Welcome to Part 2 of the connected article, That Was the Year That Was. In Part One, I discussed the work of three movements, or organizations, that I support – the National Secular Society (NSS), Republic, the British Republican Movement, and 38 Degrees, a movement of people working together to bring about a better world, or, at least, a better UK.

In this article, I will discuss the work of a further three organizations, or movements, that place ordinary people at the centre of their concerns and activities. These are The Guardian, the major centre-left leaning British newspaper, Dignity In Dying, a campaign that exists to enable people to have a say in the circumstances of their own death, and Open Britain, a campaigning movement with the aim of bringing about greater democracy within the UK.

As with the three organizations discussed in Part 1, I commend the organizations and movements being discussed.

The Guardian

In an article that surveyed the COP28 conference in Dubai, The Guardian newspaper asked the question: “Was COP28 a cop-out?” The answer was given…. “So, here’s the key point: it does mark progress. In a fractious world, divided by war and conflict, people have come together and agreed to move forward to try and solve the greatest riddle facing the planet – climate change”.

The article went on to question whether the agreement may not be as ambitious as it could be, it may not demand all the action the science says is necessary, but it does show us that our species can – sometimes – move in the right direction, can come to a consensus, even if the explanatory language used is a bit slippery.

Commenting on The Guardian article, George Monbiot, that indefatigable commentator on all matters to do with ecology, climate change, and associated subjects, stated: “I’ve been pressing for more effective language for a long time, and I was delighted when, in 2019, The Guardian started altering the manner in which it talks about our crisis, using terms such as ‘living planet’ or ‘natural world’ instead of ‘the environment’; replacing ‘climate change’ with ‘climate breakdown’. I’m even happier to see how The Guardian’s shift has triggered a wider change.

“However, there is one term that still niggles. It might seem an odd one to contest, because it’s graphic: mass extinction (author’s emphasis). Mass extinction, horrendous as it is, is one outcome of something even bigger: Earth systems collapse. This, I feel, is what we should call the thing we are facing. We are amid the sixth Earth systems’ collapse.”

The Guardian continues to present its readers with investigative journalism of the highest order, art and culture articles of genuine interest, news of events and persons of general and special relevance to sport, politics, world happenings, British institutions, etc., and the effects of all of this on the fabric of society, at home and overseas.

The world can only be grasped by action, not by contemplation. The hand is the cutting edge of the mind (Jacob Bronowski – Polish mathematician and humanist)

Dignity In Dying:

Towards the end of 2023, there was a media focus on several British celebrities who have voiced their opinions on of how persons who have terminal and painful illness, e.g., cancer, should have the power to determine the circumstances of their own death. Foremost in this was the 83-year-old journalist and broadcaster Dame Esther Rantzen. In 2023, Ms Rantzen, who has stage four lung cancer, urged MPs to hold a debate when Parliament returned in 2024, and that any vote must take place outside the party whip system – an attempt at a genuine vote of conscience on the part of MPs.

Rantzen has told the BBC that she has joined Dignitas, an assisted dying clinic in Switzerland, and that she would “consider the option (of assisted dying) if her lung cancer treatment does not improve the condition.” She has further stated that she might “not live long enough” to see assisted dying debated again in Parliament. Esther Rantzen’s story is one that could be repeated many times by people who are affiliated with Dignity In Dying.

As a movement, Dignity In Dying has long campaigned for the debate on assisted dying to take place, in the public domain as well as in government counsels and corridors. The organization exists primarily to enable people to have this important say and decision-taking role in the circumstances of their own death.

It is better to die on your feet than to live on your knees (Delores Ibarruri – Civil War Spanish Communist Party leader)

Open Britain

Throughout 2023 there has been a constant examination by Open Britain of the state of democracy in the UK. Its contribution to the discussion of democracy has included what has been referred to as “democratic decoupling”. This is “the phenomenon where the will of the majority is no longer reflected in government. One result of this is that it is unlikely that a politician will be found anywhere who will endorse a highly popular issue.”

In the UK, the First Past the Post (FPTP) electoral voting system is pushing the electorate towards a two-party duopoly – like that which exists in the USA. What has been called the “good chaps” style of governing has proven ripe for abuse, with elected parties conveniently ignoring the mandates upon which they were elected. Examples of areas where this forgetfulness has occurred include the climate, healthcare, and Brexit. In each of these areas, current citizen concern is not reflected in government policy and action.

Articles for Open Britain have focused on the situations where “democratic decoupling, when paired with lax campaign finance laws, outdated institutional safeguards, and the power of political lobbyists, as well as self-styled pressure groups, opens the door for authoritarians, demagogues, and con men”. Their conclusion is that the far right is using the nation’s distrust of politicians and, indeed, democracy itself, for its own gain – and it is winning, in the UK and the USA.

As 2023 ended, Open Britian was warning that the coming year may well the nation’s last chance to fix the exploitable gaps in British politics (as it may well be for the USA in the year that Donald Trump is again exercizing his audacious style of political anarchy and personal hubris).

With an acute sense of urgency, Open Britain is evangelical in saying that, “If democracy is truly important to you, it may no longer be enough to simply vote for the better option. We need to organize and mobilize, and force the next government to defend, strengthen, and renew our democracy before we lose it for good.”

Humanity’s capacity for justice makes democracy possible; but humanity’s inclination to injustice makes democracy necessary (Reinhold Niebuhr – German theologian)

Postlude:

In the world in which we live and exercise our beings, there are as many organizations and movements as there are problems that confront that living. In the above, indeed, in both parts of this connected article, I have mentioned some of those with which I have become involved, essentially in a supportive, rather than physically active, way. These movements and organizations are deeply and daily involved with the social, cultural, political, personal, and economic lives of those I do not know, as well as those I do know.

These organizations and movements address contemporary existential questions. These questions require answers. May 2024 be a year when the answers are forthcoming, when lives are changed for the better, when our planet becomes a more welcoming and accommodating world, a sphere in which all of humanity can live in peace and prosperity.

RSC