Ideas For Freedom 2025 took place over the weekend of 21-23 November, bringing activists from Britain’s socialist and labour movements together with speakers from other countries to discuss our times of growing political urgency.
The far right is on the rise, and socialists and the workers’ movement must be properly organised against it. This was the driving point of the opening plenary speech from John Moloney (Assistant General Secretary of the PCS, speaking in a personal capacity).
A number of other discussions at the weekend addressed the far-right threat: Americans Dan La Botz from "Third Camp" journal New Politics and Natalia Tylim from the Tempest collective discussed how to resist the Trump regime; a comrade from Socialismo o Barbarie, linked to the Trotskyist organisation Nuevo MAS in Argentina, told us about the Milei regime and the fight against it; and Workers’ Liberty activists in the UK led a discussion on organising against racists and the far right, ahead of our forthcoming new edition of How to Beat the Racists.
With the far right growing in force, another central theme was the regroupment of the left. We were proud that we organised, on the Friday evening of IFF, the only extended in-person debate there has been between different tendencies about "Your Party" and prospects for the left. Speakers from rs21’s Marxist Unity Caucus, Socialist Alternative and Greens Organise put the case for their respective organisations and their proposals for how the left can work together productively, Ruth Cashman spoke from AWL, and there was good discussion from the floor. We hope to continue the dialogue, not least around the 29-30 November Your Party founding conference.
The weekend saw other debates between the AWL and other left currents: Socialismo o Barbarie debated us on the nature of the Stalinist states; the Italian Marxist group Lotta Comunista debated us on whether national liberation struggles still have a place in the socialist struggle; we heard from three different strands of the French Marxist left on the political crisis in France; and more. The debates were comradely and insightful, and will continue in the pages of Solidarity and elsewhere.
Amid a growing backlash against trans rights and an international anti-feminist wave, we made sure to stand firm in our proud socialist feminist tradition: discussions on defending trans rights, renewing socialist feminism, and whether or not "sex-positive" is still the best term for our feminism which opposes what has been called "sex-negativity", developed thoughts and conversations that have been taking place at our socialist feminist reading groups up and down the country
There was a lot more, and the weekend was a great success. Everyone thought this year's new venue for the event was a good choice. A number of comrades agreed to join AWL, and others decided to get more involved with the struggle in their workplace, in political parties and campaigns, and on the streets. If you’re sad you missed out, or glad you came, then why not come to one of our upcoming meetings and get more involved?
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