A brief history of Red Pepper

Soon after the strike’s defeat, nearly 2,000 activists in this disparate coalition came from inside and outside the Labour Party, from feminist, black, lesbian, gay, green, trade union and left academic organisations to Chesterfield to the first of the annual Socialist Conferences – sponsored by the Campaign Group of MPs, the Socialist Society and the Conference of Socialist Economists.

At the third of these conferences in 1987, delegates decided to form the Socialist Movement (SM). Very soon, as is the way of most socialist organisations, the SM decided to set up a newspaper. It was to be a non-sectarian, campaigning newspaper called Socialist.

The SM raised funds, including £1,000 in standing orders from supporters giving £5 a month – many of these same people still give to Red Pepper – and Socialist was launched as a fortnightly newspaper in autumn 1991. In its 18-month existence Socialist established a reputation as a reliable and hard-hitting source of news and debate, winning the support of, for example, Harold Pinter, John Pilger and Billy Bragg.

Socialist was in many ways a trial run for Red Pepper. As a fortnightly newspaper owned and run by a new organisation, it turned out not to be viable. However, the response to the newspaper showed that there was a demand for a regular green-left publication combining news with debate, action with theory, culture with politics. Moreover, the project had built up a network of writers, photographers and other contacts keen to make such a publication work. After much constructive conflict, a dummy magazine and some preliminary fundraising, the Socialist Movement decided to keep the company (Socialist Newspapers (publications) Limited) going but to give up ownership of the project and invite others to join it in launching a monthly magazine called Red Pepper.

It drew up an editorial charter with the agreement of founding investors and staff – including Denise Searle, who had edited Socialist and was the founder editor of Red Pepper. A constitution was agreed by which the board is made up of an equal number of representatives of investors, staff and the Socialist Movement, with the SM having a ’charter share’ to protect against, for instance, the takeover of the company by some opportunistic shark with an eye for profitable left-wing magazines.

Launch of Red Pepper

After a dramatic fundraising campaign in which nearly 200 people responded to an advert in the Guardian, and £135,000 was raised, Red Pepper launched in May 1995. It aimed to provide a bold and attractive voice for the independent-minded left, whether inside or outside the Labour Party.

It also aimed to provide a means by which people from different traditions on the left could think aloud as they tried to recover from the defeats of the 1980s, drawing inspiration from green, feminist and ’developing’ world liberation movements to recreate a socialist vision.

Red Pepper today

Red Pepper seeks to be responsive to the needs of the left in the changing political situation in the UK and internationally as well as to be self-critical as we develop. Consequently the magazine (and lately, the website) is constantly changing, though with an increasingly distinct identity and, we hope, a growing coherence. Red Pepper is now 15 years old.

It has been edited by Hilary Wainwright since 1996, co-edited by Hilary and Oscar Reyes from 2005 to December 2008 and is currently co-edited by Hilary, Michael Calderbank and James O’Nions. As well as supporters’ financial help, it has been sustained by the dedication of its volunteers and often underpaid part-time workers.

Small independent titles struggle in the UK, so keeping Red Pepper going is difficult and in autumn 2007 we took the hard decision to relaunch as a bi-monthly and give more emphasis to our website. We explored many options, including moving to an internet-only publication, but we found that the overwhelming majority of people we talked with believe Red Pepper remains a vital and important resource for all on the left as a print magazine.

This relaunch gave us the chance to reflect on the role of Red Pepper and to radically overhaul the magazine, redesigning, moving to full colour and expanding our content, which now includes:

 A regular seminal and provocative essay, by activists as much as academics – with comments by others so that each issue will open up, or take a new step, in a debate on issues of strategic, ethical or analytical importance for the green left

 In-depth focus on a particular injustice or abuse of power.

 Expanded international coverage

 Regular labour coverage with a team of labour writers with extensive experience in campaigning trade unionism and new forms of labour organising

 A focus on alternatives in practice – from local UK examples to international experiences

 An expanded culture section with more interviews and features from the worlds of literature, music, theatre, film, television and art and more

More information

Hilary Wainwright biography

Oscar Reyes biography

The Guardian interview with Hilary Wainwright about Red Pepper