Back into Fragments

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Despite the fact that about 1,500 people turned up to the Beyond the Fragments conference in Leeds on 30th August, a large majority felt that the left was as much if not more fragmented by the end of the day.

Most of these 1,500 seemed to be graduated students from the era of the 1968 radicalisation now cosily placed in professional, posts, with time to patronisingly reflect on the fate of the working class.

The structure of the conference, such as it was, consisted of initial and concluding plenary sessions interspersed with workshops on a number of fairly abstract topics.

But what characterised the workshops above all, was their complete lack of concern over the present economic and political situation in Britain.

No one seemed to be interested in fighting the Tories or opposing sackings and cuts in services. Instead these "socialists" slipped gently into the utopian construction of 'radical alternatives' to existing institutions.

A workshop of the Welfare State produced comments to the effect that the working class was not prepared to defend threatened hospitals because they were 'alienated from them' and would rather go without!

Another "socialist" remarked that strikes were an unimaginative form of struggle and were now outmoded. Presumably workers ought to take up street theatre instead! The emphasis was all on consciousness: the need to get across to the working class the message that capitalism is not in their interests and that socialism is a possible alternative.

Until such time the as working class manages to cotton on to the fact that it is getting a rough deal from the Tories, the Beyond the Fragment-ers will be satisfied with mulling over the problems of alienation and "lack of communication'. • Naturally the Communist Party "peaceful roaders' fitted in perfectly with this schemetheir positions indistinguishable from those of the conference organisers.

This was ironic, since the conference's refusal to discuss any practical struggle against the Tories was accompanied by deep hostility to Leninist groups.

One WSL comrade was actually barred from speaking, and more tellingly perhaps, the Right to Work Campaign, which spent the entire day shaking buckets to collect money for their march, came up. with a meagre £35 by the end.

The final plenary session, which appeared to be arranged so as to cut out any contributions from the floor, did include a report on the situation in The conference organisers, after abusing the revolutionary left for its allegedly authoritarian and rigid organisation, bureaucratically produced statement on Poland, to which no amendments were admitted.

While listing a number of oppressed groups in Poland, the statement neglected any mention of gay oppression, much to the anger of the gay groups at the conference.

The Feminists were equally outraged at the lack of any discussion of patriarchy at the centre of the conference agenda.

Parents were also irate, about the lack of suitable creche facilities.

So the conference ended, with most people feeling frustrated or angry about some aspect of it, and with no constructive practical policies for the future having been discussed.

The only proposal from the organisers was to have more of the same-yet another conference. Not surprisingly, only about half of those present showed any interest in another day of hot air and bull-shit.

If the conference achieved anything, it must have been to increase the demoralisation of some of the people there who were interested in fighting the cuts and the Tories.

The "Socialists" from whom one might have expected some ideas about revolutionary struggle, seemed to have conceded the fight already, and moved off to cloud cuckoo land instead.

Fortunately the working class does not have to rely on these forces for leadership, but must organise in the labour movement with those who are willing to fight the Tories rather than spin dreams and do nothing.

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TUC 1980 CAOUTHE UNEMPLOVED Congress background TRADES LNON CONGRESS BRIGHTON 1980