On Saturday 8 November, at the Liverpool Adelphi Hotel, Socialist Alternative gathered for its annual Revolutionary Ideas event for the third time. It was an inspiring day of discussions, debates, rallies and panels, focused on the fight for revolutionary socialist change.
Attendees came from as far afield as Manchester, Liverpool, London, Leicester, Coventry, Huddersfield, Kent, Sheffield and even Germany. Many arrived energised from the march for Your Party held in Huddersfield, organised by PACE (with Socialist Alternative playing a leading role) on 18 October. Many young socialists left the day saying it was the best political event they had ever been to.
Anti-Imperialist Rally Calls for Workers’ Action Against Genocide
The day began with an opening rally, titled Fight the Rich, Not Their Wars, featuring speeches from Louise Lewis, National Education Union NEC member (in a personal capacity), Linda Fischer from Sozialistische Alternativ (ISA Germany), Aj. Dagga Tolar from Movement for a Socialist Alternative (ISA Nigeria) via video link, and Andy Moxley and Matt Hirst from International Socialist Alternative.
A central theme running through all the speeches was the need to build an international anti-war movement with the workers’ movement at its core. Louise Lewis, speaking as a fighting education trade unionist, said:
“Over the past two years, we’ve seen some of the biggest protest movements in a generation. Those protests have been inspiring and necessary, but if we’ve learnt anything from history, it’s that protesting alone isn’t enough. Marching shows our anger, but to win we need to use the power that makes society really run – the power of organised workers. The working class creates all the wealth in society. Nothing moves, nothing gets produced and no profits are made without us.”
Linda followed by speaking about the Palestine movement in Germany, which has grown substantially in recent months despite intense state repression. ISA in Germany has been organising within Die Linke (the Left Party) to push for a mass mobilisation, resulting in 100,000 people on the streets of Berlin at the end of September. She concluded her rousing speech by saying:
“This demonstration must not be the end. Italy shows us the way. A united movement of protests and general strikes across Europe and the Middle East could stop the genocide. For freedom and peace in the long term, it is necessary to wage the justified struggle for liberation as a class struggle, with a socialist strategy.”
Fighting for a Democratic, Socialist, Working-Class Your Party
After three excellent commissions on the Middle East, trans rights, and the real ideas of Lenin, the day concluded with an open panel on Your Party. Speakers included Mike Forster from People’s Alliance for Change and Equality (PACE) Kirklees, and Ian Hodson from the Bakers’ Union.
The discussion, which included contributions and questions from the floor, emphasised the need to fight for maximum party democracy. Ian Hodson rightly called on us to, “Recognise this is the first opportunity we’ve really had to come together as an organised left, based on true socialism, representing us and our class. Because that’s what this party has to be!”
Mike wrapped up the discussion by clarifying the type of party workers and young people need:
“It’s desperate that the working class finds a new political voice – one that challenges the wealthy, the privileged and the self-entitled elite.
We demand that every MP should be subject to recall and paid the average wage of the workers they represent. We demand there should be regular elections for all in senior posts.
We’ve been demanding that Your Party does what PACE did with others in Huddersfield two weeks ago. We took to the streets, reclaimed them for our movement and said Your Party is here to stay.
We’ve called for this party to organise a national demonstration against the far right. That demonstration will attract at least a million people and put Tommy Robinson back in his box for daring to call 120,000 onto the streets of London two months ago.”
Socialist Alternative has taken huge strides forward over the autumn, and Revolutionary Ideas was the cherry on top. We are revolutionary socialists in Your Party, organising alongside Zarah Sultana and the Platform for a Democratic Party to build the mass political voice that the working class and oppressed need.
Even if you couldn’t make it to the event, get in touch and join us!