Why isn’t Labor appealing to young people?

I’m what used to be called a “rusted-on” Labor supporter. I was conceived after my father, Alan Manning, fought for and lost the then new seat of Lawson in Central Western NSW (now Parkes) in 1949. I was born as he was gearing up for another tilt in the hastily dubbed “anti-communist” election of 1951 that he also lost, albeit after increasing his share of the vote. The Labor Party is almost literally part of my DNA.

My first election as a voter, when 21 was the voting age, was in Gough Whitlam’s unforgettable “It’s Time” election victory in 1972. I’ve been handing out how-to-vote cards for Labor and hosting Don’s Party’s (with varying results), ever since.

My father was famously so disillusioned with Arthur Calwell’s Labor Party, particularly over immigration, that he announced he was going to vote Liberal. When he emerged from the polling booth having cast his vote, he shrugged his shoulders.

“I couldn’t do it,” he said. “I went to put an ‘x’ next to the Lib, but my hand started shaking, and I couldn’t hold the pencil still.”

“What did you do?”

“I voted Labor, of course.”

It has even been suggested that, in the past, I have determined my romantic affiliations on the basis of which party prospective partners might have voted for. That’s obviously an exaggeration. But it would be pretty close to the truth to say I have always lived in a Labor household. Until now. None of my children support the Labor Party. A couple of them have flirted with the ALP in the past, but the courtship is over.

Their ages range from nearly 40 to 21. They represent a fair cross-section of the younger voting demographic. Not only are they disillusioned with the modern Labor Party but so are many of their friends. There is nothing in the Labor Party agenda, let alone how it is prosecuted, that excites them. Every one of my children is a progressive thinker with a social conscience.

In their own individual ways, they are politically active. They are concerned about this country and its future. They are concerned about climate change. They don’t think Labor is doing enough. They are concerned about Gaza and don’t think Labor has taken a strong enough stance to try and force an end to the barbarity that is taking place in that region. They are concerned about the future of public education and cannot understand how a Labor government is letting it fall by the wayside. They have asked me how Labor could sign up for a multibillion-dollar submarine deal that takes decisions about our defence out of our hands when public education is desperate for funding.

“Sorry Dad, but I’m voting Green”, is their common refrain.

I might have been born into the Labor Party, but I was also inspired by it. Whitlam, Hawke, Keating. They all seemed to have a vision for this country that was exciting and made us want to go to the barricades with them. Anthony Albanese came out of the blocks with a vision for a Voice to Parliament. He showed an absolute commitment to it, right down to polling day. But instead of attacking the Opposition for its politically motivated decision to kill the Voice, he went into his shell.

My children have all commented on Labor’s timidity and asked, “What do they stand for?” I’ve struggled to provide an answer.

The Labor Party has become disconnected from young people. The machinations of its factions are meaningless to them. Playing safe might seem like a good choice for the back room, but it will not encourage young people to get out on the hustings, let alone vote for them.

As the US Democratic National Conference has shown, young people, women and people from diverse backgrounds are more than ready to fight for a party that is prepared to lay it on the line for the things they believe in. Climate control, Indigenous rights, support of public education, affordable housing, a solution in Gaza that supports Israel’s right to exist while also acknowledges that of Palestinians, a sensible approach to drug reform.

Unless that happens, a long tradition of supporting Labor in my family is likely to be broken.

This article first appeared in the SMH and Age newspapers