SWP expulsions and squabbles

[emanymton]

Good question. Whilst the revised policy is obviously an improvement, as is the invitation for advice from outside the SWP I wonder why it took so long and what prompted the review and implementation. I am not in contact with anyone who is still a member although I am with ex-members who still do some work with them on some campaigns but none of those mentioned anything.

There was always a faction that stayed in but opposed they way it was handled. I can only assume it has rumbled on internally all this time and the balance of forces has now shifted in their favor. But issuing a statement now looks odd.

 

[emanymton]

Do any of the splinter groups (Counterfire, RS21 etc) survive in any meaningful numbers? Could this be part of a negotiation to bring the family back together? But Counterfire split was pre Delta wasn't it? Can't remember now.

Counterfire was before, it was the German and Rees vehicle

 

[The39thStep]

I had a spate of Jeovah's Witnesses arriving at the gates here when I first started to spend more time over here , some Americans and some South Africans. They would insist on trying to talk to me through the gate as the dogs barked at them and I didn't want to put the dogs in the kennels unless the JH's thought that meant I wanted to engage with them. I tried to come up with the I'm running a bath or I've got guests it I am cooking but to no avail. In the end, I just asked them not come as I wasn't interested and that they were better off talking to those that were. Then every now and again a new group would arrive so I just came straight to the point. They mainly seemed to target house visits to English speaking immigrants or perhaps that's what they sent their American and South African cadre to do. They've got a building in the town down the road from me.

 

[moochedit]

I assume the SWP have changed tack because the issue hasn’t gone away and is serious blocker to recruiting Gen-Z university students.

Yep todays uni age people grew up with the internet and if asked to join will google them, find all the rape stuff and think fuck them.

 

[Nigel]

Good question. Whilst the revised policy is obviously an improvement, as is the invitation for advice from outside the SWP I wonder why it took so long and what prompted the review and implementation. I am not in contact with anyone who is still a member although I am with ex-members who still do some work with them on some campaigns but none of those mentioned anything.

I would have thought and with it coming up soon Marxism at ULU would have been one major reason for SWP making the statement.
It will give less credence to those (rightly in my opinion) opposing this.

Recently in PCS elections and other policies they've done pretty bad and get the impression that 'coming clean' and apologising may help them in UCU? (Although haven't any evidence for this, just rumour)

Also as other people have pointed out; there work with the 'yoof'.
They appear in many cases to put a lot of work into 'woke' i.d. politics; siginificantly trans/ladyboy stuff, e.g. trans pantomime thing, recruited and in some cases lost trans/non binary members. It'd no good having some abstract ultra politically correct i.d. politics, when you've got complaints of misogyny and with Simon Murch worries about paedo nonces around your neck. ( Although there's very little that they could have done than they did concerning S. Murcht than they did; any org. could have this problem)

There has also been concerns with bullying and lieing in and around Palestinian campaigning. e.g. Young woman in Oxford Miriam who opposed Chabbad Rabbi; Eli Brackman at Hannukah celebration who, when he said that those who do not support 1$rael are not welcome, retorted by exclaimin exclaiming, 'peace on all sides'
This was used by local SWP hack Ian McKendrick for their own factional and opportunistic reasons to attack Miriam as, 'Anti Semitic'.
Unfortunately this was taken up by Sukant Chandran who started accusing everybody of being racist. However during this process several other similar complaints were made around the country, significantly among activist who wished to push Palestinian Campaign beyond a .safe space.'

The SWP, in usual hysterical 'crude empirical' hysteria appear to see the horrific situation in Gaza as similar to Vietnam; one supporter telling me that rg Al Aqsa Flood was like the Tet Offensive.
I should imagine it would make it easier for the SWP to recruit without the excess baggage of accusations of being. 'rape apologists' around their necks.

 

[Rob Ray]

The usual reasons would be the retirement of people who'd previously blocked such a statement, and/or a new round on the rumour mill leading to pressure from younger comrades who stuck with the Party and are now in a better position to make policy decisions. Ten years of churn loses a lot of old guard types who might have cared enough to fight it and gains people who feel unnecessarily handicapped by the regular reoccurence of stuff they had nothing to do with.

 

[imposs1904]

I read somewhere that they've recently experienced a period of growth in light of the Gaza protests, after many years of decline, and they've been compelled by that growth to address this longstanding stain in their history.

Sorry to be cynical but that's the only reason they're addressing it now after so many years of wishing it would just go away.

 

[Lurdan]

Well

Also as other people have pointed out; there work with the 'yoof'.
They appear in many cases to put a lot of work into 'woke' i.d. politics; siginificantly trans/ladyboy stuff, e.g. trans pantomime thing, recruited and in some cases lost trans/non binary members. It'd no good having some abstract ultra politically correct i.d. politics, when you've got complaints of misogyny and with Simon Murch worries about paedo nonces around your neck. ( Although there's very little that they could have done than they did concerning S. Murcht than they did; any org. could have this problem)

Ah those pesky 'woke' i.d. politics eh If only people understood that their 'real i.d.' was the category they're assigned to by members of the 'I'm not middle-class' middle class left.

However the SWP's recruitment efforts do seem to be having mixed results if this account is any indication.

 

[hitmouse]

Yeah, pretty much what imposs says above, my guess is that with the Palestine protests they're seeing a chance for growth and decided that making this statement would help more than it'd hurt.
Also, jesus:

They appear in many cases to put a lot of work into 'woke' i.d. politics; siginificantly trans/ladyboy stuff, e.g. trans pantomime thing, recruited and in some cases lost trans/non binary members.

