Sexism/other issues in the Green party England & Wales - Discussion Thread 2

[fromorbit]

Zack Polanski is making things bigger again.

We need a new thread to discuss all his antics and the ongoing situation in the Green party which is getting more ever more bizarre. While it is getting ever strident in denying biology it also has Mothin Ali as deputy Leader who clearly doesn't believe in trans thinking, but cleverly sidesteps round talking about it.

The fight back from Green Women's Declaration,(https://www.greenwomensdeclaration.uk/ ) continues and the court cases against GPEW from Emma Bateman and Shahrar Ali are developing.

In Bristol the Women of Wessex are causing panic amongst the ruling Green council just by turning up and asking questions. This may result in another court case.
https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/womens_rights/5455053-bristol-council-is-about-to-be-sued

With local elections in May and elections in Wales incoming lots more to discuss and call out.

First thread - where you can follow the rise of Hypno Boobs:
https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/womens_rights/5328986-greens-internal-drama-warms-up

Note the Scottish Greens which are a separate party to the Green Party England/Wales have their own thread for all their drama. They split off because GPEW didn't hate biology enough at the time.
https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/womens_rights/5313420-scottish-greens-being-sexist-again?page=1

@RainbowBagels
I'm not sure how ' green' encouraging young people to live a lifetime on quite severe medication , hormone therapy andcsurgeries ( all enthusiastically provided by Big pharma

Ironically the cohort that espouses medical and/or surgical transition is essentially techno-optimist and ought to align rather well with the Muskites, whose solution to the unsustainability of extractive capitalism is to build spaceships, move elsewhere in the galaxy and go again. Don't like the world as it is - human ingenuity will help you to remake it to suit your most grandiose visions/delusions.

I wonder if there are any Ross Jeffries type pickup gurus telling young men to join the Greens and pretend to be left wing, because that's where the young women are.

Not entirely coincidentally this was after an update on the Spy Cops inquiry (met police undercover officers infiltration of left wing and environmental groups, including forming sexual relationships with female members whilst maintaining multiple families and their civvy lives). The main victims in this were the precise female demographic likely to have turned to the greens now (a teacher in hackney, activists for nuclear disarmament etc). That report on women now turning to the greens does actually note that they refuse to date males who are not also on the same political wavelength (this is echoed by the starstruck New Yorkers who refused to date non Mamdani supporters let alone God forbid liberals.

https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2025/jul/21/dating-apps-politics-liberal-progressive)

There was one account of a woman finding this guy so caring and understanding but also practical (which is a very sexist stereotype, sorry), and essentially him deceiving her into being Mr Right. Judging by the current loudest voices on the left it would have been a choice between him, a young Jeremy Corbyn or someone like Max Shanly

Rabid, oversimplistic populism is nothing new! Nor is zealotry. Or dishonesty.

So... what happens when a man disagrees with a woman who says transwomen are men?
Does ZP's head explode?

Preposterous!
On a recent TWAW podcast, Polanski said he respects all women (no men telling women they're wrong, good).
He wants to hear all their opinions (still no telling women they're wrong, very good).
Even gender critical women (Zack, you're on a roll!).
But he'd tell gender critical women they're plainly wrong (oh Zack, and you were doing so well).
And then change their minds (what, like like their bra sizes?).
Seriously, on the basis of the very wording the Greens use to describe their new policy, Polanski and pretty much every TWAW man in the party would be found guilty.

This is the R4 documentary I mentioned by the way

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m002ntqc

New Statesman on the party "professionalising"

How the Green Party is professionalising - New Statesman share.google/ZFx54D9BiAmpBSbSD

Cllr Sohail Asghar (Accrington West and Oswaldtwistle Central) is now sitting as an independent after being arrested as part of an investigation into modern slavery. Also covered here and by the Mail.

"....He is now sitting on Lancashire County Council as an Independent but remains part of the Progressive Lancashire Group opposition..."

Because modern slavery is so much more progressive than the old fashioned kind

Its absolutely ridiculous that he hasnt resigned completely. What a horrific allegation. I appreciate hes not been convicited but it sounds like someone has been found at his family home or business

The BBC write up of this is a bit "vague news"

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c20g3vl2l7do.amp

...whip due to "an investigation".

