Many in the Labour Party have continued to ignore the ‘biradri’ clan-based politics plaguing towns like Luton, Birmingham and Bradford and young people in communities like mine are being failed because of it.(THREAD)

The word ‘biradri’ is a Persian term, which means a brotherhood or an allegiance to a particular clan. It’s an outdated system where some individuals in the Pakistani community are being elected based on their family background rather than their experience or policy platform.

I saw first-hand how this system operates when I joined the Labour Party in 2015 and was not invited to a single local branch meeting until I made a formal complaint. I was deliberately excluded simply because I didn’t belong to the family who controlled the local ward.

At local Annual General Meetings, those involved with the biradri clan system have often signed up their family members and put them in positions of power even when those family members have had no prior interest in politics or local community issues.

There are entire branches of local parties run on biradri/caste lines. This is having a damaging impact on communities like mine because it means the issues that affect us don't get the attention they deserve. It's a scandal which needs addressing.

I renewed my membership earlier this year and I've now had it confirmed from 3 separate individuals that a local councillor (from the same family that deliberately excluded me when I was 17) has put in a bogus objection to my membership.

Biradri clan-based politics is an outdated system that has damaged communities like mine and alienated young people but it also relies on our apathy and disillusionment to succeed.

It’s time for the Labour Party to radically change its approach when it comes to engaging with diverse
communities. That means recognising the plurality of voices that exist and actively engaging with young people to tackle the issues we care about.