- by Che Janz
- The Guardian
- Issue #2022
After many weeks of planning, organising, and discussion, the Brisbane branch gathered at the Village Pickle, a café in the country town of Nambour, north of Brisbane. The venue was picked due to its friendly atmosphere, and old and new members gathered in comradely discussion. A number of new faces were welcomed to hear about the Party’s history and structure and hear comrades’ numerous stories. Others came to see an organised band of communists come together in a community that had felt abandoned for so long by the major parties.
We discussed many topics about Nambour and the Sunshine Coast, such as the rising cost of living, rampant homelessness, untreated drug problems, and the working class left in poverty while gated communities of high-income residents failed to care. With the collapse of the sugar cane and pineapple industries in the 1990s, poverty increased in the area. Locals turned to the far-right for someone to listen to their problems. Rural Queensland was left in a desolated state. It was good to see the spirits lift as locals found someone who would listen and actually cared. There was obvious happiness amongst the group of locals.
Now that a vanguard offered disillusioned people something positive, rather than the corruption of the city council and an uncaring state government, the solution was to build class consciousness and class struggle in the region.
Members long involved in the trade union sector described their experiences and history, while an international comrade from Guatemala recounted his incredible experiences as a revolutionary from when they were young. So many of the people came just to hear these people and learn so much, to help broaden their views on Marxist theory. The experience helped some non-member guests overcome the media’s red-scare stereotypes and see for themselves what it is to be a communist.
All new attendees took documents, pamphlets, and newspapers. Some of which I saw first-hand reposted on personal social media accounts, sharing the party message to an even wider audience. The events also drew in some funding as books and flags were sold.
As the luncheon drew to a close, and attendees left the Village Pickle, I knew attendees were well fed on delicious local cuisine. We are leading towards expanding the Brisbane Branch, and what better than this close-knit community. There will be other meetings at the same venue in the near future. I joined the Party early this year, after such a local gathering which helped me tremendously, and I’ve never felt better!