I know you're not really the most coherent poster, but did you really just call trans issues "ladyboy stuff"?

 

[Elpenor]

I'm really glad that the JWs now recruit through city centres stalls. When they used to knock on doors I was sure they kept coming back to my house more than the neighbours'. I eventually realised it was probably due to my always being fairly polite and respectful even as I edged the door closed on them, as some of them at least came across as having suffered a lot in life. It got that way, for a time, that I was always dashing upstairs to peer from behind the front bedroom curtains before I'd answer a knock on the door.

In contrast to these types, those who stand at their city-centre stalls usually appear self-assured, and well-dressed in a conservative-cultish way

Was impressed to see the JW in Cardiff had their literature available in French on the day of a Wales v France rugby match.

 

[Nigel]

Yeah, pretty much what imposs says above, my guess is that with the Palestine protests they're seeing a chance for growth and decided that making this statement would help more than it'd hurt.
Also, jesus:

I know you're not really the most coherent poster, but did you really just call trans issues "ladyboy stuff"?

Don't some people/transexuals/transvestites identify as Ladyboys?
E.G. Kathleen Riot (previously. dead name D.I.Y Steve)


Yeah I have been going through a bit of a transition recently politically and spiritually!
I'm now pretty active in and a member of Workers Party Of Great Britain.
I don't necessarily see myself on the British Left anymore and can't in all honesty claim to be Anarchist for decades!

 

[DaveCinzano]

I'm now pretty active in and a member of Workers Party Of Great Britain.

Wait whut?!

 

[steeplejack]

I'm now pretty active in and a member of Workers Party Of Great Britain.

 

[Rob Ray]

Don't some people/transexuals/transvestites identify as Ladyboys?
E.G. Kathleen Riot (previously. dead name D.I.Y Steve)


Yeah I have been going through a bit of a transition recently politically and spiritually!
I'm now pretty active in and a member of Workers Party Of Great Britain.
I don't necessarily see myself on the British Left anymore and can't in all honesty claim to be Anarchist for decades!

The average sorting office has less to unpack that that comment. Yeesh.

 

[Flavour]

Not been on active on urban for a while but couldn't resist commenting on Nigel's new political direction which is as amusing as it is scary

 

[Nigel]

Not been on active on urban for a while but couldn't resist commenting on Nigel's new political direction which is as amusing as it is scary

Tbh
I don't want to derail this thread away from the subject at hand so I won't be commenting on myself anymore here.

 

[hitmouse]

What constituency will you be standing in?

 

[hitmouse]

Actual state of my Friday night rn:

 

[Nigel]

What constituency will you be standing in?

I'll be backing candidates in Oxfordshire!

 

[DaveCinzano]

What consistency will you be standing in?

You mean, Newtonian or non-Newtonian?

 

[nogojones]

Fair play Nigel, this is the content I come to urban to see

 

[Nigel]

I wonder if Yunus will be allowed back into the fold ?
Looking on his facebook account he still appears to be very hostile towards SWP; Calling for the party to be dissolved, however that was some time ago when posting about the way they handled Simon Murch debacle.

New SWP split over ‘bullying’ and ‘sexism’

A group of prominent (UK) SWP members on Tyneside has resigned from that organisation, charging bullying, sexism and “oppression”. It is worth noting, however, that one of these people,…

shirazsocialism.wordpress.com

"We told the SWP that they were allowing a culture to develop whereby harassers felt safe in their organisation and that this would lead to further scandals, we were tragically proven right.

Much as the Central Committee of the SWP hope this disgusting case will fade away so they can pretend it never happened, that will not occur, Murch will be sentenced on Nov 17, there will be a lengthy pre-sentence report and no doubt the Tory press will be all over it, using Murch to smear the NEU and the left in general.
The best thing the SWP can do, is to dissolve itself."

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[DaveCinzano]

Actual state of my Friday night rn:
View attachment 424851

Posters on thread be like

 

[Serge Forward]

Don't some people/transexuals/transvestites identify as Ladyboys?
E.G. Kathleen Riot (previously. dead name D.I.Y Steve)


Yeah I have been going through a bit of a transition recently politically and spiritually!
I'm now pretty active in and a member of Workers Party Of Great Britain.
I don't necessarily see myself on the British Left anymore and can't in all honesty claim to be Anarchist for decades!

You might want to learn the actual name of the particular red-brown party you're a member of then.

 

[tim]

Fedora Fascism at it's most peculiar.

 

[nogojones]

You might want to learn the actual name of the particular red-brown party you're a member of then.

Maybe it's a split already?

 

[moochedit]

Maybe it's a split already?

"He's over there"

 

[The39thStep]

Don't some people/transexuals/transvestites identify as Ladyboys?
E.G. Kathleen Riot (previously. dead name D.I.Y Steve)


Yeah I have been going through a bit of a transition recently politically and spiritually!
I'm now pretty active in and a member of Workers Party Of Great Britain.
I don't necessarily see myself on the British Left anymore and can't in all honesty claim to be Anarchist for decades!

Are there other former anarchists in the WPB?

 

[planetgeli]

I'm now pretty active in and a member of Workers Party Of Great Britain.
I don't necessarily see myself on the British Left anymore

Neither do we.

I admire your honesty (as well as your indefatigability, natch). If you could get George to admit this too it'd be appreciated.

Kthx bye.

 

[Nigel]

Are there other former anarchists in the WPB?

Yeah
There's someone who was in Bristol Class War in the 1990s, who converted to Russian Orthodox Church that I've met, who is a members.
They seems to know some of the members, supporters, characters in and around Bristol C.W.F. at that time.