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Here Have Been Wide Expectations That the New- of a Campaign That Mobilised Many Thousands of Activists, Old and New, and Model Party Will Be Truly Member-Led

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Here Have Been Wide Expectations That the New- of a Campaign That Mobilised Many Thousands of Activists, Old and New, and Model Party Will Be Truly Member-Led the issue 18: September 2018 clarion £1 (unwaged 50p) A socialist magazine by Labour and Momentum activists labour CONFERENCE SPECIAL Fighting for the soul of Corbynism By Rida Vaquas, Tamworth CLP of the left simply cannot be separated from the fight for the Labour Party. Corbynism has renewed aspirations within Labour for more democratic party Three summers ago, Jeremy Corbyn was elected Labour leader off the back structures and cultures, and there have been wide expectations that the new- of a campaign that mobilised many thousands of activists, old and new, and model party will be truly member-led. encouraged tens of thousands more to see a future in the Labour Party. The appeal of Corbynism for the left outside the party was the value it Corbynism’s impact, more than anything else, has been to raise the stakes placed on extra-parliamentary endeavours, from which most Labour MPs were for the Labour left. It is difficult to overestimate the sheer extent of the de - aloof. Activists recognised Corbyn and McDonnell from their speeches at moralisation prevailing on the left prior to the 2015 leadership contest — in - demonstrations and their presence on picket lines. They marked out a distinct side Labour the prospects of even getting a left candidate on the ballot were path from the rest of the party’s concessions on austerity, on immigration policy slim, and outside a large section of campaign-oriented activists and socialists and on welfare reforms. Corbynism therefore represented a chance to make had given up on the possibilities of change within Labour altogether. the Labour Party not simply a party fix - Continued on page 3 Corbyn’s campaign and victory represented a seismic shift. Now, the future ated on the ballot box: though as last InsidE: left against brexit • open selections • digital democracy? • scrap the purge rule • left government lessons • a new anl? • push climate change up the agenda ‘left’ nationalism • more council battles • nationalise care • untangling antisemitism ISSUE 18 Contents page 3 This issue of The Clarion comes out for our third Labour Party con - Yes, another Europe is possible Alena Ivanova ference — our first issue was for conference 2016. Following our pages 4-5 success last year with a motion on the anti-union laws, we will be Labour democracy Joe Bilsborough, Daniel Round, holding a fringe meeting on that issue in Liverpool this year. We Mark Sandell, Rosie Woods, Maria Exall, Sacha Ismail have again produced model motions: on climate change, schools, page 6 benefits, council cuts and Europe (see bit.ly/2MyFsvy). We will up - date on these in the bulletin we bring out just before conference. Mitterand’s failures boosted far right Michael Elms Two other major focuses for us at conference 2018 will be the Lula’s PT Andressa Alegre fight for Labour democracy, including for a fully open selection pro - page 7 cess and the amendment of the rule under which socialist activists Lessons from Labour 1974-9 Martin Thomas have been purged; and, of course, Brexit. Those who know The Clar - Pages 8-9 ion will know that we are more committed than ever to building the Fight the anti-union laws Mark Osborn, Shen left campaign to stop Brexit and we will be working with other left- wingers for this goal at conference. Batmaz, Matt Wrack Those who are new to The Clarion will see that we represent a dis - Representing workers Tina McKay tinctive voice on the Labour left. Read, subscribe, get involved. page 10 Question Labour’s immigration policy Simon Hannah What kind of anti-fascist movement? Dan Katz about us PAGe 11 The Labour Party and the country are standing at a crossroads. Force climate change up the agenda Luke Neal Jeremy Corbyn’s election as Labour leader in 2015 and re-election page 12 in 2016 opened up a space for socialist politics to re-emerge into the Against left nationalism Ana Oppenheim British mainstream. The 2017 General Election result confirmed that Labour and Syria Mark Boothroyd there are millions of people in Britain who at least want to see an end page 13 to austerity, neo-liberalism and the worst miseries inflicted by the Labour councils and class struggle Cate Murphy, broken capitalist system. The socialist left of the labour movement Joshua Lovell, Jumbo Chan has a historic opportunity – we must seize it now. That means an open discussion on politics and principles; assisting page 14 the grassroots of the labour movement to develop our own policies Health and social care Nicholas Csergo, Kas Witana for a Labour government to transform society; building on and crit - page 15 ically engaging with policies proposed by the leader’s office, the Unravelling antisemitism Gary Spedding unions, constituency parties and other parts of the movement. Organise