Purple People Power

Sunday, 23 May 2010

At last, the opportunity to combine some political activism with a decent lie-in. The very wise organisers of the Take Back Parliament rally on Saturday 15 May had the good sense to arrange the event for 2pm, giving me time to love my pillow and democracy. I’d just stood in the General Election and had seen the effects of our substandard electoral system: voter apathy; people unable to vote with their hearts; and grossly disproportionate results. I felt the need to be a part of a new movement which is mobilising for greater democracy, demanding fair votes now.

Over 50,000 people have signed the Take Back Parliament petition and the movement has gone national. On Saturday there were events all over the country. I could have gone to more local actions in Leicester or Birmingham but I fancied a trip to the home of Mr & Mrs Parliament so I caught the 12.05 out of Northampton and headed for London.

A Climate Camp in Parliament Square meant the Take Back Parliament event was moved to Old Palace Yard and as I arrived, there were already a couple of hundred people creating a sea of purple with their clothes, banners and flags. Everyone had been asked to wear purple which was chosen as the campaign’s colour as it represents democracy – and presumably because all the other colours had been nicked by political parties and football teams.

Most people had gone to a lot of effort so, feeling a bit underdressed wearing only my son Tommy’s purple scarf (with other non-purple clothes – obviously!) I grabbed a nearby purple flag to give myself a bit more colour….

A SIMPLE DEMAND - FAIR VOTES NOW

Unlike some other protests I’ve been on, this one had a clear simple message - fair votes now. Ok, there are quite a few versions of alternative voting systems (AV, AV+, STV etc.) but the one thing they have in common is that they would be fairer than the ‘first past the post’ system which has kept the big two parties in power in this country for decades.

The simple facts were shown on placards and on the infamous bar chart which was displayed from the stage. Labour got a seat for each 33,000 votes, the Conservatives for 35,000 votes, the Liberal democrats for 120,000 votes and the Green Party just one seat for 285,000 votes. The Liberal Democrats got 23% of the vote but less than 9% of the seats. Only the Conservatives went into the election promising no reform to the voting system.

The rally itself was addressed by a whole host of speakers from the Take Back Parliament coalition including Pam Giddy from Power 2010, Green Party MEP Jean Lambert and ex-Labour MP Martin Linton. A bit of celebrity was added by Guardian columnist and all round climate hero George Monbiot, resplendent in his purple shirt, and activist and comedian Mark Thomas, sporting a beret that was half Che Guevara and half Frank Spencer (still hedging his career opportunities between revolutionary and comedian).

YOUTH APATHY? I DON’T THINK SO….

The highlight of the rally and the speeches, however, was the fact that it proved beyond doubt that the youth of this nation are not apathetic about politics and democracy. The event was organised by a bunch of young guys and the stage was stolen by a nineteen-year-old woman called Mevan Babakar. Her speech speaks for itself:

“My name’s Mevan Babakar and I’m 19. I voted for the first time this year and I feel like my vote didn’t mean a thing. My generation has always been labelled as apathetic and that’s why I am here today to show that the apathy doesn’t resonate from us but that the electoral system breeds it. I am not apathetic. I do care. I want change. I want to be a part of the system that brings about change. But how can I when my vote doesn’t count?! All you need do is look around you to see that we care. We care about fair votes, we care about upholding the values of a democracy. We care about this country. But how can we turn that into action when our votes don’t count?! I am not here today to discuss fair votes, I am here to demand them."

TO DOWNING STREET

After the rally we made our way to Downing Street, pausing to tie purple ribbons on the railings outside Parliament. Once we were within sight of Dodgy Dave’s new home, the police started to get twitchy, demanding that everyone crossed to a specially designated protest zone on the other side of the road before they allowed our petition to be delivered. It might be too much to hope that the well-publicised return of the freedom to protest might include the right to choose where to do it. We shall see.

From across the street we watched and cheered as George Gabriel, one of the campaign’s young leaders, accompanied by Mevan Babakar, enter Downing Street and deliver the petition to number 10. We already knew that Cameron was out as we’d heard that Take Back Parliament protesters in Edinburgh had tracked him down during his visit to see Scotland’s First Minister Alex Salmond.

Once the deed had been done, we were asked to disperse and I made my way back to the tube station, passing the flood of purple on the gates. It had been a good day and, although the turnout had been disappointing, I was buoyed by the realisation that young people are confidently organising, getting out on the streets and making demands. That gave me much more pride in this country than the occasional cheap England flag flying off the cars which sped past.

If you haven’t signed the petition yet, go and do it on the Take Back Parliament website, check out events in your area and get involved. I’m hoping to do a more in depth piece about the options for alternative voting systems. One thing is sure, if we do get a referendum, the right wing media will be doing everything in its considerable power to support the status quo so we need to be getting people to think about and understand what’s on offer. Otherwise we might be back where we started in five years time. Three cheers for Britain’s youth and for Purple Reign…….