Dan Sherborne, Plymouth Socialist Party
As someone passionate about human rights, the environment and social justice, I felt increasingly disillusioned with the world we live in, and the government we live under.
I was never a fan of the blatant cronyism and barely concealed racism of the Tory party. Neither could I find any confidence in the so-called Labour opposition, especially after the witch-hunt against Jeremy Corbyn, and Keir Starmer’s constant pledge breaking.
I have a lot of respect for what many environmental and human rights groups are trying to achieve, but always felt they were only fighting the symptoms of a greater illness – capitalism.
Capitalism is at the very heart of many of the world’s issues. I needed an organisation that promised to put an end to it.
I wouldn’t find that kind of thinking in the neoliberal attitudes of our mainstream politics.
Rotten system
Then I discovered the Socialist Party. A political party dedicated to dismantling the whole rotten system.
A system that has done little but swell the pockets of the elites at the expense of workers, that propagates war and poverty, and that continues to increase the already sickening wealth divide, not just in this country, but around the globe.
After attending my first few local Socialist Party branch meetings, I was pleased to learn that tackling capitalism was not the only thing the party stood for. Campaigning for a higher minimum wage, abolishing university tuition fees, and pushing for a fairer more egalitarian society were all things that resonated strongly with me.
For a long time I wanted to run away from it all. Go and live with the nomads in outer Mongolia, and bury my head in the sand.
Discovering the Socialist Party showed me that there were, in fact, people out there who thought like me. People who were committed to fighting for a brighter future, despite the monumental task at hand.
I saw that not only were they out there, but they were organised, passionate and dedicated. Now my nihilism has dissolved, and the future feels a lot less bleak.
The conservative tree has roots that may run deep. But the fact that the trunk is rotten is plain for everyone to see. Surely with enough people pushing, the whole wretched thing will come crashing down.
