I was thrilled when Niki Ashton entered the leadership race for Canada’s New Democratic Party. We need leaders like her who are willing to be open about being socialist and to take stands against the real dangers that come with the agendas of the neoliberal parties of Canada (Liberal and Conservative). She is standing firmly behind universal child care, universal post-secondary education and protecting our infrastructure from privatization. As part of her announcement she drew a line that differentiates our party from the parties of the right, stating “You privatize it, we nationalize it. You deregulate it, we regulate it.”
When Canada’s NDP last had a leadership convention, in 2012, I was moved and impressed by Niki Ashton‘s convictions and policy stances. Her track record of standing against precarious work, fighting for social, economic and environmental justice and working to alleviate the shameful treatment of indigenous communities instills a lot of confidence she will be the kind of leader who will remain firmly on the left
Niki’s candidacy give me hope we can finally build a movement to start easing the suffering of the most vulnerable in Canada. As she said, “We must challenge the power of Canada’s elites, the rich and powerful who are benefiting from growing inequality in our country.”