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| Labour’s bid for the feminist high ground shuts other parties out | Labour’s bid for the feminist high ground shuts other parties out |
| (5 days later) | |
| British democracy is designed to protect the status quo. Never has this been more clear. Just a month ago, the public expressed utter contempt for old politics by retreating to older politics in the general election. In England, we were told the only viable choices were blue or red. In Northern Ireland, frustration over the suspension of Stormont resulted in victory for the very parties obstructing power-sharing. And in Scotland, the Tory resurgence rendered a second referendum impossible. The first-past-the-post system, supported by old parties and the media, did what it does best: it returned power to those that already have it. | British democracy is designed to protect the status quo. Never has this been more clear. Just a month ago, the public expressed utter contempt for old politics by retreating to older politics in the general election. In England, we were told the only viable choices were blue or red. In Northern Ireland, frustration over the suspension of Stormont resulted in victory for the very parties obstructing power-sharing. And in Scotland, the Tory resurgence rendered a second referendum impossible. The first-past-the-post system, supported by old parties and the media, did what it does best: it returned power to those that already have it. |
| The disincentives for dissent within political parties are greater than ever. MPs rely on party patronage for career advancement, and rebellion will cost you a promotion. How, then, can the feminist voting bloc within the Labour party, unveiled by Jess Phillips, help push women’s needs higher up the agenda? | The disincentives for dissent within political parties are greater than ever. MPs rely on party patronage for career advancement, and rebellion will cost you a promotion. How, then, can the feminist voting bloc within the Labour party, unveiled by Jess Phillips, help push women’s needs higher up the agenda? |
| I have a particular interest in this because in 2009, I found myself attempting to persuade a panel, comprising almost entirely white men, of the urgent need for a women’s caucus. Fresh off the Obama campaign, I was convinced that there was still space in our imperfect democracy for marginalised groups to assert their interests, and that a caucus was an effective way to do this. The panel took a punt and awarded me a scholarship to the John F Kennedy School of Government at Harvard to find out whether this idea could work. | I have a particular interest in this because in 2009, I found myself attempting to persuade a panel, comprising almost entirely white men, of the urgent need for a women’s caucus. Fresh off the Obama campaign, I was convinced that there was still space in our imperfect democracy for marginalised groups to assert their interests, and that a caucus was an effective way to do this. The panel took a punt and awarded me a scholarship to the John F Kennedy School of Government at Harvard to find out whether this idea could work. |
| Globally, there are lots of different types of women’s caucuses, but success always comes from their ability to rally the support of women from different political parties around common goals (they also need strong backing from civil society and men). Examples include the Northern Ireland Women’s Coalition, which in 1996 attracted women and men from republican and loyalist traditions to ensure women’s voices were reflected in the peace process. | Globally, there are lots of different types of women’s caucuses, but success always comes from their ability to rally the support of women from different political parties around common goals (they also need strong backing from civil society and men). Examples include the Northern Ireland Women’s Coalition, which in 1996 attracted women and men from republican and loyalist traditions to ensure women’s voices were reflected in the peace process. |
| So why have Labour women chosen instead to form a voting bloc within their own party? The bloc will be made up of the 119 female Labour MPs, and won’t extend beyond party lines. Surely, the whole Labour party, the party of equality – many of whose members told the Women’s Equality party to stand down in the general election because they’ve got that issue wrapped up – would take every opportunity to stand up for women? Why the need for any pressure at all? The leadership is already up for this fight, isn’t it? | So why have Labour women chosen instead to form a voting bloc within their own party? The bloc will be made up of the 119 female Labour MPs, and won’t extend beyond party lines. Surely, the whole Labour party, the party of equality – many of whose members told the Women’s Equality party to stand down in the general election because they’ve got that issue wrapped up – would take every opportunity to stand up for women? Why the need for any pressure at all? The leadership is already up for this fight, isn’t it? |
| The Labour party has a better legacy than other parties, but it hasn’t got this wrapped up. It has brilliant feminists within its ranks who have done extraordinary work, but that isn’t enough. | The Labour party has a better legacy than other parties, but it hasn’t got this wrapped up. It has brilliant feminists within its ranks who have done extraordinary work, but that isn’t enough. |
| Misogyny within the ranks of the Labour party is alive and well, and the new momentum behind Momentum leaves you with the distinct feeling that the party will fight for its sisters (those who survive deselection), just as soon as the revolution comes. | Misogyny within the ranks of the Labour party is alive and well, and the new momentum behind Momentum leaves you with the distinct feeling that the party will fight for its sisters (those who survive deselection), just as soon as the revolution comes. |
| For these reasons, Jess Phillips’s efforts to organise the record numbers of Labour women in Parliament to work in concert have real promise. Her announcement already includes more ambition and detail on policies than the “women’s pages” (pp109-111) of their manifesto: scrutiny of the domestic violence bill, social security reform for women, putting women at the centre of our industrial strategy and focusing on carers. | For these reasons, Jess Phillips’s efforts to organise the record numbers of Labour women in Parliament to work in concert have real promise. Her announcement already includes more ambition and detail on policies than the “women’s pages” (pp109-111) of their manifesto: scrutiny of the domestic violence bill, social security reform for women, putting women at the centre of our industrial strategy and focusing on carers. |
