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Hello, I’m Antonia Bance, a Labour party activist and feminist. I live in Rose Hill, Oxford, with my partner Jo. I was Labour’s parliamentary candidate in Oxford West and Abingdon in 2005. I get paid to run campaigns for one women’s charity, and in my free time am on the board of trustees for another. I was elected to represent Rose Hill and Iffley ward on Oxford city council in May 2006.
This is a personal blog: if you’re looking for local information about the ward I represent or Labour in Oxford, please go to Oxford Labour. Nothing I say here on my personal site represents the opinion of the Oxford Labour party or city Labour group.
In political terms, I’m a feminist and a democratic socialist. I opposed the war in Iraq, and would consider myself as inhabiting the Labour wing of the Labour party - don’t pigeonhole me as old or new Labour, please. I am an active trade unionist and was, until recently when I got a new job, branch convenor. I’m loyal to the Labour party and think that the vast majority of what we have done in our eight years has been great. That doesn’t mean that I won’t criticise when we do something wrong, stupid or both. Equally, I think Labour offers this country the best chance to enjoy a future of equality and social justice.
My main areas of interest are women’s and youth policy, American and Labour politics. I blog extensively on traditional women’s issues like abortion and violence against women, and on new feminist issues, like teenage pregnancy and Fathers4Justice. I also blog about some lesbian and gay issues and about other issues as they strike me as interesting. I’m trying to break the habit of blogging about work. Throughout, the blog is grounded in the wonderful city where I live: Oxford. This blog is a record of interesting times in my life, such as the months of being a parliamentary candidate, and my time working for John Kerry in Philadelphia, and is also a space for me to put up my opinions, flag up interesting things, communicate with friends and record life.
If you’re looking for in depth analyses of the war in Iraq, the pros and cons of ID cards or why we should join the Euro, you won’t find it here: not because I don’t have an opinon or don’t care, but just because I don’t find them very interesting, and because so many other people blog about these sort of issues that it won’t take you long to find someone who can reinforce or challenge your opinions better than I could. Just so you know, I have little time for the left outside the Labour party; I firmly believe that the people of Iraq deserve the right to self-determination and that the duty of UK troops is to create an environment where that can flourish; and I stand with Israelis and Palestinians working for peace and a negotiated two-state settlement, with democracy and security for both nations.
I should also say, firmly, this: my blog, my rules. I’m not going to allow my blog to be a platform for racism, anti-Semitism, Holocaust denial or homophobia. I will delete comments that violate these rules, and that are otherwise offensive. It’s not about discouraging the participation of those who disagree with me: have I taken down comments from apologists for Fathers4Justice? No, I have not. If you’re uncomfortable with this, go away.
If you’re looking for my archived website from the general election campaign 2005, go here.
My Normblog profile is available here.
If you’re new to the blog, perhaps you’d like to start with these posts, which I think are my best:
Being a Guardian-cack inspired councillor (on homophobia), 24 June 2006
Poor little men (on all-women shortlists), 22 June 2006
Still not a councillor-blog (on life as a new councillor), 30 May 2006
Government policy on prostitution, 28 Dec 2005
This is for all the people who came before us (on the first civil partnerships), 19 Dec 2006
John Prescott and the education white paper , 18 Dec 2006
Liam and Jody, (on homophobia), 20 Oct 2005
The aggressive children of teenage mums, 17 Oct 2005
Blackpool Rocks (on Tory party conference), 8 Oct 2005
Oxford in the autumn, 16 September 2005
The next generation (on the Labour party), 4 September 2005
On the left (on the need for a new socialist feminism), 30 August 2005 -
Open season on teenagers (on the GCSE results), 16 August 2005
Women can’t stop rape, 12 August 2005
F4J Mark 2, (the post that caused all the trouble with the Fathers4Justice), 14 June 2005
Too much too young updated (teenage pregnancy), 23 May 2005
8725 votes and a historic third term, 6 May 2005
Nearly there (night before the general election), 5 May 2005
Last night (taking on the SWP), 29 April 2005
Back from Philadelphia (reflections on the Kerry-Edwards campaign), 7 November 2004
(updated 29 June 2006)
Is it not about time that the war against men comes to an end?
children have rights and one of those rights is to see their father. Women may have had a breakdown in thier relationship with their partner, but why take it out on the children?
