A short history
The PPLD (Party Pour La Décroissance – Degrowth Party) was created in 2006 following the Degrowth AGM. Without expanding on the context and the debates triggered by its creation, let’ s mention Serge Latouche’ s harsh critics: “a lack of political maturity”, “ Exactly what was needed to discredit Degrowth and break the movement immediately after its birth: the launch of a ridiculous Degrowth Party”. Soon after the party falls apart…
In January 2008, by coincidence or naivety, a few of us join it. We embark on a reflexion on the ways to spread Degrowth in a manner respective of its principles and on the reasons of this failure as well. Both questions are linked. We met with activists from the Degrowth movement and start developing a political strategy that can be viewed on the Platform of Convergence of AdOC a new political movement we created in 2009 with our friends of the MOC (Movement of Growth Objectors).
Following a crisis of growth, AdOC, as an entity with a visible political profile, fails. Thus, we withdraw into our shells, by default, into a party: the PPLD.
A political party? “But it is hierarchical, partisan, a war machine with a political purpose, in search of power for power sake, etc.”
The fact that we are members of a political party is by chance rather than deliberate. It is even more surprising since we clearly question our societal model’s institutions, which tend to have us believe that politics is limited to a representative democracy and its party system, and the relations of power. And, moreover we participate in the elections… in a non-electioneering manner.
In fact we are experimenting a strategy to change society both from within and outside the institutions.
Making sense of it all? A party, in name only, which participates to elections in a non-electioneering manner?
We do not function and have no intention to function like a party. We are a self-managed and open collective.
In fact, as with our provocative slogan Degrowth, and that is where the power of words lies, we are not bothered by it once we have digested it’s meaning. Thus, for the PPLD, the term party represents our framework of reflection, debate, convivial discussions, through which we have been spreading Degrowth in a self-managed manner over the past few years. And we feel comfortable with it, in this shell with a party name…
But, because of the connotation this term has within the collective imagination, since we criticise it for good reasons, we alienate some supporters of Degrowth; as a project, trajectory, and method…
Then, why are we keeping this name? May be to remove the passion from our relationship with the party? May be because we have not come up with something better? May be because this label is useful for our transition approach?
Like with Degrowth, the debate remains open. But the most important is what really underpins the words. Let’s decolonise our imagination of “the party”…
To abandon politics of fight to lean towards politics of building together
To call it a movement does not mean not to function in a centralised and party-like manner. To be called a union does not mean to participate to elections in an electioneering manner only. To be called an association does not mean that we don’t have to overcome the struggle of egos and power games. This is how we are building a Degrowth society: inclusive of egos, power, show business, into which we have grown and been conditioned by, towards convivial, sharing and responsible societies. It is as easy to intellectualise these critiques, as it is difficult to put it into a daily collective practice. We have often experienced this.
We are testing new methods of doing politics, not to access power anymore, neither at an individual level within a given group, nor at a collective one within society, but to build alternatives, to open new pathways to create sustainable and desirable societies.
Degrowth is on the move
Let’s use all the available tools with humility, self-criticism, humour, respect, and hindsight.
There are as many pathways to Degrowth as there are Objectors to Growth … What matters is to let each and everyone find their own.
This is why we talk about the four political levels of Degrowth, but even more about the ways they can interact, since they are complementary. We need to experiment, construct, deconstruct and explore new ways to live together. It is a question of creating and experiencing a horizontal network of diverse, different, local, and/or themed collectives, groups, associations and movement, even parties, by relying on one or more of the four levels. These links, these bridges between one another must be supportive but also critical of one another.
Within the logic of building a transition, in search of a critical mass, we must use all the existing means of transformation, without deluding ourselves, cautiously and, above all, by respecting the spirit of our initial approach: a just, convivial, democratic, sustainable and, most importantly, desirable society!
This is the reason why, but not exclusively (since it is just one of the tools of the four levels mentioned above), we participate in elections in a non-electoralistic manner; that is, not as a strategy of accessing power, but as a way to get exposure and to create local meetings.
This strategy has given our ideas public and media exposure, has contributed to our foray in some activists movements and, above all, has helped the Growth Objectors to meet at the local level and around certain issues and to create collectives.
For a serene, sustainable and convivial Degrowth!
In conclusion, yes we are a party, albeit in name only, vis à vis the way we function in a grass-root, collective, horizontal and, most importantly, convivial manner.
Maybe we are going to change our name to have an image more in tune with what we are? Maybe we might not?
Maybe we are growing to grow or not? But is it desirable to grow?
Yes we participate in elections on a regular basis with always the same objective. And most importantly, yes, that not the only thing we do and we wonder, with humility, humour and self-criticism, how we can spread Degrowth in a cohesive manner… whilst respecting our heterogeneity.
