To combat rightwing populists, Chris Powell calls for “a local action network, a permanent organising infrastructure … to listen, act and communicate – identifying local problems, launching campaigns to fix them and publicising every small win” (What is Keir Starmer doing to push back the populists? Not nearly enough. We have a plan to take them on, 1 January).
An organisation that could fill this role already exists: it’s called the Labour party. And, under Jeremy Corbyn, it had a Community Organising Unit to do just what Powell now asks for.
That he overlooks this starkly illustrates how “analysts” and “advisers” such as himself have contributed to the party’s slide to the brink of oblivion.
The Community Organising Unit was disbanded by the Starmer leadership, and it has been made increasingly clear that members are only valued as canvassing fodder. So far from being listened to, they are ignored, and silenced when they attempt to contribute to organising efforts.
As for listening to the public, in my borough a councillor was threatened with disciplinary action for raising local residents’ concerns over sales of council property. When they resigned both council seat and party membership, the resulting byelection was lost to the Greens.
It should be no surprise that canvassing sessions now rely almost exclusively on local councillors, threatened with deselection if they fail to fulfil their quota of door knocking.
Julian Wells
Unite community delegate, Eltham and Chislehurst constituency Labour party
Chris Powell is right that Labour needs to acknowledge the anger and frustration of voters and fundamentally change its approach, demonstrating that it is on people’s side in relation to bread and butter issues. But describing the threat as “populism” avoids the issue.
If so many voters are fed up, it is because our economic and political system is failing to provide them with a decent quality of life and a fairer society. Inevitably, the far right exploits this to blame the victims and peddle racism, fear and lies.
Our crisis is systemic and requires major system change. But characterising the problem as “populism” is not a political analysis, and it avoids the question of what alternative policies might be capable of turning things around and defeating the far right. This leaves us with nothing more than a proposal to relaunch a failed proposition with better communication and campaigning around “local problems”.
Perhaps the most effective response to a popular programme of the right might actually be a popular programme of the left, grounded in radical equality, democracy and social justice.
Eddie Playfair
Leytonstone, London
Sir Chris Powell may well warn of the potential “populist threat to democracy”. But he needs to take a close look at the actual erosion to democracy that Labour is responsible for. Treating climate change activists as though they are terrorists; long periods of detention without a trial; failing to act on genocide; proposing an end to jury trials; cancelling local government elections. It’s too late, Sir Chris – your Labour party is the warm-up act for Reform UK.
Stephen Stone
Norwich
Labour appears blind to the success of populists’ use of social media. Local constituency Labour parties spend hours producing reports and holding meetings to satisfy every interest group within the party. We cloak our vulnerability to populism’s stoked-up resentments and nihilism with self-congratulatory PR waffle from above in preference to defining the nature of the beast we are up against.
Isn’t it beyond time that the leadership seek people skilled in running antifascist campaigns, with social media skills spread locally? In their use of TikTok Nigel Farage and co are way out in front.
Anthony Collard
Lincoln
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