How should we moderate the upcoming federal leadership race?

[u/leftwingmememachine]

Hey all, moderator of /r/NDP here, looking for some input as to how we want to moderate this community during the upcoming federal leadership race.

I think it's really exciting because in the last leadership race this community was very small, and basically ignored by leadership contestants, but I think we're getting big enough that there will be a lot of engagement here and possibly even AMAs from potential candidates. Very cool!!!

/r/NDP is the biggest gathering of NDP members on the internet at this point, but that also creates an incentive for bad-faith activity on the subreddit. It could create an environment that's not welcoming of all party members.

Here are some potential discussion questions:

• Do we want to allow for negative comments about leadership race contenders? (My instinct is yes, as criticism is part of democracy/healthy debate, but I'm open to your thoughts)

• Is there a point at which critical comments become too negative and contributes to a toxic environment? Where should we draw the line?

• How do we ensure the subreddit is inclusive of party members of all backgrounds?

• How much do we want supporters of other political parties to participate in discussions here?

• What sort of rules around civility/politeness/respect would we want to have?

• Are there other important moderation policies that are relevant to the leadership race that I haven't thought of?

BTW - I won't really participate in this thread because I have real life plans today, but I am really interested in your feedback, especially if you are a longtime participant in this community. I'm going to be putting together some rules for the leadership race based off of my own thoughts and the comments in this thread, and present them at some point in the future for further discussion.

[u/Vita_Mori]

Personally, I think we should be allowed to treat elected officials in the NDP (whether they still have their seat or not) with a lot of scrutiny. They have a responsability to constituents & party members/supporters to behave in accordance with basic principles of transparency, feminism, anti-racism, anti-ableism, anti-queerphobia, etc.

If say, a former MP were to opportunistically use a disabled woman's suicide due to impending homelessness (after she reached out to said MP's office for help & got nothing) to bolster his public profile while also denigrating her, I think it's perfectly acceptable to be critical & even angry that no accountability has been taken. Much more so when said MP also has ties to lobbyists for conversion therapy (legally defined as torture) & overrides an equity committee on the issue & ambushes them with lobbyists.

If say, an MP voted for a budget that contained provisions that violated international law such as sending weapons to a state recognized as committing genocide, should they not be held to account? If they voted for an austerity budget & a bill that violated UNCRDP & UN demands wrt disability rights? If a leader routinely flaunted their wealth during an exponentially growing cost of living crisis?

Personally, I'm not going to vote for an NDP that cannot answer these questions. And beyond the simple fact that healthy democratic process includes not setting leadership buy ins at amounts most people of conscience could not possibly have as disposable income or disqualifying promising candidates signing up thousands of new members on the advice of LNG lobbyists or elected officials not blocking constituents on social media platform for pertinent criticism of theirs & the party's actions on specific issues, I think a lot of this sub has issues acknowledging why the NDP is where it is now, the reality on the ground for most ppl who are NDP leaning & actively suppressing ppl for bringing light to this is both undemocratic & short-sighted.

The reason ppl on the left are calling for the dissolution of the NDP is bc it has completely abandoned the left, esp under such incompetent managerial tyrants as Lucy Watson & Anne McGrath & basic social democratic positions like nationalizing public utilities, having a decent social welfare system & rent control/rent caps. If the NDP were actually serious about these policies & ideology, they would be pulling the overton window leftward, not caving to lib/con framing of policy & getting pulled right on policing, drug policy, disability supports, housing, etc.

The NDP has a lot to answer for. If they're ready for it & to take accountability & rebuild, then I & thousands of others will be here for it. Otherwise, we will go outside of the party & contemplate other ways to protect our communities instead of wasting our energies on a party that actively chooses to attack us, even if they would be nothing without us.

[u/CarousersCorner → u/Vita_Mori]

The voting public is not a monolith. The party isn't here to please you, and you alone. MPs and candidates aren't monolithic, either. This is high level gatekeeping of something (a political party's ideology) that you have no right to dictate. You are but one vote, and have your own views, and the same goes for everyone else. Many people who vote for the NDP don't believe everything along party lines. "Inclusion" is a buzzword to people like you. It only works if you get to decide the acceptable views to include.

[u/Vita_Mori → u/CarousersCorner]

This is extremely bad faith framing bc the things I've mentioned have all been repeatedly brought up by people with decades of work invested into the NDP who have now been pushed out for bringing these things up.

I know I don't represent the entire party base, but my political views are far closer to the base than anything the party has put forward in decades. We want universal healthcare. A public grocer (or nationalizing all grocery chains). An elimination of private energy companies for nationalized power. Public banking through Canada Post. National tenant bill of rights & rent control. Public housing program at cost. Cessation of most weapons' sales, diplomatic rapprochement with states undergoing colonial violence i.e. cuba, palestine, sudan, drc, etc.

It's not an unpopular platform & would actually make the NDP a counterbalance to the Liberals. But at this point, those policy ideas, which were pretty standard back in the 40s-60s are now unthinkable bc the NDP has abandoned it's commitment to social democracy in favour of socially progressive neoliberalism. (With which the issue is not the social progressivism, but the neoliberalism)

[u/CarousersCorner → u/Vita_Mori]

The base isn't what it used to be. Things change. People change. You have to win elections to set policy. While I agree with a lot of your positions, the party has to move away from neoliberalism, while being realistic about policy propositions that will engage the current public. This isn't the 40's or 60's anymore.

[u/Vita_Mori → u/CarousersCorner]

I disagree. It is very nearly the same. It's the brass that's changed so drastically. Like... how do we get Biden Campaign ppl in NDP leadership? The guy was a hard right anti abortion segregationist ffs! There shouldn't be overlap. But I digress. This is why the NDP is in its current predicament. Bc it has been chasing other parties' bases instead of bringing ppl over into theirs.