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"Kettled Generation" Brixton

17-12-2010 14:23

Protest and public meeting Tuesday 14 December 2010, see the article "Kettled Generation" for more.

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Queen Mary University ceases to invest in arms

17-12-2010 14:19

Queen Mary University of London divests from the arms trade and adopts an ethical investment policy.

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Chile: Invitación Campamento Autónomo

17-12-2010 13:03

Trabajo de Verano autónomo, comunitario y rebelde

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Heinz Means Strikes In Wigan

17-12-2010 13:01

Workers at the Heinz factory in Wigan stopped work on Wednesday, leading to the production of an estimated 2 million fewer cans of beans and other foods. They are striking against a below-inflation pay offer, which has been combined with attacks on sick pay and changes to the bonus scheme.

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University sues sacked lecturer for libel

17-12-2010 12:25

The University of Salford is suing a former lecturer for allegedly publishing a satirical publication in what he describes as an attempt to “silence opposition” to its policies. The action could have serious implications for bloggers using Wordpress, after the Californian webhosting company passed on personally-identifying information.

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Cancun Agreement stripped bare by Bolivia's dissent

17-12-2010 12:21

In the famous Hans Christian Anderson fable, The Emperor's New Clothes, a weaver famously plays on an emperor's arrogance and persuades him to wear a non-existent suit with the argument that it is only invisible to the 'hopelessly stupid.' The moment of truth comes, as we can all remember, when a child in an otherwise silent crowd yells out, “But he is not wearing any clothes!” What we don't always recall is that the naked Emperor suspects the child may be telling the truth, but carries on marching proudly and unclothed regardless.

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Brixton 'Kettled Generation' Protest

17-12-2010 11:22

Council Leaders hysteria

Council leaders reacted hysterically to the protest outside Brixton Police station on Tuesday 14th Dec. Management emailed all council staff to warn of the protest and potential riots that could result. They even included a request that people leave work early to avoid the area. Nothing can better illustrate the council’s disconnection and fear of the local community.

The meeting and protest outside Brixton Police station however, showed the solidarity between young and old that we will need to successfully resist the cuts. Trade Unions need to stand in solidarity with young people to defeat the cuts planned by the council and to resist the savage offensive by the Tories.

Kettled Generation

Between forty to fifty students, parents and teachers met in the evening to discuss the next steps in our campaign. The meeting heard from students who organised the sit in at Camden Sixth Form for Girls, occupiers from Goldsmiths, Southbank and Camberwell College, students from the walk outs and local youth leaders.

The meeting broke into two groups with 25 students from across South London deciding to facilitate links between university activists and local groups of school and sixth formers. Students agreed to both launch a South London Coordinating meeting across Schools and Universities in January and arrange school meetings with university occupiers. The Camberwell occupation is planning to stay over Christmas and are calling for support (contact: camberwellanticuts@gmail.com)

The second group of parents, trade Unionists and community activists included Marcia Rigg from the Justice for Sean Rigg campaign, representatives from the Karibu Education Centre and members of the Lambeth NUT committee. A full report of the discussion will be produced but included support the “Don’t Kettle our kids” campaign being launched by members of the NUT locally.

Kettle of Brixton Police Station

Around 35 activists and students showed their opposition to police violence outside Brixton Police Station earlier in the evening. Christmas break and the number of events recently took its toll on the school student mobilisation but a number of students still came from 4 Lambeth Schools. The protest was lifted by a strong turn out from Lambeth Unison and heard from Students from Gravney, South Norwood Harris Academy, Marcia Rigg and local Trade Unions.

Video: Brixton Protest and meeting:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9aSWtUkx6b4

http://www.lambethunited.org/index.php/2010/12/kettled-generation-tuesaday-14th/

Lambeth NUT, Lambeth Unison, RightToWork, Education Activist Network, Woodcraft Folk and Karibu Education Centre.

The "Kettled Generation", refers to a generation of young people fighting against the Con-Dem's cuts, fees and police brutality.

Although the government is vandalising the UK's public services, attacking the lives of working class people, restoring wealth to the ruling elite and kettling our young people... students are fighting back, with the spirit of Greece & France, exposing the weaknesses of the Coalition. We have to build on this, keep up the fight, demand an end to police violence and build maximum possible unity against the cuts.