You all say that you believe in equal rights? I do not think so. Women can be nasty at times. I know that and so do all women. Leave men alone and allow them their right’s to a private family life. Stop the abuse on men. Stop usimg children in battle with your ex-partner.
I am divorced but I did not use my children in my divorce battle and I even gave my ex-husband the house and all of its contents. If I can do that, then why can’t other women????
Email me at…. fathersagainstroughtreatment@hotmail.co.uk
Posting a comment on Antonia’s self-description is very sad isn’t it?
Are you really a woman? Not for me to say really but if you are and you gave your ex-husband everything, you’re a bloody fool.
I suspect, though, that you’re actually an agent provocateur for “fathers for justice”: in fact, a wizened old man drooling over your computer…
You think one of your best posts is where you totally mis-represent someone else’s position and their background (c.f. AWS post)?
I’d think again on that if I was you Antonia.
I’m still waiting for my apology. Thanks.
Gracious, Kerron. You’re ever so upset about this, aren’t you?
Kerron, your position wasn’t misrepresented, Antonia linked to your posts and quoted you and then explained why she didn’t agree with you.
You may not like the fact that you got demolished for complaining that All Women Shortlists were bad with reference to how they were inconvenient for you personally, but that’s a weakness in your argument, not Antonia’s fault.
Take care
Dan xxx
I think that when you fail to discuss the issues by saying - you would say that you are a white middle class man and you just want a seat - is actually a rubbish argument.
Maybe I should fire back at Antonia (and the other women bloggers who attacked me) that they only agree with AWS because they want a seat and it improves their chances?
It’s a rubbish rubbish argument and one I would like to shy away from.
I note Antonia knows nothing about me and clearly has her own prejudices. For example describing me as a “white middle class man”. My father worked on the railways his whole life and my grandad was a miner - not especially “middle class” - but I note this doesn’t fit your stereotype you like to build up of me as some male chauvanist or something.
As I have said, what we need to do is encourage more women MPs, and more women grass roots activists. In fact more women in every area of the Labour Party and public life generally. However Dan, it seems that rather than have this discussion and see how we could implement this practically, you would rather a) mis-represent my position and my background to paint me as some sort of Oxbridge, middle class, Blair-ista and b) portray me as anti-women and wanting less women in politics - which is just totally false.
As someone who has worked as a local councillor for over 5 years in my local community and carried out various voluntary work (including youth work for a number of years) before this, I find it rather distasteful to somehow be portrayed as a Johnny-come-lately on the make.
All I asked was that Antonia said sorry for how she mis-portrayed my position, views and background in a post based on a comment I made simply stating that my local seat was to be made AWS.
But I welcome your sarcasm and ability not to discuss the issue at hand.
Antonia, if I described you as an “upper class” white woman who was only interested in AWS to further your own career - how would you feel?
Mis-represented?
Yes.
That is the point I make to you.
Hi Kerron,
I don’t think you have been misrepresented - Antonia’s linked to your comments and anyone who cares can read your arguments in your own words. If you have an alternative to all women shortlists which would do more to boost the number of women MPs and the number of women involved in politics, then please do write about it and I’d be happy to discuss it.
I don’t think anyone has suggested that you are a ‘johnny-come-lately on the make’ or a Blairite stooge or whatever. I’ve no reason to doubt that you would be a perfectly good MP, probably better than some that we have got at the moment. The problem that the Labour Party has at the moment, though, is that there are lots of people who would be absolutely brilliant MPs or councillors who never even think about standing for these posts because they assume that people like them don’t become Labour representatives, and that it is important to change that, even if it means that some people who work for an MP and are councillors already miss out.
Take care
Dan xxx
Yes Kerron, that is exactly the point of AWS. To improve the chances of a woman getting elected as an MP. You never know, one day we might go over the 20% mark (currently on 19.8%).
I don’t want a seat. But I do want more women to have a seat.
And having made my point, Antonia I suggest you close the comments on this thread as this probably isn’t the place to have this debate seeing as there are multiple threads about it on all our blogs.