It’s always fucking wonderful when I go and see Jeremy Corbyn speak. He is the man who single-handedly brought leftist politics back into the mainstream. He taught millions of people in the UK that we do not have to accept the shit shovelled at us. He taught us that we have a voice. And that shines every time he holds a rally, not least a Your Party one.

Corbyn brought a message of “ground up” power to Bradford on Saturday, 10 January at the Al Bibal Banqueting Hall, but the Your Party movement has some way to go.

Whilst the atmosphere was one of defiance and hope, the room was only two-thirds full (and that’s being generous). Most of those there belonged to the older demographic that Corbyn naturally attracts.

Worryingly, only a handful of younger people were present to hear Your Party’s vision for the future of the UK.

A powerful day for defiance with Your Party

The event had some heavyweight speakers, both local and national. Leading independent councillors stood alongside Corbyn to speak of a new age of local politics. The message was clear from all of them. The Labour Party has abandoned the working class and marginalised communities, both here and internationally.

Journalist Yvonne Ridley and University of Bradford professor Paul Rodgers also addressed the room. Ridley told of her 50 year career as a journalist, being kidnapped by Taliban and the Israeli state. She described the heartbreak of losing over the comrades she had lost over the years fighting for the freedom of Gaza.

Rogers gave an overall analysis of the “triple crisis.” He linked Elon Musk’s massive wealth to the climate fires in Victoria. He also noted the £4bn shift from development to defence, at our expense. He praised Corbyn for uniting these global issues.

The strength of local leaders

Leading independent councillors stood alongside Corbyn. They proved that the movement is built and rooted around the local community. These local leaders are the architects of this, and it shows in the polls.

Muhammed Ali Islam, independent councillor for Manningham received a warm welcome from the crowd. He spoke about his historic 4,100 vote majority with a smile. Islam was inspired by Corbyn at age 18 during the 2017 Glastonbury Festival, realising he too could be a part of this change. He said that the local community is built from a “different fabric” due to long-standing deprivation.

Other members of the Bradford Independent Group also spoke. This included Ismail Uddin, who beat the Labour candidate last year at just 19 years old. Being there, their presence ensured the rally was not only a fleeting fancy. It was a display of local leadership that refused to get in the way of their passion to help others.

But where were the kids at the Your Party rally?

Yes, the room was electrifying. It was full of defiance and hope yet a few things bothered me. Obviously the fact that the room wasn’t even close to full, so worrying when only a few years ago Corbyn was packing out entire city halls.

And also, as I said, the room was mainly older people. Only a handful of younger people were sitting in the crowd.

And this is a worrying sign for Your Party.

The party claims it’s a grassroots alternative. Yet it is functionally invisible to young people online.

The Green party has mastered the 20 second viral clip. Zack Polanski is dominating Instagram, TikTok, and Twitter. Meanwhile, Your Party seems tethered to the 20th century tradition of a long-form rally.

Wonderful ideas, wrong delivery

Searching for Your Party on Instagram is almost like a digital desert. Most content on there is static, muted and boring. It’s screenshots of tweets and grey, dull colours.

Where is the short, sharp and snappy videos? Where is the rage content? Where are videos of this grassroots movement in action?

Young people are so passionate about all of the topics discussed in Bradford. Nearly three in four of Gen Z are “extremely worried” about climate change. They really worry about impending war because it’s those very young people who will be fucking conscripted and forced to fight in it. They give a shit about inequality because they struggle even more than us.

However, long-form discussions in physical venues don’t work for them.

I write this as someone who adores Corbyn and adores what he stands for. But that adoration means I have to be honest about Your Party’s failures.

The party is failing to speak to the next generation. Long speeches absolutely have an essential place in political education, but they cannot be the only tool. Young people are moving to the Green Party in droves because they have mastered the art of social media.

Learning from the Green surge

The Green Party understands the anxious young voter. They galvanise the masses on Instagram to turn crisis into immediate action. They prioritise authenticity and, for lack of a better word, vibes.

Your Party, on the other hand, seems to be trapped in internal bureaucracy.

The party has faced so many hurdles. Zarah Sultana decried a “toxic culture” at the Liverpool founding conference. Two other MPs quit the steering group because of it in 2025.

Local elections in May 2026 are rapidly approaching. Corbyn holds a +18 favourability rating among 18-24 year olds. Starmer has a rating of -30 with the same group.

This popularity will not translate into votes without digital infrastructure. Your Party must adapt or risk becoming nothing but a nostalgia project.

Social media must take the frontline now, and not an afterthought.

Mapping the future with Your Party

The party must look to leaders like Councillor Islam and put these young people in politics to be the faces of their digital movement to inspire others.

Every rally should produce dozens of hard-hitting clips for the kids waiting on TikTok. And these clips need to be full of mic-drop moments, emotional testimonies, and the faces of their campaigners on the ground.

Your Party needs to shift from this top-down lecturing to peer-to-peer engagement.

Your Party is at a crossroads. Either embrace the nuances of social media, capture the brilliance that their activists and Corbyn online for the world to see.

Or fade into obscurity.

Featured image via the Canary

By Antifabot

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