Avi Lewis will further “moderate” his position if the left doesn’t press him, according to his longtime advisor. If serious, Martin Lukacs would promote the upcoming “Capitalism Can’t Be Fixed” conference put on by individuals working inside and outside the NDP.
A longtime Lewis advisor, whose partner is the new NDP leader’s communications director, Lukacs told a recent podcast Lewis will further “moderate” his position if no force presses him from the left. Lukacs stated, “Avi may end up moderating and if that happens it won’t just be his fault it will be the fault of those of us who didn’t build enough power on the outside to ensure he stays the course.”
Lukacs is correct, of course. If a politician only faces pressure from those promoting billionaires, ecocide, militarism, etc. they will invariably bend that way. Still, it’s good to hear from an insider since many Lewis supporters have complained about our anti-imperialist campaign pressuring him.
Late in the NDP leadership race I was arguing Lewis’ supporters should use their heightened leverage, due to his dependence on their votes, to press him to be bolder. That flew in pro-Avi NDP circles like a lead balloon.
Many who effectively argued during the leadership campaign for ‘no left criticism of Lewis since it might hurt his chance of winning the race’ have turned towards a ‘let’s not pressure Lewis because he’s better than Jagmeet Singh’ position.
It’s ridiculous since Lewis is in a strong position after having just won a huge mandate and control of the party structure. Additionally, Avi has already compromised far too much by any modestly leftist standpoint. He reappointed Heather ‘CIA’ McPherson foreign critic, refused to defend UNDRIP in BC, stayed mum on the new war bank, etc. Expect more ‘moderation’, particularly if leftists don’t challenge him or build socialist and internationalist organization and consciousness.
In the interview Lukacs claims the left will deserve blame if Lewis “moderates” in the face of the forces of ecocide, militarism, genocide, etc. He’s not incorrect.
But it’s audacious for Lukacs to be making this argument after promoting the NDP brass’ bid to suppress an insurgent leftist NDP leadership campaign with a comprehensive, popularly crafted, platform titled Capitalism Can’t Be Fixed: Onwards to a socialist future. On a Breach podcast in October Lukacs and Desmond Cole spent 10 minutes maliciously lying about my campaign’s finances and punching left.
The Capitalism Can’t Be Fixed campaign is still going. Since its release in October the comprehensive platform crafted by 45 activists and researchers is likely the most widely read anti-capitalism pamphlet/book in Canada. The campaign had a significant presence at the recent NDP convention, ongoing Canadian Labour Congress convention and organizes a weekly “Wednesday webinar” series. On May 24 it is organizing a daylong in person and online conference in Toronto.The conference is a chance to take stock of what’s been built, discuss the road ahead and shape the next phase of organized socialist and anti-imperialist politics in Canada. There will be speeches from Kshama Sawant, Dimitri Lascaris, Tamara Lorincz, Kevin MacKay, Sara Rasikh, Ghada Sasa, Clayton Thomas-Müller and myself.
With Mark Carney pursuing a pro-corporate, anti-Indigenous and hyper-militarist agenda, it’s more important than ever to develop a movement pursuing the fundamental change necessary to save humanity from wildfires, wars and fascism.
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