Hi, I’m Bron. I’m running in this year’s council election as a candidate with Victorian Socialists because I don’t think it’s fair that property developers and big businesses are turning a profit while life is getting harder for the rest of us.
I’m a student and share-house tenant in Carlton North.
I think there should be a fight waged against the rich and powerful at every level of politics, including locally. Many of my neighbours are passionate about Palestine, Indigenous rights and climate justice. This needs to be reflected by our elected representatives.
If elected to council I will fight to see that landlords aren’t allowed to prey on our right to housing while jacking up the prices on low quality rentals. I’ll also fight to see that our community has access to decent public services such as free childcare. Importantly, I’ll fight to see that our council stands on the side of the oppressed, in principle and practice, by building and participating in community-led campaigns.
I’ve been an activist for several years. I became involved in politics helping to organise weekly protests at Park Hotel to free the refugees who were locked up there in early 2021, and I continue to campaign for the rights of the 12,000 refugees who are left in limbo. I’ve been involved in campaigns against weapons companies and for climate justice. In recent times, I’ve campaigned in solidarity with the people of Palestine and against Israel’s war in Gaza, including by building a solidarity encampment and a mass student general meeting on my campus to demand that my university break ties with Israeli apartheid. I believe councils should be a place where questions of social justice are talked about and acted on.
If elected to council I will continue to fight for the rights of all workers, students and renters. The world is getting worse for ordinary people. We deserve better, and must stand up to the rich and powerful to get it.