for trans rights Kate Harris It means democratising the Labour Party, preventing further coup attempts against the leadership, and preventing further unjust purges, page 16 suspensions, and expulsions. It means facilitating debate on Momen - Make conference sovereign Michael Chessum tum’s purpose, problems and future. The Clarion is a space for and a contribution to those debates. In This issue of The Clarion was printed on 7 September 2018 addition to news and reports from the labour movement, our cover - Printed by Mixam, Watford. Design by Gemma Short age will focus on: Email: [email protected] • Debate and discussion on class and class struggle today, and how Facebook: www.facebook.com/theclarionmag we go beyond ‘new politics’ and ‘progressive politics’ to revive work - Twitter: www.twitter.com/clarion_mag ing-class politics. Website: theclarionmag.org • How we make socialism’s task of building a new society based on Address: BM Box 4628, London, WC1N 3XX common ownership and need not profit the basic, unifying goal of the left; how we fight for bold socialist policies in the here and now. • Fighting nationalism; building working-class solidarity across Get involved: borders, and between workers of different backgrounds and from dif - ferent communities. • I want to contribute content to future editions of • Taking a serious and consistent approach to equality and libera - The Clarion tion struggles. • Standing up for rational debate and against the cultures of click - • I want a 6 month subscription for £6 I want a bait, conspiracy theory and instant denunciation which have unfor - year’s subscription for £10 tunately taken root among certain sections of the left. • I want to be a local distributor. I will take 5 issues We welcome involvement from comrades who are in broad agree - ment with these above points and aim to critically engage with ideas for 6 months for £24 . I will take 10 issues for 6 from across the left. months for £40 . I will take 5 issues for a year for £40 . I will take 10 issues for a year for £70 editorial board Name: ................................................................ Email: ................................................................. Edd Mustill, Rida Vaquas, Sacha Ismail, Ana Phone: ................................................................ Oppenheim, Simon Hannah, Rosie Woods, Address: ............................................................. Daniel Round, Nik Barstow, Michael Chessum Send money via PayPal to the email address [email protected] brexit Continued from front cover keep Brexit away from the agenda — Labour’s Brexit policy must be de - cided by members themselves. Certainly it will be a difficult debate to year’s general election proved, not at the expense of success at the ballot have, but that is precisely why we must have it. We need political clarity box. on a looming Brexit that will have huge ramifications for the NHS, cli - The promise of Corbyn’s politics consists of hope and courage, sum - mate change and jobs, and clarity comes from discussion, not handing marised by the thumping 2015 victory speech that stated “things can down lines. We need to defend and fight to extend free movement. change, and they will, change.” That means resisting the temptation to Beyond conference we need to get to work building a movement that make concessions behind closed doors and having faith in the movement lives up to Corbynism’s promises. The Labour Party cannot sit back as to think and act for itself. However, as the Corbyn leadership consoli - the far right is able to attack trade unionists and bookshops, nor should dates itself at the head if the party, and sections of the left are cementing we see it as someone else’s job to do the anti-fascist organising. From new hierarchies within the movement, we must make sure this isn’t lost. branch to branch, the party must organise itself to defend the labour On many issuses — for instance advocacy of public ownership — the movement from attack. situation is vastly better than before 2015. On others — from the record We need much bolder policies, policies adequate to the struggles we of Labour councils to support for workers’ struggles to democratising face today, and solid campaigns around them. We need support, real, ac - and changing the culture of the party — progress has been slow. On oth - tive, mass-mobilising support for workers’ and community struggles. And ers there has been regression — retreat on migrants’ rights, attempts to above it all we need a ‘socialist horizon’, putting the debate about com - suppress left-wing dissent and critical voices not only by the right but prehensively transforming society back on the agenda. by sections of the left, and a siege mentality in which even friendly crit - The soul of our ‘Corbynism’ is about our willingness to envision and icism of or pressure on the leadership is viewed with alarmed hostility. fight for a better world, and the need to build a stronger, healthier, We need to fight for Labour’s conference to be the place where key more democratic and more radical movement to lead this fight.
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