Labour Live: Never mind the scepticism, it’s the JezFest

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2018/jun/16/labour-live-jezfest-london-jeremy-corbyn-scepticism

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Labour supporters gathered in north London on Saturday afternoon for an event officially called Labour Live, but also known as “JezFest”.

The party said about 13,000 tickets were sold for the music and politics extravaganza at the 20,000 capacity White Hart Lane recreation ground after ticket prices were slashed by 70%.

Tony Lennon, a retired stage manager from Shropshire, was unconcerned about the initial poor turnout: “It’s not about making money,” he said. “It’s about bringing people who believe in the same sort of thing together. If this is the first time they’ve organised a festival like this, then they’ve done really well. Weather’s not so good, but I think overall it will do the job.”

The relatively poor turnout for Labour Live might be evidence of a labouring love for Corbyn’s brand of socialism, but the cult of personality endured among the faithful on an overcast day.

A diverse smattering of people young and old, black and white, middle and working class wandered across the grass between stages, as Rae Morris – Blackpool’s pop challenger – implored the several dozen people sitting in front of the main stage to get on their feet and dance.

People have been … disengaged in politics and one party is trying to appeal in a different way

The tents were fairly busy, however. Ian Avery, the MP and former trade unionist, got a good turnout in the Solidarity tent, along with Dan Carden MP and Len McCluskey for the People’s Question Time.

The Literary tent was packed for Guardian columnist Dawn Foster and editor-at-large, Gary Younge, as they talked about how a new generation of Labour voters were interested in bringing the party back to its roots following the 2015 defeat.

On the side of the tent was the Socialist Bookmarks shop, where books on offer included Unravelling Capitalism, the Rebel’s Guide to Gramsci, and the Ragged-Trousered Philanthropists.

Meanwhile, contemporary leftwing authors were close by, preparing to speak.

“Given the overwhleming onslaught of sneeriness, snideness, snarkiness and snobbery about this event from opponents of Jeremy Corbyn, it’s just nice to actually be here and see there’s a whole bunch of people having a nice time,” said Alex Nunns, author of The Candidate: Jeremy Corbyn’s Improbable Path to Power.

“We live in a country where people have been completely disengaged in politics and one party is trying to appeal in a different way and make it a little less dry.”

Festivalgoers appeared most concerned about education, housing, wages and the NHS rather than Brexit.

The mostly remain voters rue the “disaster of leaving the EU”, but say the referendum result must be accepted and that it is not among their top of their priorities.

“The debate is dominated by pedantic squabbles,” said Chris Saltmarsh, a 22-year-old climate-change campaigner from Liverpool. “There are many more important things for the political elite to worry out.”

As Guardian columnist Owen Jones took to the main stage and restated Labour’s pledge to abolish tuition fees, renationalise industries that “ belong to us” and then give people a proper living wage, to whoops from the crowd, there was a palpable feeling Corbyn was plugging the right line – to the diehards.

At about 6pm, Corbyn’s comrade, John McDonnell, will introduce him to the stage, with attendees left to browse Corbyn merchandise, listen to Declan McKenna and work out how to transform the world until then.

The Magic Numbers performed a solid set to an audience that steadily increased as the day wore on.

A Labour party spokesperson said: “Labour Live has been a fantastic day. We’ve brought people together from all walks of life to have a good time to enjoy the acts and family entertainment, and discuss how we can change our society for the better.

“The tents have been packed all day and there has been a great atmosphere. This is the first event of its kind organised by a political party, and we have demonstrated how politics can be opened up to a wider audience and to people who have been shut out for far too long.”