Support the students! Support the protests!
Resist! - Occupy! - Strike!

Woodcraft Folk's Kettled generation blog:
http://www.woodcraft.org.uk/young-people-protest-watch/

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Anarchist Bookfair Needs You

17-12-2010 11:22

Now in May

Here is the first Bookfair Callout - December 2010:

The 2011 Bristol bookfair is coming at you 4 months earlier this year on 7th May at Hamilton House. It will happen at the end of a week that includes an outrageously expensive royal wedding, local elections and a referendum on the latest parliamentary elections voting scam. It will happen shortly after the budget cuts of the national LibDemCon government, and local councils, will be known; whilst the job losses and cuts inherent in the austerity drive to bail out capitalism will be kicking in. The anarchist bookfair will be the perfect antidote to all this misery and displays of wealth inequality. Due to the new date we need you to contact us asap to book a stall or suggest a workshop

For full bookfair info see http://www.bristolanarchistbookfair.org

For stall and workshop forms see http://www.bristolanarchistbookfair.org/?page_id=993 - book your stall before 1 February 2011 and pay 2010 prices. Cost goes up after that date, but book early before we fill up.

featured image
Image Caption Goes Here

For full bookfair info see http://www.bristolanarchistbookfair.org
For stall and workshop forms see http://www.bristolanarchistbookfair.org/?page_id=993 - book your stall before 1 February 2011 and pay 2010 prices. Cost goes up after that date, but book early before we fill up.

Here is the first Bookfair Callout - December 2010:

The 2011 Bristol bookfair is coming at you 4 months earlier this year. It will happen at the end of a week that includes an outrageously expensive royal wedding, local elections and a referendum on the latest parliamentary elections voting scam. It will happen shortly after the budget cuts of the national LibDemCon government, and local councils, will be known; whilst the job losses and cuts inherent in the austerity drive to bail out capitalism will be kicking in. The anarchist bookfair will be the perfect antidote to all this misery and displays of wealth inequality.

We keenly anticipate that 1 May 2011 will see large demos across the country, as the resistance kick-started by students and school kids spreads. In the tradition of May Day we intend to provide testimonies of struggles past, alongside discussion and analysis of the theory & practice of the struggles today.

We invite anarchists, radicals, friends and comrades, workers and the unemployed, students and youth, to participate as equals at the bookfair.

We invite groups, networks, campaigns, distros and individuals to apply now for stalls (get the early booking rate!). We also invite you to submit proposals for workshops, ideally themed around the concepts and realities of 'resistance and alternatives to cuts'. For 'resistance' we anticipate theoretical or practical discussions or analysis of current struggles. For 'alternatives' we hope to see economic theories mixed with practical examples in existence now

We shall once again have an Indymedia room (confirmed) showing films, and holding discussions on media related topics and issues. We hope again to host a Radical History Zone (to be confirmed) considering the histories and providing critiques of struggles past. Plus an all day vegan cafe, and kids space, and who knows what else!

Collectively we believe the bookfair will offer opportunites to gain a better understanding of the different strands of anarchism and similar ideas and practices; to act as a venue for developing discussions, ideas and campaigns; and be a launchpad for new initiatives and the strengthening of old and new relationships. Whilst the attacks by the government, corporations, capital, and state agencies intensify, our collective resistance remains fertile, inspiring, and inevitable. The future can be whatever we want it to be.

We return to the same venue as in 2010, but with a different layout that we hope will provide a little more space and easy access, along with a few other minor changes.

Booking forms for stalls and workshop proposals are here http://www.bristolanarchistbookfair.org/?page_id=993. Publicity will follow soon. Get involved. Start spreading the word – Bristol Anarchist Bookfair, 7 May 2011.

solidarity & love
The Bristol anarchist bookfair collective
December 2010

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In reaction to recent articles surrounding the student protests

17-12-2010 10:14

Protest is a right of ours, but with a highly distorted understanding of democracy and resistance engrained throughout the UK, what are the most effective methods for getting heard... or better still, achieving change?

