Labour has failed blacks

Scan page 5

This is one of the issues in the it was aimed at but it did win a Labour Party that is constantly lot of sympathy from other being fudged rather than being women delegates from the CLPs. raised as a serious issue. I feel It's very upsetting and disappoinvery strongly about the tokenism ting to come to a conference in the Labour Party. The issues from a constituency where I raise pertaining to the situation think you might have got rid of of black people are either ignored a lot of the latent sexism, only or people, because they've never to discover it is still there in the really thought about it, just movement amongst those people Muhammad tarısn must stay! Natonal march and rally, Saturday October 8. Assemble 11am, Booth St Recreation Ground, off Soho Road, Handswirth, Birmingham, and march to city centre for rally.

Officially supported by the local authority workers' union NALGO.

delegate at the conferena FTHINK I made a tactical error in not pinning down Jo Richardson and Ann. Davis who were there, representing the women's section of the NEC and the women's rights study group, and 1 opened it to the floor for discussion.

Jo Richardson and Ann Davis chose not to make any response In fact Ann Davis said, 'Let's have some more questions after I'd finished speaking and a couple of other women there did allude to the fact that it was a serious issue. I made a point about the lack of black women delegates at this conference and the fact that as women in the party 1 saw us as the true progressives and what were we doing to encourage not only black people but black women to join the party and become active.

But there was Just no res ponse. And it wasn't even men tioned in your bulletin that this point was raised. I think this is really serious, especially if you year in mind that the conference arrangements committee may not even include the resolutions on positive discrimination.

There was a delegation yesterday, and I believe also today, on that very issue - pushing for the resolutions on positive discrimination to be included on the agenda.

I think the Labour Party has failed black people and ethnic minorities and they continue to fail.

It's only at election time that there is a lot of activity amongst black constituents. Péople like me, the token blacks in. the Labour Party, are called upon to be convenors of ethnic minority working groups, which I am in Dulwich, and the issue is shoved on to us, which I believe gives my comrades an excuse not to do very much about the issue. We've got our black brothers and sisters dealing with the situation and they're the best to do it.' don't know what to say.

I've got a lot of respect for Jo Richardson, but I was really surprised that she had nothing to say on that issue.

I find it very hard to feel optimistic and I feel very confused about my position as a Labour Party activist. I feel very confused about my own situation in Southwark where there are a lot of black constituents.

On the doorstep during the last election black people were telling me that they were not going to vote. They had been Labour voters all the years they had been in this country. The Labour Party had failed them and continued to fail them. The only time they see the Labour Party is at election time so they were not going to vote.

The conference is a sham. Black issues are being ignored, CLPs denied a voice. Sam McCluskie (in the chair) is using his position to manipulate conference.

Everyone talks about democracy, but here where there is a forum for democratic debate it's not happening.

I'm tempted to go and sit on the beach for the rest of the week. Why am I wearing this delegate's card? It's meaningless.

DIANA MINNS, secretary Hornsey CLP As far as women in the Party are concerned this conference shows no siens of being any better than last year's. Judith Hart at дитти sile nagas wa warsa least knows that she shouldn't be patronising. Sam McCluskie isn't too aware of it. We are beginning to educate him a little but I do think that we've had a very raw deal so far.

It was right for the woman from Hackney to make a speech about the sexism of the trade union delegates. It didn't seem to have a lot of effect on the people who have a lot of influence.

----- pull-quotes -----

trumammmad NATIONAL OCTOBER

must stay! MARC