I was born into a political family.
My great grandfather was a construction union activist who was fired by an employer because he had gone to a demonstration in support of the unemployed on his day off, a Sunday. The employer’s daughters had seen him on the demonstration.
I am told that he supported a Lib-Lab MP in Edmonton, London in 1906.
My grandfather lied about his age to join the Army in November 1913.
Grandfather was in France from the beginning of the Great War (World War 1) to the end, except for injury time. He was shot twice, gassed, and shrapnelled. He was in the ILP (Independent Labour Party) and was a Parliamentary candidate in the early 1920s. He was an active Fabian. Later, he was Civil Defence Officer for Jarrow, one of the first towns to be bombed in World War 2.
Age 15, my father sold flags on the Quayside in Newcastle upon Tyne to raise money for Spanish children orphaned by fascist bombing in Spain.
When the Second World War began my father was astonished to learn that he had flat feet, and was not acceptable for military service. As a BBC technician he was involved in building a secret broadcasting centre near Bristol. He worked briefly for USDAW, and then was appointed Manager of the Fabian Society bookshop, He took part in the campaigning in support of the Beveridge Report. He was a Parliamentary candidate in the 1951 General Election. He was involved in television advertising for the CCF Co-operative (Commonwealth Federation) in Saskatchewan. When we lived in Vancouver, a frequent visitor to our house was Rosemary Brown, later the first Black woman elected to the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia.
Returning to England, my father was active in the Labour Party. He served as a Durham County Council councillor for many years. He was active in collecting for the miners. His group supported more than 80 miners and families during the 1984/85 strike. He went on his last demonstration – against the Iraq War – at the age of 84.
My mother was active in the Labour Party. At one point she was secretary to Morgan Phillips, who became or already was General Secretary of the Labour Party.
I was born during my father’s Parliamentary campaign in 1951.
I am told that at the age of seven I was found telling an elderly Chinese gentleman about Sun Yat Sen, the first President of China. It is possible that he already knew more than I did.
My first political memory is the “Diefenbaker Dollar”, privately printed mock banknotes 82 1/2% the length of a Canadian dollar, mocking the devaluation of the Canadian dollar under Prime Minister John Diefenbaker. Other memorable events were the election between John Kennedy and Richard Nixon, the Cuba crisis, the murder of the three Freedom Riders in Mississippi, and the assassination of John Kennedy.
I was taken to my first political meeting at the age of 12, where I saw Vic Feather and Fenner Brockway speak.
In the 1966 General Election, age 14, I helped on polling day, cycling with “the numbers” from polling stations to the committee rooms. In the afternoon I was taught how to cross numbers out on Reading Pads.
I was active in Student Unions at Sixth Form College and at Durham University. I led my first demonstration at age 17.
I helped in council elections and the 1970 General Election, but I did not join the Labour Party until February 1972. I became a CLP Chair aged 24!
I was shanghaied to serve as CLP Secretary in a “key seat” 1996/97. I have held most branch and constituency offices.
My strengths and experience are in election organisation.
In 1986 I increased the Labour vote 80% to win the third safest Tory ward in Bradford for Labour. In 1990 I increased my 1986 vote 47% to record the highest ever vote in Heaton ward.
In 1991 we got a second Labour councillor elected, with the second highest vote ever recorded in the ward.
After I was a Parliamentary Agent in 2015, I wrote The Effective Activist.
Section 20 of The Effective Activist gives an outline of my activism.
When I resigned from Labour in December 2020, I was Secretary of Labour International CLP with 3,000+ members and 20+ branches.
I set up a group called Left Labour, and then we joined with the then new Breakthrough Party in about February 2021. As I had the most elections experience, I was Elections Lead from the outset. I was on the initial Steering Committee for the Breakthrough Party, and did much of the work to rewrite its constitution. I came to England to help in the Chesham and Amersham byelection.
At the time of writing (October 2023) Breakthrough intends to meld into the Transform Party. I am standing for Transform Elections Lead. For an idea of what I wish to contribute I have posted some interesting information.
TRANSFORM ELECTION PIECES
WHAT WOULD A MASS WORKING CLASS SOCIALIST PARTY LOOK LIKE?
https://chasjames.com/transform-elections-policy/
https://chasjames.com/advice-to-transform-agents/
ELECTION WEEK AND AFTER | Charles James Writings (chasjames.com)
https://chasjames.com/how-to-analyse-a-marked-register/
The political pieces are:
The Effective Activist A “how to” booklet on how to be an effective activist in the Labour Party. I have since left the Labour Party, but it is still a good piece.
Our “Left Labour” Future January 2021 proposal to form a democratic socialist rival party to the Labour Party
Corbyn’s Option “C” – Red Labour Suggesting that at the next General Election Jeremy Corbyn might stand against Keir Starmer in Holborn & St Pancras constituency
WHAT’S LEFT FOR LABOUR Current (2014) thoughts on the Labour movement.
Socialism 101 About the historical origins of socialism, ending just before Engels and Marx.
I told you so A brief prophesy
The Politics of Tax And Spend (1) The Politics of Tax And Spend (2) The Politics Of Tax And Spend (3) An almost unbiased explanation of how governments raise money, spend money, and use their buying and selling power to achieve what they wish to achieve.
My First Political Meeting The first political meeting – and a terrific speech.
Democracy, Labour, and Me Semi autobiographical account of my political experiences age 17 to 25, mainly in the Labour Party as it then was.
Elected Councillor For Paradise How I unexpectedly increased the Labour vote 80% to became a Councillor in Bradford in 1986.
Increased Majority In Paradise How I increased my 1986 vote 47%, to score the highest ever vote in the ward.
Courage in Czechoslovakia The five crown bank note
It Couldn’t Happen Here -but it did! Utterly horrific report on a true court case about two children in care. Virtually all text is extracts from the judgement.
Ex Services Prisoners Need Help About how so many ex servicemen end up in prison or on the streets and what to do
Why Is There A European Union? Explaining why there is a European Union
The Monster Green Election – The Unexpected Revolution (A spoof) A humorous piece about what might have happened if the 2010 General Election had been won by the Greens and the Monster Raving Looney Party.