Monday, September 09, 2024

 Fourth International

International youth camp a great success!



Saturday 7 September 2024, by Jeunesses Anticapitalistes (JA)



France hosted the 39th International Youth Camp for the third year running. After a period when the number of participants was falling, the camp is getting a new lease of life! We had 230 young people, compared with 150 last year. We’re aiming to beat that number next year!

The Anti-Capitalist Youth delegation from France’s NPA-A (Nouveau parti anticapitaliste) was the biggest, with 76 people, including a large number of supporters. This testifies to the dynamic within our party, particularly after the parliamentary elections, and shows that our ideas and demands resonate with the concerns of young people outside our organisation.

Comrades from many countries were present (especially from Europe): Belgium, Denmark, Spain, Switzerland, Sweden, Norway, Scotland, England, and a comrade from the Philippines. We also welcomed comrades from Latvia and Lithuania, with whom our discussions revealed the extent of political repression in Eastern Europe against all progressive left-wing ideas. Iraqi comrades would have come if their visas had not been refused. Generally speaking, we need to strengthen our internationalist links to encourage young people from outside Europe to come.

Support for Palestine from all sides

Palestine was one of the camp’s main concerns. A standing committee met and drafted a solidarity statement. This provided an opportunity to exchange views on our activist experiences this year, which varied greatly from country to country, and to reflect on common prospects for mobilising young people in support of Palestine and for an end to genocide.

Disablism was a new topic for the camp. It has always been addressed and mentioned, but this year the programme included a conference and workshops. The non-mixed space for racialised people had a major political impact on the camp, with demands from those concerned and a general awareness of the need to respond to them. Even though there were more racialised people than last year, they still represent a minority on the camp and it is essential to make it a space where they are not oppressed and take their full place.

The international youth camp, a self-managed space that works!

The camp takes place in an area of exchange and discovery, the advantage of a youth camp where mistakes are part of the learning process. The camp is self-managed, from organising the programme to running the workshops and doing the housework. This week is an opportunity to discover and explore key political issues (anti-racism, feminism, ecosocialism, anti-LGBTIphobia and so on) and to experience non-mixed spaces. The presence of an Awareness Team aims to create the safest possible spaces for listening and caring. During the week, various activities such as games and evening events help us to break away from the societal norms in which we are confined on a daily basis. Exchanges between young people are always beneficial, whether they take place during training sessions or informally, within a delegation or (and above all) in meetings with comrades from other countries.

In the end, the youth camps are an opportunity to spend some time in a society that we are trying to make fairer. We look forward to next year, in Belgium, where they will be organised by the Gauche Anticapitaliste!

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