The Times They Are A-Changin’: Street Life 

 

“Now I’m blinded I can really see, yeah
No more bright lights confusing me, no”  

 

 

In recent weeks young people is Spain, Italy and France take to the streets to voice their grievances. 

 

These grievances, which have been bred over time, reflect a generation struggle; young versus old. The young don’t want to change the world, instead all they want is the opportunities afforded their parents and grandparents. 

Always quick to scent an opportunity, far-right parties, supported by their media, have been quick to take advantage, playing the law and order card, rushing to protect unaffordable pensions, claiming that the young are idlers who think the world owes them a living, and, if all else fails, blaming immigrants. 

Notably absent is anything vaguely resembling a solution! 

Whilst young people in the UK haven’t taken to the streets, their situation is no different; scant job opportunities and unaffordable housing. 

The older generation are, in the main, quick to criticise them, often ending with; they think the world owes them a living, it was much harder in my day. 

It wasn’t harder, it was easier. 

 

‘scant job opportunities and unaffordable housing’

 

Some might have been alive during WW2 but they were too young to fight. Conversely, the war presented them multiple opportunities. 

The welfare state was in its infancy, meaning there was plenty of money to go around. 

Jobs were plentiful, and, due to the deaths of serviceman, there was opportunity for all. These, in the main, were jobs for life, fully superannuated, often with unimaginable final-salary pensions. By the time Thatcher deindustrialised much of the country they were eligible for early retirement. 

Today, young unemployment is a political scandal. They aren’t lazy there just aren’t jobs for them. The excuse that they should have worked harder at school isn’t valid. For those that did study hard, such as  with junior Doctors, the rewards are scant and the hours backbreaking. 

 

‘young unemployment is a political scandal’

 

Turning to housing, WW2 left the country facing a massive housing crisis with over 500,000 homes destroyed or damaged by bombing and years of halted construction.  

In response, the post-war Labour government, in their “Homes for All” Policy (1945–1951): built over 1.2 million new homes,  C. 80% of which were council rental housing for working-class families.    

For the 80% who missed out first time around, the Tories 1980 Right to Buy scheme saw a 2.4m of these council homes sold across the UK. 

Better still, they were sold at a discount; overall the discount was C.44% of the property’s market. 

 

‘the Tories 1980 Right to Buy scheme saw 2.4m of these council homes sold’

 

This resulted in councils being short of cash as the homes were significant assets, and selling them at such large discounts has left most, if not all, in a precarious financial position. 

Finally, there is pensions. The UK, as with most western countries has an ageing population, meaning that pension spending compared to GDP is an increasing burden. 

Whilst UK pensions, when assessed against this metric, is 50% of France who are the worst in Europe, it is still a burden, and many younger people never expect to benefit from state pensions. 

There are, however, signs that the political winds are shifting in-favour of parties that understand these problems. 

Last weekend in Serbia’s elections, Student List cleaned up. 

Their success goes back to 2024-25, when students at Belgrade’s university’s blockaded faculties. What resulted was a collective sharing of intelligence and a process of shaping opinion that would become key to the outcome. 

The debate included almost every aspect of Serbia’s economy and society – from lithium mining and resource exploitation to the economic power of local oligarchs, as well as issues such as healthcare and education.  

 

‘a leaderless movement based on collective self-governance and political education’

 

It was just debate, there was no parties, no actual politics. What emerged was a leaderless movement based on collective self-governance and political education what was became a wide-reaching movement, capturing a broad spectrum of people who, despite different political convictions, wanted to counter the perceived corruption of Aleksandar Vučić, the authoritarian president.  

Post-Yugoslavia, the Serbian economy depended on foreign direct investment leading to political leaders forming close ties with foreign-owned corporations. The former PM, Vučić and his Serbian Progressive party (SNS), exerted a domineering grip over society and the media, ruling through a combination of cronyism, patronage and bullying authoritarianism. Little different to Viktor Orban’s Hungary 

Given the strange electoral coalition that has emerged there are concerns as to how the Student List will govern, especially as there is no hierarchy or leader. Instead, candidates were chosen by a series of student assemblies, with nominations ranging from academics to athletes, economists to engineers. 

