestinian homes, mosques, schools and universities.
Contrast
Maybe if Banksy paints the statements of senior Israelis on the walls of listed buildings, UK politicians will finally have to acknowledge them?
Or maybe not.
The moment when Labour could have held Israel accountable is long gone, as our government is just as implicated as the Tories they replaced at this point. And much like with Banksy’s latest piece, these politicians will struggle to wipe away the stain of what they’ve done.
Featured image via Good Law Project – X/Twitter
By Willem Moore
This post was originally published on Canary.
The imprisonment of Imran Khan is now a subject occupying the ground and shifting the mood of Pakistan in reaction. With his party symbol taken away and being surrounded by hundreds of other lawsuits, Khan continues to dominate conversations at the market stalls, tea stalls, and social media feeds. For many, he is an icon of resistance against a system long branded as one that silences popular leaders—a picture that awakens echoes of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto’s fate. His supporters see him as a victim of political engineering and these very political constraints. An outright ban on visits to his family, detention of his allies, and exile of sympathetic journalists have only strengthened the very allegiance among his supporters. Far beneath the floods, economic hardships, and day-to-day life lingering in their heads is the name of Imran Khan, both as a grievance against the ruling elite and a rallying cry for hope. Hence, his incarceration metamorphosed into a reflection of Pakistan’s truncated democracy, where public sympathy came into conflict with establishment revenge.Stolen Verdict
The general elections exposed deep cracks in the democracy of Pakistan on February 8, 2024. Independent candidates joined Imran Khan’s PTI who won the most seats, leaving PML-N and PPP behind. However, not a single party managed to carry the clear majority, further escalating political uncertainty. Allegations regarding the vote rigging and other irregularities occupied the whole post-election scenario. PTI leaders accused the Election Commission of manipulating the result by delaying the announcement while reports of interference in vote counting identified the denial of PTI’s election symbol and thus painted in a picture of pre-election suppression.
This controversy deepened when a divisional commissioner came up and confessed to fraud under duress from superiors before walking it back. These forces have manipulated the results of the elections but the findings have largely shown that the public is up against rejection of Pakistan’s dynastic parties, coupled with the public’s resentment of military interference in politics.
Trials of Power
The demise of Imran Khan is linked to a series of prominent cases. The leaked “cipher” which was published by The Intercept, suggested that there was pressure from the U.S. for his ouster over his Russia-Ukraine policy, which subsequently landed him a 10-year sentence under the Official Secrets Act. Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi were also sentenced to seven years in the controversial Iddat case, which questioned the validity of their 2018 marriage, before they were acquitted on appeal in July 2024. He was also given a 14-year sentence on the Toshakhana wristwatch case involving gifts from foreign states. In a related inquiry, £190 million was allegedly diverted from property tycoon Malik Riaz to the Al-Qadir Trust linked to Khan and his wife, resulting in corruption charges. Such politically engineered cases, in the eyes of his supporters, have further exacerbated public grievances and reaffirmed his image as a persecuted leader.
Pakistan’s Hybrid Power Structure
Pakistan manifests a hybrid power system of political order where a military establishment converges with dynastic families, capitalist elites, and technocrats, who would all be working together to keep control. The ex-army officers occupy such lofty positions in civilian offices and institutions like NADRA, PTA, and WAPDA. This certainly indicates that there is a lot of military penetration in civilian governance and policy-making.
Major parties being politically dominated by families like the Sharifs and Bhuttos who together exert family connections to establish the political monopoly and hinder political competition in an ongoing rivalry. Meanwhile, bureaucrats and business elites align with military and political families, thus fortifying a resistant-to-change ecosystem. Such commodification of power produces civilian-military brackets, institutionalises elite capture, and perpetuates the fragile democratic order in Pakistan.
Exodus of Talent and Capital
Emigration from Pakistan continues at a very brisk rate till now after regime change involving Imran Khan. For instance, in 2023, 862,625 people migrated, a slight improvement over the figure of 832,339 in 2022; hence, a gradual outflow instead of a sudden spike (PIDE BEOE). The net migration figure is clearly negative, at -1.6 million for 2023 and -1.3 million for 2022; thus, it is more people going out than coming in Macrotrends.