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Bristol University Dis-Occupation of Senate House

17-12-2010 09:22


On Friday, 17th December 2010, Bristol University student protesters will be dis-occupying Senate Room, Senate House. The occupiers will be leaving Senate House as part of a ‘Carnival of Dis-Occupation’ and have asked people to bring colours, noise and chalk. The carnival will emphasise the wider ongoing movement against cuts and fees and celebrate the achievements of the Bristol student protest movement over the past few months.

PRESS RELEASE 17/12/10

Dis-occupation of Senate House

The protesters have called this the end of a first chapter of demonstrations against the proposed cuts to Higher Education and rising fees, and the beginning of a new kind of student movement. Although the occupiers’ main demand that Bristol University Vice-Chancellor Eric Thomas take a public position against the fees and cuts, was not met, the occupation has, in many ways, yielded much more meaningful outcomes than being granted particular requests by senior management.

The occupation of Senate House has received an extraordinary level of support and activity from students and staff of the University of Bristol. Seven departments and countless individuals have written letters of solidarity and protest; a panel on the future of Higher Education was held in Senate Room involving lecturing staff and students across the University, and numerous conversations have been sparked with local schools, unions and Higher Education networks across the country. Although open access to the space was originally refused on principle, this collective pressure led to temporary admission for staff and students to the panel event – also broadcast live online to up to 200 remote viewers – and to access for all, including the general public, for a meal of celebration and thanks on Thursday (16th Dec) at 7pm.

The occupiers have stated that these expressions of support ‘evidence a process far more wide-ranging than the one we had hoped to achieve when formulating our original demands – specifically, a broad concern to realise a university that is critical, participatory and accessible to all.’ There has been an acknowledgement that although many student occupations are coming to a close this week, there remains a critical engagement with the University’s own ‘democratic’ structures – a crucial factor for the ongoing struggle against the Government-proposed cuts.

The full statement of dis-occupation is available to read at: http://bristoluniresistance.org.uk/2010/12/the-end-of-t...ning/
Follow the occupation:
Blog: bristoluniresistance.org.uk,
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/home.php?ref=home#!/pages/Bristol-against-education-cuts/166916926663073
Email: aec.bris@gmail.com
Or come and visit: University of Bristol Senate House, Tyndall Avenue, Bristol BS8 1TH

Press contacts:
07587208084
07507772621

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Assange Released from Custody, Manning Buried Alive"-some reflections on the day

17-12-2010 08:07


At about 6pm Thursday December 16th., Julian Assange emerged from Britain's HIgh Court on the Strand, London. He had finally been released on bail after nine days in solitary confinement at Wandsworth Prison. Harsher bail conditions were added by the High Court than were imposed days earlier at the Westminister Magistrates Court.
 http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2010/dec/16/julian-assa...-jail

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Who is in charge: the Foreign office, Defence ministry or the Oxford Union ?

17-12-2010 06:19

At the Dorchester hotel - Fox meets Rajapakse
With a fresh batch of 'secret' Wikileaks on Sri Lanka out yesterday, the 'private' visit of Dr. Liam Fox to Sri Lanka, as arranged for this weekend, is canceled.
Questions have been raised in UK parliament on the content of the 'private' meeting the Defence secretary had with Mahinda Rajapakse in the Oliver Messel Suite of the Dorchester Hotel in London, 1st December 2010.

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NAVA Releases Damning Expose of Amerijet & The Primate Trade

17-12-2010 03:09

As animal rights groups around the world are preparing to decend on the offices of Amerijet International, the National Anti-Vivisection Alliance has released its first damning expose of the company and their transport of primates for vivisection.

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Bristol Anarchist Bookfair 2011

17-12-2010 00:22

all ou ever wanted to know about anarchism is here!
Bristol Anarchist Bookfair – 7 May 2011
At Hamilton House, 80 Stokes Croft, Bristol BS1 3QY
10.30am to 6.30pm

In The Tradition Of May Day...Resistance and Alternatives To Cuts
For full bookfair info see http://www.bristolanarchistbookfair.org
For stall and workshop forms see http://www.bristolanarchistbookfair.org/?page_id=993 - book your stall before 1 February 2011 and pay 2010 prices. Cost goes up after that date, but book early before we fill up.