This is unfortunately true. Spread through newspapers or street corners to disseminate their misinformation. Now, however, anyone can join in the fun thanks to how social media gives populist actors the freedom to articulate their ideology and quickly spread their messages (eg Farage set up a studio next to his office to quickly generate SM content). Plus, how useful it is for foreign govts to sow discord and disinformation.

Amongst my left leaning students, for example, I was surprised to find that they blamed Ukraine for Russia’s invasion. Apparently, according to them, Russia’s aggression was justified due to Ukraine wanting to join NATO. My students then solemnly tell me how NATO needs to be dismantled.

They've swallowed the Kool Aid. It's what Zarah Sultana was parroting

To be fair I was the sort who'd say (and this was repeated somewhere on telly recently) "one man's terrorist is another man's freedom fighter". We actually had classmates at school (this was 90s) who did history courses on the history of terrorism iirc.

It's why so many ended up excusing/ contextualising away Al Quada and ISIS and why now so many are doing the same with far right/ white supremacist political violence as a clap back to that

I remember being hugely impressed by the Noam Chomsky documentary I saw when I was a teenager. It's part of the malign effect of post modernism where all things are relative. I'm not sure Foucault et Al ever thought they'd give birth to the concept of dismissing everything as Fake News weaponised by the right

I think the riposte that someone has come up with is that other man who backs the so called freedom fighter must be a weapons grade prick

Green party/ state of the parties in 2025 was discussed on some light comedy programme yesterday.

ZP did get a cheer at the mention of his name. Although it was said he had the vibes of "an estate agent who's discovered Tantric Massage"

ZP did a stunt where he put out a Xmas message at the same time as the King. Clever bit of Trump style disrespect which riled up the right and got him publicity:

'Who does he think he is?!' Zack Polanski sparks fury by releasing pro-migration Christmas message at same time as King's Speech
https://www.gbnews.com/politics/zack-polanski-christmas-message-green-leader-king-charles-migration

Oh hello.

Mothin Ali is currently in a spat with Julie Bindel over an anecdote she shared about him chopping down all the trees in his new property

https://nitter.net/MothinAli/status/2005694016059564517#m

Shahrar Ali on GB news discussing recent developments in the Greens:

https://nitter.net/ShahrarAli/status/2005054244836315498

He probably thinks of himself as Green royalty. A younger lefty mirror image of Trump. Another populist ready to disregard and/or undermine institutions to achieve his vision. With willing followers. I almost can’t watch the news anymore.

Best not to get too bogged down in the details of the news.Personally, I now distance myself from it and try just to keep an eye our for the general shifts in pattern and movement. I do think we are in a transitional stage right now - the old has yet to fully pass away and the new has yet to be born........the struggles are all about who and what gets to shape the dawning new era.

And social media absorption simply creates angst.

I’m not even on any social media, it’s the plain old fashioned tv and newspaper that I can’t watch/read. ATM, who is getting to shape the new doesn’t look v pretty.

I agree. I stear clear of social media too. I've largely given up watching or listening to the news.......I just catch the general drift, if you know what I mean.

I've tended to view two competing value systems...that of openness and no boundaries ( on any level) versus boundaries, borders, and individual definitions. Battles always occur at the boundaries and borders and over who gets to define what.

Ooops. Posted on wrong thread. Have edited

Happy green New year

Did he really 'provoke fury'? I presume he didn't hijack the BBC and demand they show his post at exactly 3pm! Why, if you want to listen to the Kings Speech aren't you doing it, instead of going on Social Media at exactly the same time? Just as the Left Wing press are giving too much credence to Farage, the Right Wing press are the ones creating news stories about Polanski. Both of them re 2 cheeks of the same arse.

It used to be mildly amusing 40 years ago when C4 would put on the Alternative Queen's Speech at 3pm and get Julian Clary or someone to do a funny monologue.

But I suppose it fits in with Zack's 'safe edgy' persona.

Interesting article in the Guardian with the Fabian Society perspective on Zack's populism.
https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2025/dec/31/zack-polanski-offering-voters-unicorns-and-fantasy-solutions-says-head-of-fabian-society?CMP=share_btn_url