Change-makers and the lessons from the US

Before heading off to Davos, Douglas Alexander MP kindly took an hour out of his hectic schedule on Monday evening to join a roundtable on the lessons learnt on the Young Fabian delegation to Ohio last October/November. He heard what ideas Young Fabians felt could be translated from Barack Obama’s incredible campaign to Labour campaigning in the UK.

Amongst the things discussed were trust and best utilising a campaign’s biggest resource – volunteers. Obama’s campaign, similar to other Democrat campaigns before it but differing to most Labour campaigns, did not exclude on the basis of not being a party member. Instead, volunteers had access to masses of information about both the logistics and the strategy of the campaign as well as policy. The idea that direction, but not control, should come from the centre is an important part of the process of empowering those of similar values who want to fight your corner.

Taking this on board is a massive culture change for the Labour Party. But Douglas was of the view that the best change in Labour organising has come in times of adversity. We are probably at that point right now. And there are some signs that the right ideas are being taken on board. But we have a fight on our hands. Douglas, in highlighting the important role of young people in our movement, challenged us to “be the change-makers we want to see”.

In his role as general election coordinator, he wants the concrete recommendations; our top fives; to know what the ‘war room’ of the Obama generation is.

It’d be good to hear what you think …