A Comrade from London

[adventure crapitalist]

Greetings Comrades,

Hello!!

Like the title says, I'm in London, England - home of Western Imperialism. The leftist scene is OK but I've only been here a couple of months so haven't had time to investigate fully, though the SWP is pretty active as are a number of trade unions and other organisations deserving of support (Justice4Jean, STWC and so on).

Are there many other Brits here? I assume given the size of the forums there must be but it'd be nice to hear an idea about the number of locals

Anyway, that's my introductory essay. I know, I know, it was pretty fucking great, but try not get too overwhelmed at my magnificence.

Love, a c

[Veg_Athei_Socialist]

Welcome to Revleft:)!

[Sasha]

!emoclew

[Q]

Welcome :)

I'm not aware of Justice4Jean, but STWC is closely linked to former SWP'ers Lindsey German and John Rees, who have left that organisation and setup a new one called Counterfire.

London is pretty much the epicenter of the far left sectariana in England and probably Europe as many of these organisations have branches in other countries.

[Sasha]

on a side note; i would very much advise you to stay the hell away from the SWP or any of their front orgs but it seems that the only way for people to find that out is the hardway.

[revolution inaction]

hi welcome :)

the majority of disagreements on the "left" are about how to destroy capitalism btw

[Crimson Commissar]

Welcome, Comrade. I too am from London, so it's nice to see another leftist from my city. :)

[Lyev]

Hiya, I'm also from the UK, but the south-west. Welcome :)

[adventure crapitalist]

on a side note; i would very much advise you to stay the hell away from the SWP or any of their front orgs but it seems that the only way for people to find that out is the hardway.

Why do you say this? I hear this a lot but I never hear much about why. I'm not sure where I stand on the SWP. My step dad is a member and I've been to Marxism a couple of times but don't know anything in detail about what they are or do. I have got reservations about the way they (apparently) operate but all the criticisms I hear of them tend to come from MSM and other sources I don't consider terribly trustworthy so always take it with a pinch of salt

[Q]

Why do you say this? I hear this a lot but I never hear much about why. I'm not sure where I stand on the SWP. My step dad is a member and I've been to Marxism a couple of times but don't know anything in detail about what they are or do. I have got reservations about the way they (apparently) operate but all the criticisms I hear of them tend to come from MSM and other sources I don't consider terribly trustworthy so always take it with a pinch of salt

They're generally known on the left as "Students With Placards", while "Revolving Door Revolutionary Club" also comes to mind. They're a dominating force on the left, in the bad sense, as they try and dominate any leftwing project around. They burn up many young comrades in frantic activism (hence "revolving door"). They're also not the most democratic organisation around. While they formally allow for members to organise around their viewpoints 3 months in the year, in the run up to their annual congress, they are expected to dissolve their platforms as soon as the congress is over, as if differences are then magically settled. Any dissent is generally discouraged and expulsions are common. The recent high profile one was the expulsion/split of the group around John Rees and Lindsey German.

The Weekly Worker (http://cpgb.org.uk/) is one of the few publications that tries to polemicise with the rest of the far left, they often have good reports. Here is their report (http://cpgb.org.uk/article.php?article_id=1004007) on Marxism and here a critique (http://cpgb.org.uk/article.php?article_id=1004028) on the proprietorial culture within the SWP.

This is not to say the SWP is unique in these features, but as with around 1500 activists (not counting inactives or non-paying "members") they are the biggest force on the far left, they are certainly the biggest example of such problems.

[NewSocialist]

Welcome to the forum!

[Sasha]

over here (where they are called IS) they seem to be an easy entrance painfull exit bunch.
while i give them credit for being an well oiled propaganda machine, with (depending on wich bandwagon they are at the moment) lots of student or immigrant members but most people leave fast, either getting expelled, or getting burned out/disillusioned or both. Some become valuable comrades in other organisations a lot disapear into midle class nothingness.

a lot of my critism revolves about the sincerity of the organisation, while i dont doubt the intentions of the rank and file, the intrest of the organisation in most topics seem to be more about reqruitment and getting their placards in the media than in actual engagement.

that and their cowardly midleclass pasivism