My name is Brad, and I’m the Victorian Socialists candidate for Niddrie.
Inaction on climate change, a runaway pandemic and now rampant inflation have exposed capitalism’s inability to respond to the multiplying crises it has created. Politicians in Australia and across the world would rather protect profits than the health and security of millions of people.
I have been a mental health worker for the past six years. Mental health issues continue to rise, compounded by entirely preventable political issues, including climate change and unsustainable increases in the cost of living. While both parties talk about mental health, they refuse to do anything about the underlying causes. In many cases, they exacerbate the problems by cutting funding for social services while boosting criminal justice spending and providing tax cuts for big business.
This is why I became a socialist. I’ve been involved in numerous political campaigns in solidarity with refugees, for LGBTQ rights and abortion rights, and for environmental action and justice in the face of the devastating effects of climate change. I am also a trade unionist, fighting for workers in the services industries who are being ravaged by inflation.
We need to fight back against the systemic issues of capitalism now, not later, and that starts by building collective resistance in our unions and in the streets. Victorian Socialists are committed to grassroots activism – mobilising ordinary people to fight for equal access to healthcare and welfare, and to make the billionaires pay for the escalating effects of climate change and the cost of living crisis.