A tough time for Canada’s socialists as thousands of progressives convene in Ottawa

It's really not a good time to be a Canadian who espouses to socialist values.

There's a right-leaning government in Ottawa,the federal NDP have actually removed the word 'socialism' from the preamble of their constitution and, most recently, leftists were jilted by Ontario's New Democrats when they took a sharp right turn in that province's general election.

These conspiring events might be one of the reasons Canada's 'progressives' have descended upon Ottawa this week, in big numbers, for an event informally dubbed the 'Woodstock of left-wing politics.'

Approximately 5,000 individuals and close to 100 organizations are attending the People's Social Forum to discuss and workshop 17 social justice themes ranging from the environment to immigration to access to public services.

According to one of the event partners, they've essentially come together to talk and strategize about combating the Harper government's 'agenda.'

"I'm hopeful that...between now and Sunday we'll have a common understanding of what we'll need to do collectively to try and regain some control over this country," Hassan Yussuff, President of Canada's Labour Council told CBC Ottawa.

"The overall objective here is what do we do when we leave here. How do we work across this country to try and regain control in our communities and finally expose the Harper government for its agenda."

While that might be Yussuff's 'overall' objective, the literature on the event's website makes no bones about some of the attendees pro-socialist and anti-capitalist motives.

One of the seventeen "self-organized workshops" about the economy asks: "Can we democratize the economy? What economic models have the best chance of replacing capitalism in our lifetime?"

Another session is set to explore the idea of a border-less world while another asks "can we abolish prison?"

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While the group intends to target the Harper government, they have some serious longer term issues to contend with: Those with socialist values -- which likely includes a lot of people at the event in Ottawa --really don't have a voice in any legislature or parliament across the country.

Historically, the NDP has been the country's social conscience — politically speaking. But, as mentioned, that party has moved toward the centre of the political spectrum.

Enter the NDP's Socialist Caucus — a group of New Democratic members who had vigorously fought the watering-down of their party's constitution.

"Clearly, the NDP has shifted to the right, which has alienated many activists," Barry Weisleder, the groups co-chair wrote in 2013.

"Socialism represents, objectively, the opposite of the current capitalist agenda. It is especially counter-posed to neo-Liberal austerity drive which is terrorizing workers and the poor worldwide."

While Wiesleder fights to keep socialism alive within the NDP, there are some who believe that the only answer is another political party.

That's the opinion, at least, of Vancouver-based writer Roger Annis who, like Wiesleder, argues that the NDP have turned their backs on many who adhere to socialist values.

"[A new party is] a way to sharpen a fight for political accountability in the present political alignment," he recently wrote for SocialistProject.ca.

"Extra-Parliamentary protests are vital in fighting for reforms and creating a political alternative. But it's a big weakness when there are no anti-capitalist voices in the electoral arena. That leaves the pro-capitalist NDP holding a political monopoly on the left.

"Such an alternative, at the ballot box and in the streets, would also address the growing disaffection of young and working-class people from political engagement."

A new party to the left of the NDP, writes Annis, could increase welfare income, finance environmental movements, raise taxes on the wealthy, drastically cut military spending and disengage from NATO and Organization of American States.

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While it's tough to decipher how many Canadians espouse to socialism and to what degree, we got a sense of Canadians' views on capitalism from a 2009 BBC global survey.

According to Rabble.ca, the poll found that 20 per cent of Canadians said the capitalist system was "fatally flawed" while another 40 per cent said it could be fixed with regulation and reform.

As of now — outside of the things like the People's Social Forum — those disgruntled with our current economic system have no real political choice or voice.

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