Voting!

I've voted!

I walked all the way to the Post Box on my own and, as you can see, my postal vote is on its way. I've now walked or driven on 6 of the last 7 days.

I voted labour and after 38 years of voting in elections it's the first time I've been able to vote for a leader of the Labour Party who is a socialist and who will carry out the promises he has made during the election campaign.

That's two firsts.

Here's a favourite photograph from 1984;

It's Jeremy Corbyn being arrested outside South Africa House at Trafalgar Square. I love the fact that he has hand-written his own placard, in an impeccable font.

I was also there at the picket although not necessarily on the same day as this. The noisy and raucous 24 hour picket of South Africa House lasted for many years, seven days a week, organised by David and Norma Kitson and their supporters.

At the same time, the Conservative Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher was condemning Nelson Mandela and the African National Congress as 'Terrorists', as was her government and party.

Britain, America and Israel were secretly arming and supporting the Racist South African government.

At this time, the South African government blew up the London headquarters of the ANC without any sanctions being imposed on it.

So there were times when opposing Apartheid in South Africa could seem like a lonely and thankless task.

It didn't stop Jeremy Corbyn any more than, after he had won the Labour Party leadership, 170 members of the Parliamentary Labour Party supported a motion of no confidence in his leadership. One by one, the majority of members of his shadow cabinet resigned at hourly intervals to cause him the maximum embarrassment and humiliation.

He stood again in the subsequent election and won the leadership with an increased majority.

Labour started the election campaign 20 percentage points behind the tories. Now Labour has a majority of the vote in opinion polls in London and Wales. The gap between the two parties is down to 3 per cent in the latest national opinion poll.
  
Corbyn is truly a man of steel and I urge anyone with a vote to cast it for their Labour Party candidate on June 8th.

Neil Harris
(a don't stop till you drop production)
Home: helpmesortoutstpeters.blogspot.com
Contact me: neilwithpromisestokeep@gmail.com