 Campaigns Committee is looking back on a busy year, which has included campaign material for you to use on toxic landfill, the housing crisis and the growth of the racist far right.
Thanks so much to all who have taken part in these campaigns! We have more in the pipeline for the new year, but this month we’re focusing on the terrible situation facing Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank. This Christmas, nearly two million people – almost the entire population of Gaza – face the most desperate of circumstances. Refugees crammed into makeshift ‘tent cities’, whose homes and communities have been devastated by over a year of relentless bombing that has killed nearly 45,000 people – the majority of these women and children. Witnessing horror and cruelty on such a massive scale can make us feel powerless to help. But there are things we can do – and Green Party Conference has re-iterated the party’s support for a campaign of boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) against the state responsible for this genocidal violence and companies that are facilitating it. You’ll find resources to campaign on this in this month’s campaign flatpack: 10 things you can do about the genocide in Gaza. Our thoughts this Christmas are with these people, and with all the hostages and unjustly imprisoned in both Gaza and Israel. Our hope is that the new year will bring progress towards peace and justice for all those who have suffered so much for so long. In solidarity, Green Party Campaigns Committee PS: One other (easy) thing to do over the Christmas break: The Climate and Nature Bill first introduced by Caroline Lucas will have its crucial second reading in Parliament on Friday 24 January. This Bill would make a huge difference to efforts to address the climate emergency. Please take a moment to write to your MP asking them to support the Bill. Zero Hour have made this easy to do, here.
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 We’ve all seen the violent riots staged by far-right thugs in towns from Southport and Hartlepool to London. What can you do to combat this? There’s no easy answer. Combatting the rise of fascism is one theme that Campaigns Committee is now working on. We have just launched a "Greens Against Fascism” flatpack with advice and ideas you can use, including a placard/poster that you can download and print off. We also warmly applaud the leadership shown by Green councillor Mothin Ali in Leeds in bringing his community together in the face of those who seek to divide it and inflame violent unrest. Laughter is the best medicine The worst thing we can do is respond to violence with violence. Fascism feeds on violence and chaos. Politicians of the far right aim to use fear of violence to win votes on the promise to “restore law and order”. By contrast, your best bet is to keep your sense of humour. You may have read that the leader of the French Greens fought the French far-right with humour. The extreme right hate nothing more than being laughed at. Download your flatpack now  Green MPs bring fresh energy to Westminster
Meanwhile, it’s been an incredible month for the Green Party – the biggest Green vote ever at a general election and four brilliant new Green MPs at Westminster! They’re already making a big impact, speaking up for climate, environment and social justice. After 14 years of Tory misrule, a new government opens up exciting possibilities for positive change that our Green MPs will be pushing for at every opportunity – as will Campaigns Committee. Carla Denyer And it was great to see several of our campaigning themes mentioned in their maiden speeches in Parliament. Follow the links to access campaign materials on all the issues they've spoken about. Bristol’s first Green MP, Carla Denyer, highlighted the housing crisis and the need to give councils the power to introduce rent controls. As she noted: “Private rents in Bristol have increased by 52% over the last decade, while wages have not even increased by a quarter. This is an untenable situation, but one that around half my constituents find themselves in as private renters.” Carla also looked forward to a future where the UK can rejoin the EU, and deplored the damage to the UK’s reputation caused by our government’s refusal to clearly condemn the Israeli government’s war crimes in Gaza. Adrian Ramsay Fresh from winning Waveney Valley in Suffolk – a feat many imagined to be impossible – Adrian spoke of the horror his constituents feel about the state of their rivers, and called for our campaign for tackling the sewage scandal to be made a top government priority. Like Carla, he also underlined the extreme urgency of the climate emergency and the insanity of opening up new North Sea oilfields. Ellie Chowns Ellie achieved one of the biggest swings of the election when she unseated a seemingly impregnable Tory MP in North Herefordshire, spoke of the desperate need for new social housing, and for this to be “accompanied by the right infrastructure so that health, education and transport services are not put under yet more strain”. She also highlighted the need to repair and properly fund our NHS, and to reward public-spirited health workers “not just with warm words and applause, but with training bursaries and salaries that keep pace with inflation”. Sian Berry In her maiden speech, Sian paid tribute to the remarkable legacy of Caroline Lucas, her trailblazing Green predecessor in Brighton Pavilion: “I know that all of us sitting here today are humbly aiming to live up to the high standards, values and work ethic that she represented, and to serve here with the same energy and enthusiasm.” Sian particularly noted “Caroline’s steadfast and long-standing opposition to threats to the public’s right to protest” – another of out long-standing campaigns - and a threat that was very much underlined by the savage jail sentences meted out to peaceful Just Stop Oil protesters earlier this month. In stark contrast to both Labour and Tory governments kowtowing to roads being blocked by farmers and truckers, protesting against fuel costs and food imports. It will be interesting, too, to see how the sentences handed to peaceful Green protesters compares with those given to the far-right thugs arrested last week. Yours – nevertheless - with renewed hope for a Green future! Campaigns Committee  It's been a busy few weeks for Campaigns Committee, and we've been working on two urgent issues that we know many Greens feel very strongly about - the Rwanda Bill and the horrific violence being inflicted on the people of Gaza.
Help our parliamentarians defend our human rights! The Rwanda Bill threatens the human rights of all of us, not just those of refugees and asylum-seekers. Green Party peers Jenny Jones and Natalie Bennett are leading the fight against it in the House of Lords - can you help by signing their petition? https://actionnetwork.org/petitions/defend-our-rights-stop-the-rwanda-bill There are further actions you can take with the Green Party to #DefendOurRights in the flatpack. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1rfYDZs1KvMmp5rBNA5-09xZjNkj6pES1/view?usp=sharing Ceasefire now! Many Greens have been taking part in protests against the appalling war crimes in Gaza, where more than 25,000 Palestinians have now been killed amid relentless attacks on civilians and civil infrastructure. We’ve created a Green Party placard and other resources you can use at #CeasefireNow protests: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1VzzrQj_FJBjlfE6nOtHwSDhY4kSHrtNq/view?usp=sharing Together, we can make a difference. |
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