View source for SDLP Youth

{{Short description|Youth wing of the Social Democratic and Labour Party}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2022}}
{{More citations needed|date=May 2017}}
{{Infobox political youth organization
 | name = SDLP Youth
 | native_name = 
 | logo             = [[File:SDLPYouthLogo2021.svg|280px|SDLP Youth Logo]]
 | colorcode        = #d72b41
 | chairperson      = Jude Osborne
 | vice-chairperson = Eilidh O'Connor
 | founded          = {{start date and age|1995|06|10|df=y|br=y}}<ref>{{cite news |last1=Moriarty |first1=Gerry |title=SDLP decides to hold annual leadership vote |url=https://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/archive/1995/0612/Pg006.html#Ar00605:672A9D694AB05058495A189B52294F547964554A57579A6A523B23548B3654AB2354DB3654EB23554B3663AA9D660AB0618AB963DACE |access-date=4 March 2022 |work=The Irish Times |issue=44,235 |publisher=The Irish Times |date=12 June 1995}}</ref>
 | ideology         = [[Social democracy]]<br />[[Irish nationalism]]
 | headquarters     = [[Belfast]], [[Northern Ireland]]
 | mother party = [[Social Democratic and Labour Party|SDLP]]
 | international    = [[International Union of Socialist Youth]] (IUSY) ''(observer)''
 | regional1_type   = European
 | regional1_name   = [[Young European Socialists]] (YES)
 | website = {{url|www.sdlpyouth.org}}
}}

'''SDLP Youth''' is the [[youth wing]] of the [[social democracy|social democratic]]<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.sdlp.ie/about/pes/|title=SDLP Website|access-date=13 May 2020|archive-date=7 May 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200507183741/http://www.sdlp.ie/about/pes/|url-status=live}}</ref> and [[Irish Nationalism|Irish nationalist]]<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.sdlp.ie/issues/progressive-nationalism/|title=SDLP Website|access-date=13 May 2020|archive-date=28 September 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190928132126/http://www.sdlp.ie/issues/progressive-nationalism/|url-status=dead}}</ref> [[political party]], the [[Social Democratic and Labour Party]] (SDLP). Membership of the organisation is entitled to SDLP party members of the age 30 and under.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5ea5cc4ec14b9147bdc7cb68/t/5ea7203b02bd5519d7a3fd82/1588011073393/SDLPNov16.pdf|title=SDLP Constitution clause 18.4a|access-date=14 May 2020|archive-date=3 May 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240503024307/https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5ea5cc4ec14b9147bdc7cb68/t/5ea7203b02bd5519d7a3fd82/1588011073393/SDLPNov16.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> It is organised throughout [[Northern Ireland]] and plays an active role within the SDLP at all levels of the organisation.

==Organisation==
SDLP Youth is currently organised across much of Northern Ireland, including University societies. The group is split into a number of branches with the executive committee acting as the governing body of the organisation.

===Executive===
SDLP Youth is organised at a national level by the Youth Executive. The Youth Executive is responsible for the day-to-day running of SDLP Youth. It consists of nine Officers elected at the annual Youth Conference.

The current Officers of the Youth Executive elected in August 2025 are:

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Executive Position
!Officer
!Constituency
|-
|Chairperson
|Jude Osborne
|[[East Londonderry (UK Parliament constituency)|East Derry]]
|-
|Vice-Chairperson and North-South Officer
|Eilidh O'Connor
|[[East Londonderry (UK Parliament constituency)|East Derry]]
|-
|Secretary General
|Fiachra McCarney-Savage
|[[Belfast South and Mid Down (UK Parliament constituency)|Belfast South and Mid Down]]
|-
|Campaigns and Communications Officer
|Will Polland
|[[Strangford (UK Parliament constituency)|Strangford]]
|-
|Equality Officer
|Nancy Lynn
|[[North Antrim (UK Parliament constituency)|North Antrim]]
|-
|Membership Officer
|Tony McCann
|[[North Down (UK Parliament constituency)|North Down]]
|-
|Policy Officer
|Maeve Cunningham
|[[North Antrim (UK Parliament constituency)|North Antrim]]
|-
|Under 18's Officer
|Alex Egan
|[[Belfast South and Mid Down (UK Parliament constituency)|Belfast South and Mid Down]]
|-
|}

