EC special report on the current crisis
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Distribution of this report
Following lengthy discussion at the online EC meeting on Saturday 4 April regarding the present pandemic crisis, it was felt that, rather than relying just on brief EC minutes, the membership would appreciate a more comprehensive account of what the EC is doing about the situation. This account is being sent to our Party forums and lists but members and branch secretaries are asked to make this available if possible to any members who are not online and therefore presently cut off from Party communication.
Summary of EC actions
On the upside, in terms of Party activity, the crisis is not hitting us as hard as it would have done ten or twenty years ago. Many members are already online and able to continue propaganda work as before. However the forced closure of Head Office has disrupted Party administration, especially collecting post, mailing out Party literature and minutes, dispatching the Standard, and managing financial transactions (for which two signatories are normally required). This is to say nothing of having to postpone Conference and all other physical Party events and branch meetings. The question now is, how can we continue to operate and what kinds of activity are open to us during this period?
Here are some key things that the EC decided on Saturday:
- Re the finances, the Treasurer will facilitate agreed payments as soon as possible.
- Due to concern over the continued physical dispatch of the Standard from HO, a third-party dispatch service should be looked into as a matter of urgency. There is considerable uncertainty and difference of opinion about member safety and other priorities in this matter, but the EC took the view that the membership would most certainly not want the printed Standard to be discontinued during the present crisis.
- That a fund of up to £5,000 be established to provide smartphones and 30-day SIM contracts to non-internet-connected Party office holders for the duration of the current crisis. We estimate that a cheap modern smartphone and a few months’ SIM rental should be around the £200 mark, so active office holders eg branch secretaries without the means or funds to get online are encouraged to apply. Applicants should ring the Head Office number and leave a message in the first instance, and the EC will take it from there.
- That a timescale would be sketched out for a possible Conference later in the year, perhaps to be conducted online if there are enough members to warrant it. This is provisional only, to give members an option to consider.
- That a full report be given to as many members and as soon as possible (this report).
Getting members online
Even before the pandemic, it was obvious that Party activity was becoming increasingly internet-based. The current crisis is accelerating the trend. This highlights that fact that we have a digital divide in the Party which disenfranchises and disables some members.
There are essentially two ways to be online, via a computer and home broadband contract, or else via a smartphone rental.
Members who have none of these may fear that they don’t have the money or the digital skills to catch up. These are barriers that we can overcome, one way or another, if those members are willing to try. We know that some prefer not to be online, for reasons of their own, however present circumstances may well lead them to take a different view.
We need as many members online as possible, starting with office holders, either through their own resources or with financial or technical support from the Party. Paper-based democracy is probably going to be difficult if not impossible for most of 2020. We can’t let this get in the way of all Party business, so anyone who chooses to stay offline despite this is likely to be left out.
What can members do online?
There are plenty of email-based activities members can get involved in, not least Robin Cox’s 10 minutes a day idea. But the soul of Party activity is live meetings and talks, and to this end we have set up an online SPGB environment for the purpose, through which it is possible to hold live branch and propaganda meetings, and post articles, short videos and podcasts.
The audio-only Discord software can be installed on any computer or phone with a reasonably modern operating system. It gives you access to the SPGB ‘server’. This is our own exclusive domain, divided into separate rooms called ‘channels’ which you can pop into and out of as you like. There are voice channels for talking, and separate text channels for writing and sending documents and links etc. There is a voice channel for each branch, so you can have branch meetings, one for the EC, one for general discussion, one for Fircroft (yes, why not?) and one for announcements. More channels can be created for individual committees or other purposes if desired.
The SPGB server is a closed system, accessible by invite only, so in order for it not to be gate-crashed by outsiders we are not posting a permanent invite on a public list, where it might ‘escape into the wild’ but instead will shortly be sending short-expiration invites to individual members. Any Party member (not visitors) will be able to issue an invite but to request one immediately please contact me (as Admin) or any EC member.
Right now, isolated members will be feeling more cut off than ever, and we feel that an integrated online SPGB environment may be just the thing to provide a sense of mutual support and solidarity, as well as allow us to check other members’ health and well-being. We also have very active members in overseas countries, and indeed in overseas companion parties, and we would welcome their participation if they are able.
The EC feels that initially we could try to use the space to organise at least one talk or propaganda meeting a week, for which volunteers would be welcome. Branches can ‘visit’ each other’s business meetings, if branches don’t mind. We could invite non-members to discussions or debates which by agreement could be recorded as podcasts (Discord doesn’t have a native record function but free third-party software is available). We could run a day school, or even Fircroft. If enough members become involved it could be an effective platform for Party-wide discussions on other activities too.
Joining Discord
To join, click the invite link that will be sent to you (or ask if not) and follow the instructions to ‘get the App’ and install the software. If you’re using a smartphone it may ask you for permission to record, but this is only to allow the software to transmit voice messages in digital packets and doesn’t mean that Discord is permanently recording what you say. In common with other media apps the software does collect performance and usage data but there are options to turn these off in your account settings, possibly at the cost of some functionality. Please style yourself under your real name if possible, rather than some obscure internet moniker, as it can be off-putting when other members or visitors don’t know who you are.
Click on the SPGB logo at the top left to enter the server. You will see the voice channels on the left side of the screen (this may look different on phone screens). If any members are present in a voice channel, just click on the channel to join in and chat to them. Text channels are separate channels which appear at the top left.
Members online but not necessarily in a channel are listed in the right-hand column, and offline members below them. You can privately message any member by right-clicking on their name and using the Message function. If someone messages you, you’ll see an alert on the top left below the home screen, with the sender’s icon and a number in a red circle.
Technical hint: with either a computer or a smartphone it’s best to use a microphone headset, or earphones with a mic attached, as usually supplied with smartphones today. This is to prevent acoustic spill from the speakers feeding back through the microphone and creating an annoying and disruptive echo effect for all participants. Such headsets are cheap and available online.
I have created a labelled screenshot of the Discord environment if anybody wants it, and I am preparing a similar one for smartphones. Any difficulties, please get in touch.
Finally could I ask branch secretaries to forward this to any branch member who is unlikely to see it on Spintcom, and if possible make it available to anyone who is not online? Apologies if anyone gets this twice, and equally anybody who is missed out. We will be doing our best to make sure all members are contacted, one way or the other.
Paddy
Please note, when you first enter a channel your microphone is muted. You can unmute it by clicking the mic icon next to your name at the bottom of the left hand column, so this:
becomes this
Hope that helps.
Paddy
Here are some links to our own social media.
https://www.worldsocialism.org/spgb/forum/ UK BLOGS https://socialismoryourmoneyback.blogspot.com/ https://socialist-courier.blogspot.com/ https://socialistbanner.blogspot.com/ https://socialiststandardmyspace.blogspot.com/ US BLOG http://www.whatissocialism.net/ Facebook SPGB https://www.facebook.com/socialistpartyofgreatbritain WSM https://www.facebook.com/groups/4940054730/ SPC https://www.facebook.com/socialistpartycanada/ https://www.facebook.com/Toronto-Branch-Socialist-Party-of-Canada-1120836671294008 WSP India https://www.facebook.com/groups/328364997178353/ Twitter SPGB https://twitter.com/officialSPGB SPC https://twitter.com/WSM_Socialists You Tube Channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCFZgYrHuoQfjE0JBkd_h57g Instagram https://www.instagram.com/socialistpartyofgreatbritain/
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