Stand with Latin America’s Left – Jess Barnard

7th September 2024Leave a Commenton Stand with Latin America’s Left – Jess Barnard

“Rolling back neo-liberalism not only works, it wins for the Left too!”

By Jess Barnard, Labour NEC member

Latin America’s Left continues to show a better world is possible. Although defeats for the Left often get more press attention, progressive governments have been elected in countries such as Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia and Honduras in recent years.

I was privileged to go to a Workers’ Party Congress in Brazil prior to Lula returning to the Presidency, seeing for myself how massive social movements can both resist a right-wing government and provide a basis for democracy and social progress to advance.

Our comrades elsewhere are also getting on with the business of building a better society.

Honduras has given free electricity to the poor and clamped town on corporate tax avoidance.

Bolivia has made the right to food a reality through the Bonus Against Hunger initiative, which helped over four million people, partly funded through a wealth tax.

And earlier this year in Mexico – where fire-and-rehire has been banned and outsourcing of public services ended – victory was spectacular. Claudia Sheinbaum – successor to President Andrés Manuel López Obrador – won the election by over 32 points!

The lesson here is that rolling back neo-liberalism not only works, it wins for the Left too! Yet – as has happened time and time again – the US Empire is striking back.

As well as blockading Cuba, it has enforced heavy sanctions on Venezuela, in a bid to force ‘regime change’ in the oil-rich country. These efforts have rightly been opposed by the aforementioned progressive governments.

We must both offer solidarity against these reactionary attacks and take inspiration from how people are fighting back through mass movements against neo-liberalism and US-domination.

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• Jess Barnard is a member of the Labour Party National Executive Committee. You can follow her on X on x/twitter here.
• You can follow Labour Friends of Progressive Latin America at facebook and x/twitter.
• Jess will be speaking alongside guests from across Latin America at the major ‘¡Viva la Solidaridad! Stand with Latin America’s Left’ event in Liverpool at 6.30pm on Monday September 23 at the Racquet Club Hotel & Ziba Restaurant, L3 9AG. Reserve a place in advance here.