Iain Duncan Smith has attempted to appeal to the Left with today’s argument that the EU and “uncontrolled immigration” has caused a downward pressure on wages. Despite being at the forefront of taking from the have nots and giving to the haves for years, he’s now blaming the EU.
Category: disputes
Commemorating the 1912 East End Jewish tailors’ strike – two events
This month marks the centenary of the great 1912 East End Jewish tailors’ strike, which saw 13,000 immigrant sweatshop workers walk out on strike. Three weeks later, on 25 May 1912, the bosses capitulated – they’d won.
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All out for May Day
The Budget is out – tax cuts for the rich on top of trying to destroy the NHS, welfare cuts, tax avoidance, university fees, post-riot sentencing, hackgate, occupy evictions – the reasons to be angry go on and on and on and on. But, after the massive student demos of just over a year ago, the 26 March demonstration and the 30 November strikes, things seem to have gotten fractured. Lots of small demonstrations and actions, but what we need to do is bring everyone together and create a massive force to take down this government and scare the next.
The roots of Cable Street
Following the 75th anniversary of the Battle of Cable Street, it is important to remember not just the day itself, but where it came from. The most important thing about what happened on that day was how the other major East End community – the largely Irish dockers – came out in solidarity with the Jewish community in Whitechapel. The roots of this solidarity lie in the strikes of the Great Unrest period more than 20 years before.
The truth about anarchism
Event: Busting the Myths – learn the truth about anarchism, 7pm, Thursday 11 August, University of London Union, Malet Street, London.
Speakers: Donnacha DeLong (chair), Chetna Yuvraj, student occupier, Andy Littlechild, RMT activist,Zoe Stavri, activist with UK Uncut and Andy Meinke, activist in the Legal Defence and Monitoring Group and Freedom Press worker.
My piece in the Guardian on News International and the NUJ
I’ve written a new piece for the Guardian, which you can read here: The NUJ could have saved the News of the World
I’ve also done a playlist of trade union songs if you want to listen to some radical tunes, which you can watch on Youtube.
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A day on the picket line
I got the train down to Brighton today to show solidarity with striking colleagues at the Argus who are fighting plans to move their subbing operation to Southampton.
After a quick diversion to pick up a box of Krispy Kreme doughnuts for the strikers, I hopped in a cab and headed to the Argus offices.
The revolution will be streamed 