An inspiring speech - from 1976

Back in 1976, a Congresswoman called Barbara Jordan made an inspiring speech at the Democratic Convention. I listened to it last night - and though it is 41 years old, and made across the Atlantic - it is a speech that every progressive should listen to. It is really relevant to the UK General Election currently in progress.

The transcript is available here

What's a progressive?

I've slightly amended a definition given in "Winning Your Election the Wellstone Way"

Those who hold Values such as a belief in economic justice and equality of opportunity, the primacy of educating our children and supporting families, and making sure we progress as a country to the point where good physical and mental health care is not just a privilege for some.

We believe homes should be safe places for women and children and should be free of violence....We believe that we move our country forward in this new global economy by focusing as a country on the goals of a good education, good health care, and good jobs for all"

Why this Election Matters

I’ve alway thought it a good principle to try and leave the world a better place than it was when one was born.

What kind of legacy do we want to leave? That is what this election is about.

I was born into a Britain proud of its NHS - and I, and my parents and my children have benefited from it when we needed it most. Now it is being (not so) slowly starved of the resources needed to do its job. Private healthcare firms are looking on and salivating at the killing they will soon be making.

I was the first in my family to enjoy the opportunity of going to university straight after school - and getting the chance for better work and prospects. [Both my parents who were denied the opportunity as teenagers got their degrees later in life thanks to Labour’s initiative - the Open University]. This opportunity for me came without tuition fees - and with a grant! Now students are forced to take on debts averaging £44,000.

Because I left University debt free, and graduates had real opportunities for careers - like many of my contemporaries, I was able to buy my first house whilst still in my twenties - which today fewer and fewer young people are able to do.

There weren’t beggars and the homeless living in the streets, - or the need for food banks - when I was young. Now that’s a part of everyday life.

IT DOESN’T HAVE TO BE LIKE THIS - we can choose the legacy we leave- 

Debt for our children, and a return to the days when we there was NO effective NHS NOR the opportunities for ALL children to have a good education and be able to afford to go to university?

Or can we renew the promises that were made to us about a better future?

My vote doesn't make a difference???

The following infographic illustrates some important points

1 Non voters exceed the number of voters for any one party - we progressives should treat very carefully the conventional wisdom that parties should target their resources and efforts on getting out those who only occasionally vote, or who will vote for different parties at different elections. We need to make efforts to engage those who feel dis-engaged from politics too - and there are an awful lot of them!

2 The Conservatives benefitted in 2015 from a split amongst progressives (who are mostly Labour; Liberal Democrat or Green) - and in fact that split has been key to Conservative domination of British politics for the last century.

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