===Branches===
The current SDLP Youth branch organisations<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.sdlpyouth.org/branches|title=Branches|website=SDLP Youth|access-date=1 November 2020|archive-date=8 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201108104632/https://www.sdlpyouth.org/branches|url-status=live}}</ref> are:

*SDLP Youth [[County Antrim|Antrim]] Branch
*SDLP Youth [[Belfast]] - Paddy Wilson Branch
*SDLP Youth [[Derry]] Branch
*SDLP Youth [[East Londonderry (UK Parliament constituency)|East Derry]] Branch
*SDLP Youth [[Mid Ulster (UK Parliament constituency)|Mid Ulster]] - Paddy Heron Branch
*SDLP Youth [[Newry and Armagh (UK Parliament constituency)|Newry and Armagh]] Branch
*SDLP Youth [[West Tyrone (UK Parliament constituency)|West Tyrone]] Branch
*[[Queen's University Belfast|Queen's University]] SDLP Society
*[[Ulster University]] SDLP Society

Former SDLP branch organisations include:

*[[Magee College|Magee]] SDLP<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.facebook.com/sdlp.magee|title=Sdlp Magee|website=www.facebook.com|access-date=1 November 2020|archive-date=3 May 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240503024404/https://www.facebook.com/login/?next=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fsdlp.magee|url-status=live}}</ref>
*SDLP Youth [[Strabane]]<ref>{{Cite Twitter profile|strab_sdlpyouth}}</ref>
*SDLP Youth [[South Down (Assembly constituency)|South Down]]<ref>{{cite tweet|number=14375648340475904|user=SDLPlive|title=SDLP South Down youth formally launches http://tinyurl.com/38uavho<!-- full text of tweet that Twitter returned to the bot (excluding links) added by TweetCiteBot. This may be better truncated or may need expanding (TW limits responses to 140 characters) or case changes. --> |date=13 December 2010}}</ref>
*SDLP Youth [[Upper Bann (Assembly constituency)|Upper Bann]]<ref>{{Cite Twitter profile|sdlpu}}</ref>

==History==

A youth section of the SDLP was first floated in late 1973 which led to the short lived group "the Young Social Democrats" which organised from 1974 to 1976.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://apps.proni.gov.uk/eCatNI_IE/SearchPage.aspx|title=Search Page &#124; ECatNI &#124; Public Record Office of Northern Ireland|website=apps.proni.gov.uk|access-date=12 May 2022|archive-date=29 May 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220529013510/https://apps.proni.gov.uk/eCatNI_IE/SearchPage.aspx|url-status=live}}</ref>

