At the Your Party launch in south London
There was an electric atmosphere as over 1,000 of people queued outside The Karibu Centre and The Brixton Jamm in south London on Friday night.
They had come for a launch of Your Party, the new force led by Zarah Sultana and Jeremy Corbyn that could shake up British politics.
“For a long time it’s felt like there’s nothing we can do and we’re at a dead end,” Sharmaine told Socialist Worker.
“And now I actually think we can change things”—a sentiment repeated by person after person at the launch.
23 year old Maddie told Socialist Worker, “I’ve grown up with successive governments that don’t listen to us. I love the idea that the point is that it’s a grassroots movement and we build it from the ground up.”
“People are angry—in fact, they should be fucking furious,” said Sultana. “We’re not going to take it anymore, together we can change British politics forever.”
Sultana called for a “socialist, left wing, grassroots, democratic party” that is “rooted in communities, workplaces and everyday struggles”. “It has to be more than elections, a party that’s progressive not just in policy but in method as well,” she said.
“This isn’t about building another Labour Party—this has to be democratic and member-led.
Support for Palestine—and a determination not to repeat the Labour left’s capitulation to antisemitism smears—ran through the crowd. “I am a proud anti-Zionist and that’s what this party should be,” said Sultana to loud cheers.
“We will fight for a free Palestine, a secular state with equal rights for all.”
Asmaa from the Palestine Youth Movement made one of the most powerful speeches. She argued it was vital for the new party to be “anti-Zionist and anti-imperialist” to claps, cheers and nods throughout her speech.
There are different visions for the new left party. What should it stand for?
One of the Independent Alliance MPs backing Your Party, Adnan Hussain, wants the new party to have room for “social conservatism”. He says he wants to “protect” women-only spaces—code for excluding trans women.
At the south London meeting, Sultana reiterated, “Let me be clear, trans+ rights are human rights and we will defend them.”
Andrew Feinstein, who stood against Keir Starmer in the general election last year, said, “I don’t think it would be impolite to say, our politics are fucked.”
“We have to take back the streets and take back the elite palaces of power, we want to do it to fundamentally transform the functioning and nature of our politics.”
Andrew said it was vital for the new party to be “democratic, transparent, participative and accountable”. “Political change is only impossible until it’s done—and we, the many, are going to do it,” he said.
These arguments over trans+ rights, or whether the new party should loudly take on the right’s myths around immigration, show the pull of “electoralism”. It’s the idea that the left party should dump or water down principles in a grubby search for votes.
Electoralism has been fatal for the left inside the Labour Party—and for left reformist projects in the last decade. It has seen the left subordinate building movements and working class struggle to manoeuvres inside parliament and elections, move rightwards and fail.
So another sharp debate is whether Your Party should focus solely on elections—or on building movements too? Do elections or struggle dominate in the new party?
Lewis Nielsen, Stand Up To Racism (SUTR) anti-fascist officer, said, “I’m so glad that Zarah has said that in the new party there is no place for social conservatism.
“There is no place for the kind of politics that makes concessions to the scapegoating of migrants, there is no place for transphobia.”
He got a big cheer when he added, “And there is no place for landlords”—a swipe at Independent MP Shockat Adam who defends landlords.
Lewis added, “When we call out antisemitism we are also right to stand against the smears that say that the left and the Palestine movement are the antisemites.
“When you stand up and say that you are anti-Zionist, that you are against the state of Israel, you are standing up against racism, rather than being a racist yourself.”
He asked, “Wouldn’t it be good if the new party MPs stood on the picket line with workers on strike? Wouldn’t it be good if new party MPs and councillors joined the people taking action against the Palestine Action ban?
“Wouldn’t it be better if rather than this endless debate about migrants being a problem, the new party stood up and said we are anti-racist, we are pro-refugee and we stand with trans+ people no matter what?”
The battles in the streets and picket lines, over Palestine, racism, trans+ rights and austerity have the power to challenge the system and its state. The new left has the potential to champion and boost them—and build the struggle we need.
Many of the people had joined the Labour Party under Corbyn’s leadership, but said Starmer’s betrayals were the final straw.
Lucy, teacher from Camden, north London
“I was in the Labour Party for years. I left in 2020 because I found them disgusting and have been politically homeless ever since.
“I’m encouraging everyone I know to join. I’m a teacher, I’ve worked in education since 2008 and I’m very aware of the poverty and deprivation among young people. I think young people need a chance.”
Stanley from Camden, north London
“I’ve come here tonight because of how inspiring it is to see some true left wing representation inside politics.
“The current British political establishment is flooded with neoliberal, conservative politics—even Labour is leaning on right wing centrism.”
Michael from south London
“I’ve come to support a party that I hope will be quite progressive and offer a massive alternative to the absolute trash there is at the moment. Mainstream politics is less and less positive on a daily basis in terms of the direction we’re heading in.”
He wanted a party that prioritised “public ownership of utilities and key services, reducing wealth inequality and thinking of ways to tax the super wealthy”.
Michael called for a foreign policy that supported Palestine. “Look at the atrocious things that are going on—not limited to, but obviously what’s happening in Gaza is at the forefront of everyone’s mind,” he said.
There was a wealth of ideas about what Your Party should focus on, as people took part in a “people’s assembly” before the main speakers.
“We need to tax the super-rich” who “manipulate the tax codes” and “proper funding of public services”, said one person.
Another said that a new party should support “citizens assemblies” and “local democracy” where local people make the decisions that affect them. They had been involved in Labour and joined some demonstrations with Extinction Rebellion previously, and would now “like to find something I agree with”.
One person agreed that taxing the rich was important, but “maintaining socialist values” more broadly was key.
And another said Your Party should be about “protecting trans+ rights” and “looking to another economic ideal” than capitalism.
The group discussions were organised by Assemble, a group that supports grassroots democracy and civil disobedience.
Sam from the group said that discussions like this are “essential, but we also know when we are up against an elite class that it’s not just going to happen”. “The other part we need is non-violent civil resistance,” they said.
“This is how change has always happened—we have seen it through the Suffragettes and the civil Rights movement.”
There was a big cheer when Sam said this is how we’d win change today.
“This two pronged approach because we know incremental change is not enough,” said Sam, warning that incremental change would be rolled back.
“We need to go for the jugular, go for the system, not just fiddle around the edges.”
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