I feel an undeniable sense of satisfaction in seeing so many members and ex-members of this awful organisation coming to the same conclusions I did two years ago. The very people who were deriding me for leaving have themselves deserted the sinking ship, and been subject to the exact same treatment. It’s remarkable how many of my observations here and elsewhere concerning this cult have been vindicated a thousand times over by the organisation’s behaviour over the sexual assault scandal in Fightback. The hounding out of long-time members who have dedicated so much time, energy and money to the organisation, who are then slandered and their efforts forgotten. The re-writing of history so that the contributions of these ex-members are erased and their names utterly blackened. The bullying and blackmailing of people who ask questions. The refusal on the part of the leadership to admit to any wrongdoing, to reform its structures, to give up an iota of its power or prestige, and the use of bureaucratic methods to silence the opposition. The gaslighting that these people are subjected to when they leave (‘Why didn’t you stay and fight within the organisation? Why don’t you leave quietly instead of publicly denouncing your former comrades?’). The hemorrhaging of valuable and dedicated comrades, presumably to be replaced with green recruits, conformists and bootlickers who can be brainwashed and moulded more easily by the leadership, is pretty self-defeating for a so-called revolutionary organisation seeking to build ‘cadres’.
Many people have come forward with their stories and I hope that some of those people read these blog, in spite of the fact that I am a ‘tainted’ source. When I raised questions myself about the sexual misconduct scandal of 2015 that saw many members leave Socialist Appeal, the same slanders being directed against those who are now leaving were repeated to me about the people who leave seven years ago. Of course, being a loyal comrade, I believed the leadership. Now, I see that they were probably telling the truth, and that there was a sordid cover-up of grooming within the organisation. I can testify that as a member of the Warwick branch in 2017, one of our comrades was in a relationship with a Sixth Former who was also a contact of the organisation, and whom he was grooming and pushing to join the organisation. We turned a blind eye to this as we wanted to recruit more people and saw no harm in any of this. They were pushed to attend branch and even give a lead-off, but they never turned up and thankfully broke up with the comrade in question and disappeared off the face of the earth. They and this comrade were present at a social I attended in January 2018 at which there was heavy drinking and illicit substances were consumed. Looking back, the whole thing makes me sick. To think I was associated with such evil.
In hindsight, the branch as a whole was run in a very unprofessional manner. It was essentially a friendship clique revolving around the branch secretary, from which I was excluded. I was treated differently from the others as a result. I am convinced that this was partly due to jealousy of me and my talents, and possibly even racism. This would explain why they turned a blind eye to a comrade grooming a Sixth Former, but wanted to expel me from the organisation on the grounds that I was ‘puritanical’ when I committed the minor indiscretion of saying that this excessive drinking and taking of drugs was ‘degenerate’, and slandered me as ‘un-Marxist’ for having mental health issues. (The leadership at the time decided I had done nothing that warranted expulsion, but I agreed to a year-long leave of absence before returning to full activity.) Even the social chat we had, which we included contacts in, had much cliquey banter within it and little in the way of serious political discussion. Former members of Fightback have testified to a culture of heavy drinking at socials and post-branch get-togethers that made them uncomfortable and did not help the professionalism of the organisation. Is it surprising that in this context, we see vulnerable young people suffering rape or sexual assault at the hands of senior comrades? Where is the safeguarding? Why are people in their 30s and 40s socialising with people who are teenagers? And if this is necessary, why aren’t there clear structures in place to stop abuse? Bear in mind that these are not innocent social events, but means of social control, a means of controlling the time of the members and contacts and pressuring them to spend all their free time socialising with other comrades rather than tainted outside people.
At least one former member of Fightback who suffers from mental health issues testified on social media that when they rejoined after a period of inactivity, they were cold-shouldered by Alex Grant, the section leader, who said ‘We want to recruit normal people’. (This is rich coming from the deadbeat wastrel and parasite who has dedicated his life to running a far-left cult that will never enjoy political power in Canada or anywhere else. I have reason to question the normality of any such person.) This would explain my own mistreatment at the hands of my branch for having mental health issues and burn-out. As my branch secretary told me, ‘We want happy, optimistic people in our organisation’. Not weirdos like myself who have emotional problems, who are apparently a drag on the organisation. This was his way of saying thank you for my hard work over many months for his loathsome cult. When I had told him prior to my leave of absence that I would like to take time off, he shamed me for doing so. When I eventually did take that leave of absence, he slandered me as ‘un-Marxist’ to the rest of the branch, who were led to understand that I had been ‘expelled’ after an investigation which revealed that I was a disgusting reactionary and an awful human being who needed re-programming before I could be allowed to rejoin. This asshole once called himself my friend and comrade, and assured me I would be treated well if I joined the branch. Part of me hopes he gets knocked over by a car, but I try to control these darker feelings towards my former comrades. This is what people need to realise – a cult does not care about its members. They care about using you, and will throw you under the bus the minute you cease to be useful. Just recently the IMT published a ‘Why We Fight’ article by a member who talks about how their mental health struggles led them to join the organisation, as they came to the conclusion that only the overthrow of capitalism can liberate those weighed down by mental illness. Little does this poor guy know how people with mental health issues are treated in this organisation behind closed doors. I hope he finds his way out before too long.
Apparently there is a massive drive within the Canadian section for a new headquarters, and in the British section too. I can’t help thinking, what a massive waste all this is. Even from the point of view of building the organisation, what is the point of spending all this money on a top-heavy full-time apparatus, spanking new offices, glossy magazines and papers that no one outside the sect is going to bother reading anyway, and fancy new editions of Marxist classics you can get for free online? It’s a gigantic Ponzi scheme that is sucking resources that would be better spent elsewhere, and fleecing the membership. Over two and a half years I spent over £1000 on this evil organisation. The ways they have of fleecing people are insane. Tickets for socials, seasonal ‘fund-raising’ drives, pledges by branches and individuals in the run up to things like the World Congress or the national conference, pressure to purchase new editions of books published by Wellred, subscribing to the paper and magazine – that’s before you even get to the subs payments that are the main requirement for being a member. People join thinking that they only have to contribute a small amount, and end up paying through the nose. That is the power of peer pressure in a cult. Being in the IMT or any similar organisation is like being in a multi-level marketing scheme. Just the other day I took two Wellred books still on my shelf to the shed, and I was just thinking of how good the material was, and how sturdy the paper that was used to print the book was, and what a shame that the contents are a load of garbage. Just think of what else these resources could have been put to.
It is downright frightening how people’s entire identities have come to revolve around this organisation, which they see as the only hope for mankind, and how they uncritically defend everything that comes out of the corrupt leadership. People are now publicly defending rape and slandering victims of rape and sexual assault, because their organisation told them to. This is the Milgram experiment in action. People who became interested in politics because they want to stand up to tyranny and injustice are now themselves perpetrators of tyranny and injustice, hounding victims of sexual misconduct and treating them, and those who side with them, as political enemies. To think that if I had been a member, I too might have been defending these horrors and toeing the party line, fills me with disgust and shame.
If the people who have now left seek out this blog, or even the valuable research done by people like Dennis Tourish on political cults, they will find a wealth of useful information and insight into what was done to them and how they were used and exploited. I am glad they have now seen the light, and hope that those who have now left enjoy the rest of their (hopefully cult-free) life.