Here is the first Bookfair Callout - December 2010:

The 2011 Bristol bookfair is coming at you 4 months earlier this year. It will happen at the end of a week that includes an outrageously expensive royal wedding, local elections and a referendum on the latest parliamentary elections voting scam. It will happen shortly after the budget cuts of the national LibDemCon government, and local councils, will be known; whilst the job losses and cuts inherent in the austerity drive to bail out capitalism will be kicking in. The anarchist bookfair will be the perfect antidote to all this misery and displays of wealth inequality.

We keenly anticipate that 1 May 2011 will see large demos across the country, as the resistance kick-started by students and school kids spreads. In the tradition of May Day we intend to provide testimonies of struggles past, alongside discussion and analysis of the theory & practice of the struggles today.

We invite anarchists, radicals, friends and comrades, workers and the unemployed, students and youth, to participate as equals at the bookfair.

We invite groups, networks, campaigns, distros and individuals to apply now for stalls (get the early booking rate!). We also invite you to submit proposals for workshops, ideally themed around the concepts and realities of 'resistance and alternatives to cuts'. For 'resistance' we anticipate theoretical or practical discussions or analysis of current struggles. For 'alternatives' we hope to see economic theories mixed with practical examples in existence now

We shall once again have an Indymedia room (confirmed) showing films, and holding discussions on media related topics and issues. We hope again to host a Radical History Zone (to be confirmed) considering the histories and providing critiques of struggles past. Plus an all day vegan cafe, and kids space, and who knows what else!

Collectively we believe the bookfair will offer opportunites to gain a better understanding of the different strands of anarchism and similar ideas and practices; to act as a venue for developing discussions, ideas and campaigns; and be a launchpad for new initiatives and the strengthening of old and new relationships. Whilst the attacks by the government, corporations, capital, and state agencies intensify, our collective resistance remains fertile, inspiring, and inevitable. The future can be whatever we want it to be.

We return to the same venue as in 2010, but with a different layout that we hope will provide a little more space and easy access, along with a few other minor changes.

Booking forms for stalls and workshop proposals are here http://www.bristolanarchistbookfair.org/?page_id=993. Publicity will follow soon. Get involved. Start spreading the word – Bristol Anarchist Bookfair, 7 May 2011.

solidarity & love
The Bristol anarchist bookfair collective
December 2010

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Audio from Screening "Outside the Law: Stories from Guantánamo"

16-12-2010 21:54

Audio Naff Pic
Screened at the Showroom Cinema on the 15th December.

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UK Uncut: Challenging dominant frames

16-12-2010 21:51

Public service “waste”, public sector cuts and “deficit reduction” are being conflated. In some ways this is testament to the ability of capital to dictate the very terms and frame through which the public at large are encouraged to understand and talk about politics and economics. The neo-liberal ideologues have captured the territory and frames for understanding. How has this happened? And how is this representational ‘trick’ performed?

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Slum N Bass - RiotStep Round 2

16-12-2010 20:24

Audio Slum N Bass
More Free agit-prop-bass for your demo/action/riot soundsystem...

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Edinburgh : A4e invaded on Anti Welfare Cuts Day of Action

16-12-2010 20:22

Supporters of Edinburgh Coalition Against Poverty invaded a4e’s Edinburgh office on 15 November to distribute leaflets urging the unemployed people attending the Flexible New Deal provider to stand up for their rights.  The action - organised as part of the Britain-wide Day of Action against Welfare Cuts – was in resistance to A4e’s refusal to recognise Edinburgh Claimants representatives and to the whole workfare system.  These compulsory work-for-your-benefits schemes are set to be intensified by the ConDem's "Work Programme". 

read more

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How to get even

16-12-2010 20:06

One simple way of getting back at them..

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latest EF! Action Update on the streets

16-12-2010 19:39

The latest EF!AU came out for the Anarchist Bookfair, we've just been a bit slack about getting it out there. Go to the website and subscribe, to ensure you get it in your inbox hot off the press!