The Politics of Hope

"All politicians, no matter what party they are in, are liars. They only say what they think we want to hear so we vote them into power, then when they get in, they never deliver on their promises. I will just sit back and let whichever party comes into power do whatever they want. I will live with it because I don't honestly believe that voting for the party that says they will deliver certain things will actually mean they do."

These are the sentiments of a 25 year-old Black minority ethnic (BME) man who has never voted and categorically states that he will not be voting in the forthcoming General Election either.

His expression of frustration does not fill me with despair. It does the opposite. It bolsters me into action. As racism and bigotry find their way into mainstream politics, we as a community simply don't have the luxury to put our heads in the political sand. We cannot 'just sit back and let whichever party comes into power do whatever they want' and then 'live with' the consequences. If we do, we actively give a green light to politicians to do as they wish.

Unwittingly, the prophecy becomes self-fulfilling and the consequences of 'living with it' are severe: 70% of young Bangladeshis in Tower Hamlets are unemployed, infant mortality rates in the Caribbean community are double that of white families and worst of all these levels of deprivation have been like this for the last 30 years and could continue to be like this for another 100 years!

By negating our opportunity to be agents of positive change, we actively consign generation, after generation, after generation, to a cycle of poverty and inequality. Is this the legacy we want to leave our children? As a BME community, can we afford to?

This month Operation Black Vote in partnership with the Communities and Local Government are delighted to launch the unique MP Shadowing Scheme. The scheme aims to nurture future leaders, and encourage and inspire BME communities to positively engage in civic society.

OBV are looking for twenty-five individuals from Asian, African, Caribbean, Chinese and other ethnic minority communities to join this dynamic cross-party initiative. The programme will allow twenty-five individuals aged 18 years upwards to shadow Members of Parliament from constituencies around Britain to gain an invaluable experience of parliamentary politics at Westminster and in the local constituency.

As a graduate of the scheme myself, the scheme truly provides a meaningful platform to realise your political aspirations. Many graduates have become political advisors and activists with some on the verge of political firsts. These include OBV Graduate Shazia Awan, a Prospective Parliamentary candidate for Sheffield who has the potential to become the first Asian women MP or Helen Grant, PPC for Maidstone and Weald who has the potential to become the first BME women Conservative MP.

Deadline: Monday 15th February 2010 at 12 noon.

Change the word. Change the world.