 

‘deals primarily with anti-corruption measures, and also judicial reform, media freedom, affordable housing and improved access to healthcare’

 

There is 11-point plan, which deals primarily with anti-corruption measures, and also judicial reform, media freedom, affordable housing and improved access to healthcare, with the promise of “a doctor in every village.” 

In the immediate future, the new government is likely to function as a kind of constituent assembly, dedicated primarily to cleaning up civil society and the massive corruption which were some of the worst in Europe. Their next priority will be to consolidate their domestic agenda by winning December’s  presidential election.  

Whilst the defeat of Vučić and his disruptive presence is good news for the western Balkans as a whole, there are foreign policy issues that divide the movement including joining the EU and relations with Russia. 

 

There was a similar result in Brazil’s presidential election, where, in the second round of voting, it was expected that far-right Flávio Bolsonaro would consolidate his first-round triumph. 

Flavio is the son of former president Jair Bolsonaro, who is currently under house arrest for an attempted coup. 

After the first round of voting, the leftist incumbent Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, known as “Lula” looked beaten. 

Then, on the night after the election, students from the Fluminense Federal University took to the streets of Niterói, a city of 480,000 across Guanabara Bay from Rio de Janeiro, to protest against the return to power of a member of the Bolsonaro family. 

 

‘It doesn’t need violent demonstrations, just an overwhelming resolve to right these wrongs through principled protests’

 

Two days later, another student protest took over downtown Rio. This was followed by similar protests across the country, that analysts and Lula himself agree gave new life to his campaign and played a decisive role in his historic comeback in the runoff. 

“I want to thank the generosity of Brazil’s young people who took to the streets to defend democracy,” Lula said in his victory speech on Sunday night after defeating Bolsonaro. 

They were supported by a WhatsApp channel called “Lula’s Army”, created by Lula’s ally, congressman André Janones. On the first day it had 60,000 followers and, by election Sunday, more than 10 million, and Lula’s digital reach overtook Bolsonaro’s. 

The Bolsonaro clan aside, the biggest loser is Donald Trump. Lula’s win broke a run of seven right-wing presidential wins across LatAm for which Trump had claimed credit.  

Trump did much to aid Bolsonaro’s campaign imposing tariffs to pressure Brazil over the elder Bolsonaro’s prosecution and its courts’ enforcement actions against American tech companies.  

There are many reasons to reject the failures of the last 40-yrs, its crony capitalism it has, and the increasing wealth and influence of rentiers. 

It doesn’t need violent demonstrations, just an overwhelming resolve to right these wrongs through principled protests. 

 

“Oh, I do believe
You are what you perceive
What comes is better than what came before”  

 

 

The unrest of the young hasn’t gone away, and it will resurface soon.

It really is just part of the story these columns have been writing about over the past 8-yrs.

It is still left versus right. The traditional redistribution of wealth versus policies that created wealth which was supposed to have trickled-down but has stayed at the top.

The right will continue to bang that drum and enlist the support of older voters who have benefitted from this. They have jumped on the supposed breakdown of law and order, benefit claimants and too many immigrants.

The right isn’t the answer; they are the problem. The more we continue down their path, the more likely it is to go wrong and end badly.

Older people for all their moans, had it easier, opportunity was there for them, in work, housing and society.

For the young none of that can be taken for granted.

The real problem is that no one will stand-up and say it. The old are simply spoilt and self-entitled.

Peaceful, reasoned debate and action such as those I highlight in Serbia and  Brazil show that meaningful change can come from the streets

Lyrically, we open with “Street Life” by Roxy Music, and we finish with the often overlooked “I Found a Reason” by The Velvet Underground.

There is much to ponder!

Philip.

 

@coldwarsteve

 

 

Philip Gilbert is a city-based corporate financier, and former investment banker.

Philip is a great believer in meritocracy, and in the belief that if you want something enough you can make it happen. These beliefs were formed in his formative years, of the late 1970s and 80s

 

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