Why I’m standing for TUSC in May’s elections
by Imran Hussain, TUSC Candidate for Leyton
As we take to the streets to march against racism on 28 March, trade unionists and campaigners know that the threat from Reform UK and the far right is growing. But we also know that racism doesn’t exist in a vacuum. It breeds in the fertile ground of capitalist austerity, poverty, and the deliberate destruction of our communities.
few months Photo: London SP
That is exactly why I am standing in May’s local elections as a Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition (TUSC) candidate for Leyton ward of Waltham Forest in east London.
For years, establishment politicians have passed down devastating cuts, leaving working-class people fighting over crumbs. When people can’t get a doctor’s appointment or a council house, right-wing populists step in to falsely blame migrants and refugees.
To defeat Reform and the racists, we have to cut off their political oxygen. We do that by fighting for the resources our class desperately needs.
In my campaign in Waltham Forest, I am arguing for a fighting socialist alternative. I am demanding absolutely no cuts to public services and jobs. Instead of managing decline, we need councils to set people’s budgets based on real needs, created through assemblies of residents and trade unions – that councillors are held accountable to. To tackle the housing crisis that divides our communities, I am campaigning to ensure 100% of new homes built on public land are council-owned social housing.
Councils can fight back
Anti-racism must also be backed by concrete action in the town hall. If elected, I will fight to end council complicity in immigration raids. I will also push the council to fund and facilitate anti-racist, anti-hate crime bystander and self-defence training.
I am standing for TUSC because I know these demands cannot be delivered by councillors alone simply sticking to a policy of cuts and council tax rises. When we refuse to make cuts and instead choose to spend on people’s needs, we know the government will try to intervene. As a TUSC councillor, I won’t hide in the council chamber. I will actively rally residents, trade unions, and community organisations to resist the imposition of cuts through protests, direct action, occupations, and strikes.
The workers’ movement is the greatest anti-racist force we have. By fighting together for jobs, homes, and services, we can smash the divisive lies of the far-right and build a socialist future!