The Left Isn’t Pivoting to Class War, It’s Doubling Down on the Culture War!

 The Left would have you believe they’re returning to their roots, dusting off the old banners of class struggle to rally the working masses against the rise of Reform UK. Kim Johnson’s recent claim that “the fight against Reform is not a culture war, it’s a class war” might sound like a bold reorientation, but don’t be fooled. This isn’t a pivot to class war, it’s a desperate sleight of hand to mask the Left’s unrelenting obsession with the culture war, repackaged with a sprinkling of economic rhetoric to win back a working class they’ve long abandoned.

Let’s start with the obvious: the Left’s track record. For years, Labour and its progressive allies have prioritized identity politics over material concerns. Under Keir Starmer, Labour has leaned into cultural battles, whether it’s championing divisive social policies, obsessing over language policing, or pandering to cosmopolitan elites who sneer at the “backward” working class. Labour have betrayed the working class in favour of immigrants, pointing to policies that prioritize cultural posturing over the bread-and-butter issues, like jobs, housing, and pensions, that working-class voters actually care about. Labour’s rhetoric might name-drop “class,” but their actions scream culture war. The void left by Labour’s timidity will be filled with hate & division. But what’s driving that division? It’s not just economic inequality, it’s the Left’s own cultural crusades. The working class isn’t defecting to Reform because they’re suddenly enamored with Nigel Farage’s tax policies. The working class has borne the brunt of Uniparty politics for over 20 years, citing mass immigration, eroding freedoms, and collapsing public services. These aren’t just economic grievances, they’re cultural flashpoints, exacerbated by Labour’s refusal to address concerns about national identity and social cohesion. Instead, Labour doubles down, explicitly framing Reform as “racist & fascist.” That’s not class war, that’s the same old culture war playbook, slapping moral labels on political opponents rather than engaging with their voters’ real concerns. The Left’s so-called class war rhetoric is a sham because it refuses to confront the material realities of the working class. The term “working class” means little in a UK “devoid of the old industries.” Labour isn’t talking about factory workers or miners anymore, they’re targeting a nebulous “rich” enemy while ignoring the fact that their own voter base, is wealthier on average than Reform’s. If this were truly a class war, Labour would be laser-focused on policies like wealth taxes or nationalizing failing public services. Instead, Starmer has shut down talk of bold economic redistribution, as the Washington Post analysis from 2023 pointed out, opting for low-hanging fruit like taxing private schools, a policy more about cultural signaling than economic justice. Let’s not forget the historical context. The web results from Left Foot Forward might claim Labour’s “socialist values” are the solution, but Labour hasn’t been the party of the working man for decades. As the Queen’s University blog notes, Labour’s shift under Tony Blair to a neoliberal “Third Way” marked a departure from class-based politics, favoring identity and culture wars amplified by globalization and the internet. Starmer’s Labour isn’t reversing that trend, it’s accelerating it. The party’s response to Reform’s rise isn’t to address working-class economic despair but to paint Reform voters as bigot. That’s a cultural divide, not a class one. The Left’s obsession with culture war isn’t just a distraction, it’s a betrayal. By focusing on “hate and division” as moral failings rather than symptoms of economic neglect, Labour ensures the working class will continue flocking to Reform. If the Left were serious about class war, they’d ditch the lectures on “fascism” and start listening to the people they claim to represent. Until then, this is no pivot, it’s the same tired culture war, dressed up in a red flag for show.