| If she can manage to transcend the uneasy alliance between the “modernisers” and Corbyn’s left, and survive the toxic masculinity that pushes back against women who don’t fall into line, she could achieve real change. She could give women the priority they deserve in the party for equality. | If she can manage to transcend the uneasy alliance between the “modernisers” and Corbyn’s left, and survive the toxic masculinity that pushes back against women who don’t fall into line, she could achieve real change. She could give women the priority they deserve in the party for equality. |
| But to change the lives of women across the UK, this feminist voting bloc must not repeat the mistakes that led to their exclusion in the first place. They must look beyond themselves and make room for outsiders, too. Stella Creasy’s amendment to allow Northern Irish women access to NHS-funded abortions in Great Britain worked precisely because there were progressives on the right willing to make the leap from “no” to “aye”. It was the threat of their rebellion that forced the Conservatives to change their policy. Creasy’s amendment was possible, I was reminded last week when I met activists in Belfast, because the smaller parties in Northern Ireland have used the proportional voting system to progress the issue in ways the old parties could not. | But to change the lives of women across the UK, this feminist voting bloc must not repeat the mistakes that led to their exclusion in the first place. They must look beyond themselves and make room for outsiders, too. Stella Creasy’s amendment to allow Northern Irish women access to NHS-funded abortions in Great Britain worked precisely because there were progressives on the right willing to make the leap from “no” to “aye”. It was the threat of their rebellion that forced the Conservatives to change their policy. Creasy’s amendment was possible, I was reminded last week when I met activists in Belfast, because the smaller parties in Northern Ireland have used the proportional voting system to progress the issue in ways the old parties could not. |
| Women’s equality is not a single issue. The policy goals set out by Phillips on Thursday are a great starting point, but equality must be stitched into the fabric of every part of our decision-making process, every page of our manifesto. It is not enough to oppose austerity because of its devastating impact on women – we must tackle head-on the things that made its impact so. We must build support for the kinds of policies that will rebalance our lopsided economy, rather than just voting against the policies that don’t. | Women’s equality is not a single issue. The policy goals set out by Phillips on Thursday are a great starting point, but equality must be stitched into the fabric of every part of our decision-making process, every page of our manifesto. It is not enough to oppose austerity because of its devastating impact on women – we must tackle head-on the things that made its impact so. We must build support for the kinds of policies that will rebalance our lopsided economy, rather than just voting against the policies that don’t. |
| That means doing the much harder work of building an alliance with feminists in all political parties, including the smaller parties, and making space for them to offer different ideas about how we arrive at equality. | That means doing the much harder work of building an alliance with feminists in all political parties, including the smaller parties, and making space for them to offer different ideas about how we arrive at equality. |
| The co-leader of the Greens, Caroline Lucas, has some fantastic plans for tackling environmental health issues that affect women. The leader of the Women’s Equality party, Sophie Walker, has developed a costed plan for universal childcare from the end of parental leave until school age. Nusrat Ghani, a Conservative MP, has campaigned for better support for British women in danger of being subjected to domestic violence or killed while abroad, and SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon has been testing ways to reduce the female prison population. | The co-leader of the Greens, Caroline Lucas, has some fantastic plans for tackling environmental health issues that affect women. The leader of the Women’s Equality party, Sophie Walker, has developed a costed plan for universal childcare from the end of parental leave until school age. Nusrat Ghani, a Conservative MP, has campaigned for better support for British women in danger of being subjected to domestic violence or killed while abroad, and SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon has been testing ways to reduce the female prison population. |
| The Women’s Equality party was set up two years ago to create space for collaboration just like this. One of the first decisions we made was to open our doors to members of all other political parties. We invited the other parties to participate in our first conference (Labour was the only party to decline our invitation), and sent a copy of our manifesto to all party headquarters with a note that read, “Steal me” (Labour was the only party not to accept). We have co-authored legislation with the Liberal Democrats, and our article 50 amendment, tabled by the Greens, received the widest cross-party support. | The Women’s Equality party was set up two years ago to create space for collaboration just like this. One of the first decisions we made was to open our doors to members of all other political parties. We invited the other parties to participate in our first conference (Labour was the only party to decline our invitation), and sent a copy of our manifesto to all party headquarters with a note that read, “Steal me” (Labour was the only party not to accept). We have co-authored legislation with the Liberal Democrats, and our article 50 amendment, tabled by the Greens, received the widest cross-party support. |
| It is always the marginalised who suffer disunity, and it is for them that everyone must now make the journey across the aisle to fight for what matters. | It is always the marginalised who suffer disunity, and it is for them that everyone must now make the journey across the aisle to fight for what matters. |
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