Jong Groen wants the current generation within the mother party to leave after ‘the worst poll since the elections’. “Part of the group of white people, often too old, who are there now make incorrect assessments,” it sounded punishment on Twitter. That swipe was not to the liking of the party. Under pressure, the youth department eventually had to remove the tweet in question. “Be a reflection of society? That also means not judging anyone based on age and skin color. That was also a lesson for Jong Groen.”
The party has been polling worse than its 9.8% election result for quite some time, but this time the ecologists are taking a serious dive. Virtually, Groen is even the smallest party in Flanders with 7.4%. Jong Groen, who has been frustrated about the course of the party for some time, does not spare his criticism. On Twitter, the youth section called on the party leadership to “do self-reflection” and to “dare to stand on its own” within the government.
Jong Groen disapproves of the current generation within the party and believes that new people are needed. “A new wind is clearly needed. The current generation cannot convince the population”. According to the young people, the party must “dare to opt for innovation” and make the choice for rejuvenation and diversity”.
“Too old, white people”
According to the young people, the party should be a better reflection of society. “Part of the group of white people, often too old, who are there now make incorrect assessments. They have gotten too involved in power politics. We now need a turnaround”, a swipe that led to frustration both inside and outside the party. Member of Parliament Dieter Van Besien (Groen) reacted fiercely on Twitter. “You are now attacking me based on my skin color and my age. Can I say I’m outraged? If you want to respond: please private and not public”
The co-chairs of Groen also responded to the young people’s outburst. “Be a reflection of society? That also means not judging anyone based on age and skin color,” Jeremie Vaneeckhout and Nadia Naji tweeted. “Ecologists will always advocate for more inclusion and there is still a lot of work to do there, but that will only succeed if differences are bridged instead of stirred up. That was also a lesson for Jong Groen.”
tweet offline
Ultimately, Jong Groen took the tweet in question offline. Not everyone within the youth board would have agreed with the communication, and there would also have been pressure from the top to remove the tweet. Sources within Jong Groen confirm this to our editors. But according to Vaneeckhout, there was “an open and honest consultation” with the young people.
In a new series of tweets, the youth now appear to be closing ranks. “We are all volunteers and sometimes make mistakes, because Jong Groen is a learning school”, it sounds. “Why did we take our conscious tweet offline? Because we realize that this tweet could have been more nuanced and we had to choose our words better. However, the message remains that we want a better reflection of society in our parliaments. Does that mean that there is no longer a place for older, white people in parliament? Of course not.”
Young Green
@JongGroen
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