While remittances have continued to show resilience, even during the pandemic period, future growth remains uncertain because of a possible slowdown in migration or diversion away from conventional labour destinations GIDS Report. This consistent outflow of professionals, labour, and capital represents one of the most grievous long-term losses for Pakistan and represents a debilitating drain on both talent and economic potential.
Deep State: Old Patterns, New Confrontations
Imran Khan’s four-year tenure indeed signified a drastic shift away from decades-old deep state patterns in Pakistan, especially when it came to an absolute rejection of U.S. drone strikes. For two reasons: One, in Khan’s government, there was no use of a drone on Pakistani soil, the first time since 2004. Unprecedented in its overt rejection of sovereignty, this act was Khan’s attempt to often evidently show that he rejected any imposition on sovereignty. For years, Khan had been mobilising protests against drones, condemning civilian deaths and secret pacts by past governments.
Khan condemned Pakistan’s military as having aided U.S. operations in Afghanistan, calling it a “slave war” that cost Pakistan 70,000 lives and billions of dollars in damages, openly shunning military establishment strategy to pursue Washington’s objectives.
In the past, however, accusations on Pakistan’s deep state have been persistent, accusing it of using non-state actors as instruments of proxy warfare in Afghanistan and Kashmir IDSA. It also facilitated the proliferation of Saudi-funded madrassas, from the 1970s onward, embedding puritanical ideologies which have altered Pakistan’s educational system and sectarian landscape.
Another dark shadow hung over the drug trade. The heroin trafficking routes during the Afghan jihad in the 1980s were reportedly protected by intelligence networks to finance their covert wars, as claimed by GISF. Reportedly, these networks then became modern-day militancy financed by narcotics connected to groups like the Taliban and the Haqqani’s Global Initiative.
Perhaps this level of opacity still exists today. During $364 million worth of defence contracts between the U.S. firms and Pakistan, it was suggested that arms be redirected to Ukraine alone. At the same time, claims by President Zelensky in 2025 that mercenaries from Pakistan had fought in favour of Russia were firmly rejected by Islamabad as false and politically motivated.
For Khan supporters, this entire proxy warfare, ideological manipulation, illicit trades, and foreign appeasement went soberly against Khan’s policy that placed sovereignty first. His open defiance of deep state’s traditional alliances, coupled with his own zero-drone-strike record, is understood as an immediate trigger for his downfall, that is, being punished in prison for going against deep-rooted interests.
Conclusion
The jailing of Imran Khan is all about much more than one man; it is the ultimate proof that the politics of Pakistan are hostages to a hybrid deep state—military overlords, dynastic families, capitalist cronies, and generals turned bureaucrats. For this reason, Khan was punished for refusing to bow down to the system: ending military drone strikes, opposing proxy wars, and exposing elite corruption. An insatiable addiction to foreign dictates, drug money, and Saudi influence has sustained a system whose output is a broken democracy, mass exodus of youth and captivity of the nation between sovereignty and servitude. Until this nexus is broken, every elected leader will remain disposable, and every citizen will remain expendable.
The post Stolen Democracy: Why Imran Khan Was Jailed first appeared on Dissident Voice.This post was originally published on Dissident Voice.
In cooperation with gangs and with massive popular support, Nayib Bukele is cracking down on dissidents and expanding the state’s carceral apparatus.
This post was originally published on Dissent Magazine.
As a species, we produce gardeners, devoted caretakers, and also arsonists.
This post was originally published on Dissent Magazine.
Flesh and blood alone cannot halt the advance of iron and steel. To stop the tanks, we need people to place blocks on the road and throw sand into the gears.
This post was originally published on Dissent Magazine.
Does Morena’s success offer a blueprint for the left? An exchange.
This post was originally published on Dissent Magazine.
The Brazilian president once argued that democracy will founder where inequality reigns. Today, he sees fighting inequality as democracy’s animating mission.
This post was originally published on Dissent Magazine.
