“Know where you are coming from” — the case for young people in political activism
by Billy Jones | Socialist Party (Gloucestershire branch)
February 2026
I CAN COUNT ON ONE HAND the number of political events I went to in the 2010s.
One time a friend invited me to a meeting about Palestine, which I had never even heard of before.
I remember the speaker being very impassioned, but when it came to ask questions at the end the only thing I could think to say was: ‘Why is it called the West Bank if it’s in the East?’
I had a lot going on in my personal and family life at the time, and with everything looking so dire outside it felt better to retreat inwards and try to ignore it all.
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But in 2023 I made a resolution to myself. I wanted to try and do something good for the community, exactly what I didn’t know. One day around this time I happened to meet the Socialist Party, and by the New Year I had decided to join. I wouldn’t even say I was a socialist when I signed up – not in the way that I am now – but what attracted me to it was a feeling that these people really wanted to fight for change, and had a strategy for doing so.
In the over two years since, I have found myself becoming more and more active, and I have learned a lot of lessons. What is clear to me, though, is that now more than ever, young people need to assert their voice in political activism.
We have a rich history to learn from
THERE'S NO DENYING that politics is an older scene. At least in Gloucestershire it is; imagine my surprise learning that one of our branch members is over one hundred years old! But with years of experience comes years of understanding.
Young British people don’t know their own history. How many have heard of the 1926 General Strike, where the British working-class shut down the entire country for nine days?
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Or, more recently, the Poll Tax protests, where over ten million refused to pay Thatcher’s tax on poverty?
Text by Ella Glover
This isn’t a coincidence. If the State wants to keep us in line, whitewashing and obscuring our history is essential.
Never forget, every single right that working-class people have was not given benevolently by the government, but was won by us through struggle.
Women didn’t get their rights by asking politely, and laws against racial discrimination weren’t introduced because politicians were shocked by racist gang violence – it was the Black British population who organised against it.
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It is often said: ‘Those that cannot remember the past are doomed to repeat it…’ To my mind, there are lots of movements from the past that we should not just repeat, but build on, since the protesters clearly had a better plan for running society than those in power.
Young people do have some advantages over their elders, however. One is that they aren’t hung up on party affiliations. I remember talking to university Freshers in 2024, who after an entire childhood of Tory austerity were excited to see Labour get into power. By November, they were protesting Starmer’s raising of tuition fees.
Political parties cannot rely on the bearings of previous generations; if young people see their living standards fall, they will not blindly give their support any more.
Local fights can grow into big movements
SOME MIGHT SAY that Gloucestershire is in the middle of nowhere, that there’s nothing going on around here. I used to think that, too, but take a closer look and you can find some amazing things.
Our county is currently host to the longest strike in the history of the NHS. Phlebotomists on poverty wages have been bravely fighting for a pay rise while the CEO of the Trust, who makes £350,000+ a year, tries his best to ignore them.
Over the same period far-right groups have been targeting local asylum hotels, but this has been met with a massive response by the newly minted Gloucestershire Solidarity Network, which brings together many different activist groups.
I have received lots of supportive messages from friends and family since I became more politically active.
Sometimes they end up chastising themselves for not being able to join in, lacking the energy and time due to their work, mental health, or any number of reasons. There’s absolutely no shame in that, and I know at first hand how it feels from my own struggles.
One thing I will say, though, is that sometimes a movement isn't built from a mad rush of energy, but from consistent work. There’s a natural ebb and flow to society, and if during a low ebb all you can do is keep the flag flying in little ways, even this will be of great help.
Progress is hard but we can make it happen
NONE OF THIS IS EASY WORK. Sometimes a campaign doesn’t make the splash you were hoping for.
The complete false-start of Your Party, for example, hasn’t exactly inspired confidence in the left, but the fact that 800,000 people initially signed up shows that huge potential exists to build a working-class party with socialist policies.
Richard Seymour
It’s very important not to get demoralised, even in the face of setbacks.
Anti-protest laws, particularly the proscription of Palestine Action and subsequent arrests, have made many people nervous about getting involved in activism. The writer of an article previously published here went as far as to argue: ‘Perhaps we need to acknowledge the limits of our agency over the forces that are now shaking us to our core.’
This is something I vehemently disagree with. Increased repression by the State is not an indication that we are weak, but that those in power know we are strong.
They are getting flashbacks of the uprisings of the past, and a wounded animal is more likely to strike.
Our greatest inspiration in this should come from the incredible struggles that are taking place in countries with even more repressive measures.
Since 2024, Nigeria has seen a huge wave of protest through the #EndBadGovernance movement, with organisers recently beating charges of ‘treason’ that carry the death penalty.
We can also look to Palestine, where the people have shown their strength and resilience in the face of genocidal slaughter. Last month 50,000 Palestinians marched through the city of Sakhnin, carrying the slogan: ‘Ben Gvir, you miserable man, Arab blood is not cheap.’
Sean
We are all connected in struggle, nationally and internationally, and we do not have to tolerate the inhumane treatment we receive from above.
If all the world’s a stage, we are not audience members watching the story unfold – we are the lead characters driving the plot forwards.
Who better to take that stage, then, than the youth who will inherit the future we are fighting for?
Billy Jones is a committee member of Socialist Party (Gloucestershire Branch) and has stood as a candidate in local elections for the Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition (TUSC).
18/02/2026
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