Neither Brexit nor remain: disruptive solidarity initiatives in a time of false promises and anti-democracy

David J. Bailey

Contemporary Social Science, 2019, vol. 14, issue 2, 256-275

Abstract: The political divide over Brexit reflects a wider incompatibility between British democracy and capitalism. This incompatibility has been worsened by the post-2008 period of ‘secular stagnation’ (or stagnant neoliberalism). In this context, two key sections of Britain’s contemporary political elite have adopted alternative (but nevertheless both problematic) attempts to reconcile this tension: Nationalist Brexiteers offer a set of false promises to improve the lives of the ‘left behind’ in a way that leaves neoliberal capitalism largely intact but suggests that anti-immigration is a means to improve ‘native’ working class lives; Ardent Remainers bemoan the illegitimate, ill-informed, and irresponsible voices of those who oppose the neoliberal status quo, seemingly unaware of the anti-democratic implications of such a stance. In this context, we see the emergence and growth of grassroots-led solidarity initiatives that are largely indifferent towards or ambivalent about Brexit. These grassroots alternatives to ‘Nationalist Brexit’ or ‘Ardent Remain’ represent both a more progressive and a more effective way to assert subaltern voices in the current context. This therefore also explains, in part, the equally ambiguous position on Brexit adopted by Corbyn’s Labour Party, in its efforts to act as the political representative of these grassroots solidarity movements.

Date: 2019
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DOI: 10.1080/21582041.2018.1559349

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