The current youth wing started organising in the early 1990s bringing motions, such as the decriminalisation of marijuana,<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://signin.lexisnexis.com/lnaccess/app/signin?back=https%3A%2F%2Fadvance.lexis.com%3A443%2Fnexis-uni%2Flaapi%2Fdocument%3Fcollection%3Dnews%26id%3Durn%253AcontentItem%253A3SJD-S000-0061-H18V-00000-00%26context%3D1516831&aci=nu|title=Nexis Uni® - Sign In &#124; LexisNexis|website=signin.lexisnexis.com|access-date=12 May 2022|archive-date=30 October 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201030231548/https://signin.lexisnexis.com/lnaccess/app/signin?back=https%3A%2F%2Fadvance.lexis.com%3A443%2Fnexis-uni%2Flaapi%2Fdocument%3Fcollection%3Dnews%26id%3Durn%253AcontentItem%253A3SJD-S000-0061-H18V-00000-00%26context%3D1516831&aci=nu|url-status=live}}</ref> to party conferences but it wasn’t until 10 June 1995 that SDLP Youth became a distinct section of the SDLP when it was added to the party constitution.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://signin.lexisnexis.com/lnaccess/app/signin?back=https%3A%2F%2Fadvance.lexis.com%3A443%2Fnexis-uni%2Flaapi%2Fdocument%3Fcollection%3Dnews%26id%3Durn%253AcontentItem%253A3SJD-RGT0-0061-H24V-00000-00%26context%3D1516831&aci=nu|title=Nexis Uni® - Sign In &#124; LexisNexis|website=signin.lexisnexis.com|access-date=12 May 2022|archive-date=12 May 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220512170456/https://signin.lexisnexis.com/lnaccess/app/signin?back=https%3A%2F%2Fadvance.lexis.com%3A443%2Fnexis-uni%2Flaapi%2Fdocument%3Fcollection%3Dnews%26id%3Durn%253AcontentItem%253A3SJD-RGT0-0061-H24V-00000-00%26context%3D1516831&aci=nu|url-status=live}}</ref>

==International==

SDLP Youth are full members of the [[Young European Socialists]] (YES),<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://youngsocialists.eu/members/|title=YES Members list, collected 17 May 2020.|access-date=17 May 2020|archive-date=23 November 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211123154949/https://youngsocialists.eu/members/|url-status=dead}}</ref> formerly the European Community Organisation of Socialist Youth (ECOSY), having been admitted at the 1994 conference in [[Munich]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.ecosy.org/congress/report.htm|title=CONGRESS REPORT|date=9 October 1997|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/19971009103122/http://www.ecosy.org/congress/report.htm |archive-date=9 October 1997 }}</ref> At this 1994 conference future SDLP [[Member of the Northern Ireland Assembly|MLA]] for [[Belfast South (Assembly constituency)|South Belfast]] [[Conall McDevitt]] was elected as an ECOSY vice-president after being elected the National Secretary of [[Labour Youth]] in 1993.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.sdlp.ie/index.php/your_representatives/profile/cllr_carmel_hanna_mla/|title=Conall McDevitt MLA &#124; Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP)|date=29 April 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100429042741/http://www.sdlp.ie/index.php/your_representatives/profile/cllr_carmel_hanna_mla/ |archive-date=29 April 2010 }}</ref> At 2021 YES Congress Leah Rea became the first member of SDLP Youth to be nominated and elected to the YES Presidium as Vice-President.<ref>{{cite tweet|number=1444701169239138308|user=MissTwice|title=I cannot believe I am typing this, but I am so honoured to say that #YESCongress has put their faith and trust in m…|accessdate=2021-10-03|language=en|date=3 October 2021}}</ref>

In 2016 SDLP Youth and YES held a joint seminar in Belfast on "[[far-right politics|far-right extremism]] and Brexit" which was attended by young socialist activists from across Europe.<ref>{{cite tweet|number=788063230899937281|user=SDLPyouth|author=SDLP Youth|title=We're excited to be welcoming @YESocialists to Belfast next month. Get in touch if you'd like to attend their event…|date=17 October 2016}}</ref>

SDLP Youth are also observer members of [[International Union of Socialist Youth]] (IUSY).<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://iusy.org/category/home/memberorganisations/|title=Member Organisations|access-date=17 May 2020|archive-date=19 December 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221219034614/https://iusy.org/category/home/memberorganisations/|url-status=live}}</ref>

== References ==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
* [http://www.sdlp.ie/index.php/about_sdlp/sdlp_youth// Official homepage of ''SDLP Youth''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110706224433/http://www.sdlp.ie/index.php/about_sdlp/sdlp_youth/ |date=2011-07-06 }}

{{SDLP}}
{{Political youth organizations of Northern Ireland}}
{{YES member organisations}}

[[Category:Youth wings of political parties in Northern Ireland]]
[[Category:Youth wings of social democratic parties]]
[[Category:Social Democratic and Labour Party]]