Why tories are scum

None of this activity, however, received half as much attention as the behaviour of a small number of people directly outside the convention centre. One young delegate was struck on the head by an egg. Some journalists were spat on. Even Owen Jones. There were reports of a rape threat and a vile antisemitic slur.

This came just a week after a few of the participants in a Fuck Parade march, orchestrated by the long-running anarchist group Class War to protest against gentrification in east London, attacked the Cereal Killer cafe.

In the history of protest, these two incidents are microscopic blips. People are going to food banks, the rich are getting richer, London has never been so full of millionaires and billionaires, and inequality is rising. Anger is a natural response to being screwed over. With the next election five long years away, their appeal has spiked. People are reorienting themselves towards protest politics.

She does, however, believe that not all protest needs to be peaceful, citing the new movie Suffragette. The argument can always be made that democracy works at any particular time. In any protest movement there is disagreement about the legitimacy and efficacy of certain forms of direct action.

It can pay dividends if you think about the wider movement and more moderate groups step in. It is goodies versus baddies. This is clearly having a wider impact on the fortunes of progressive politics in Britain. The Labour Party has now been out of power for 11 years.

Its new leader, touted as an antidote to Jeremy Corbyn, is floundering. Which brings an old adage to mind: while the right looks for converts , the left looks for traitors. The problem for the left is that in a democracy you need converts — a lot of them — to win elections.

Without them, you may retain the moral high ground. But when it comes to making the world a better place, if you fail to win people over to your side then you are reduced to defensiveness and impotence. I am a materialist, broadly speaking. I accept that many people vote out of material self-interest. Sometimes, in doing so, they disregard the impact this has on people less fortunate than themselves.

And yet, many other individuals arrive at their political beliefs and voting decisions through a complex process. It may be morally satisfying to denounce such people in highly charged language. But will it help to change their minds? Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies. Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later?

Start your Independent Premium subscription today. More about Angela Rayner Labour. Already subscribed? Log in.