In the past couple of months, Jeremy Corbyn has gone from virtually unheard of to “did you hear about the left winger contending for Labour leadership?”. Aside from the latter sounding like the build up to a really bad political joke, Jeremy Corbyn really has taken the political world and the journalists who follow it by storm.
Hailed by the left and “true” Labour forces as just what is needed whilst demonised by the press and the right as somebody “unelectable” and who could never run the country. In the race for the Labour leadership, Corbyn is the name everyone is talking about. But why is this so important? For the first time in as many years, Labour may have a true socialist leader. For all the the journalists saying Labour lost the recent election for being too left, they seem to forget that Labour’s history is buried deep in socialist origins. Incidentally, the idea of “too left” is laughable. Would the Tories have got in if there had been a singular strong leadership arising from the left as a true left option? I, for one, doubt it.
Of course, this doesn’t mean we should just throw ourselves on the “fuck yeah, Jeremy Corbyn!” wagon. However, I would like to provide you with some very good reasons why I’m Team Corbyn.
1. He’s speaking up for you
I have no idea who you are reading this. I hear a lot of people talking about standing up for the trampled, but I have never heard a politician who manages to cover all the bases and seem to have a genuine understanding of the real world implications of what he’s saying.
On a personal note, I was lucky enough to hear some wonderful speakers in London on 28 July, including Jeremy Corbyn and Dianne Abbott. Out of all the speakers, all of whom were wonderful, only Jeremy Corbyn mentioned mental health issues, something I personally feel incredibly passionate about.
2. He was actively fighting against the Iraq War..
… in 2001. Fourteen years ago and a whole nineteen years after first representing the Labour party. As the saying goes, this isn’t his first rodeo. He has attracted so many young voters and the truth is, he’s been fighting the good fight since before many of his voters were even slightly politically aware. Not to mention the fact that he was fighting against an (illegal) war that the party he is a member of got us into. Seriously. I’ve forgotten the last time I associated members of the Labour party with having a spine. It’s unfortunately easy to associate the left with being weak, but this is somebody who has so much conviction in his morals, he’s not afraid to fight against the problems within his own party.
Whatever your political leanings, that is a hugely admirable quality.
3. He’s genuinely anti-austerity
As in, not offering austerity-lite unlike the last previous Labour leaders. Corbyn has always actively been a socialist. I think the S word creates a variety of reactions from people, but I think we need to be a little less scared by horror stories and a little more aware of what socialism is and what it could mean. For one, a minimum wage that actually allows for a decent quality of life. For another, access to education for all. Stripping the privatisation of the NHS and pouring the funding into it that it desperately needs.
Doesn’t sound so bad to me.
4. He’s as green as… well, the Greens.
A lot of left voters turned Green in this past election. I’m sceptical enough to wonder how much of this is attributed to genuine support for the party and how much of this is attributed to being the popular choice. Either way, the good news about Corbyn is that he’s anti-trident, pro-renewal energy and would want to invest in and improve public transport to encourage that as a reasonable option.
5. The right hate him
They’ve been talking such a big show about how he can’t do it. The Telegraph went as far as to encourage its readers to vote for Corbyn under the belief it would secure future Conservative victories. Seriously.
Even right members of the Labour party are parroting this. This is kind of laughable as there is little to no difference between the Conservatives and the right members of the Labour party.
George Osborne* was quoted after the election as saying: “I think that what’s happening in the Labour Party is a bout of collective madness.” Considering this is coming from the same man who slashed the benefits of so many people in need in his recent budget, I can’t help but think that Labour must be doing something right.
*I apologise for repeatedly citing the tripe they call The Telegraph. Alas, to get inside the head of a Tory, I had to read what tories read. I did it for journalism.
6. I think he might be Santa Claus
Seriously, guys. He has that happy old man look and I’m fairly certain Santa must be a socialist.
Come December time, we will all have to keep an eye out for a beard and traces of fat suit.
Convinced? You can vote Corbyn for £3 via text. Terrible idea this voting by text lark. But you may as well, you know why? Because you can sure as hell bet the Tories will.
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