Gatecrash Labour's Party meeting!
Anarchist | 31.08.2001 16:39
A few weeks ago a group of anarchists decided attend what
was laughably called an 'organising meeting' for people
to 'demonstrate' in Brighton against 'new' Labour's conference. It turned out to be a rally with speakers from
Green Party (pro-capitalists), Socialist alliance (pro-capitalists) and Globalise resistance(SWP-front). After an
hour of boring people senseless and recylcing cliches the
'organising meeting' was 'opened' to the floor. Initially
ignoring one of the anarchists (with a Class war T-shirt),
he was allowed to speak after being the first person with
his hand up at the end of the meeting. During that meeting no one actually said what they will do, is GR, Socialist
alliance or Green Party calling for a blocade? Something most anarchists and people pissed of the government would want.Actually it wasn't until this guy with the class war t-shirt asked that the audience responded with a 'NO'. At this point the group of anarchists left not surprised at the outcome but pissed of with how the meeting was publicised and thatGR/SWP and all other reformists were using the anti-capitalist movement to win over a few Labour MP's and union parasites into the Socialist alliance. So instead of reacting like anarchists and autonomists have often reacted to trot-called demos (i.e. by ignoring them completely) we, a collective of anarchists have organised
a meeting at the following venue and date for people who want to be part of a more radical block in brighton which will join in with anarchists/autonomists and people wanting to shut down the labour party conference. Here goes:-
Gatecrash Labour's Party REAL organising meeting
2.00pm September 15th, 2001
Club room
Conway Hall
RedLion Square
London W1
(nearest tube HOLBORN)
All welcomed*
*this is a non-party political event and is for
anyone who wants to be part of a radical bloc on
the day.
Watch out for the leaflet at the arms fair action Sept. 11th
p.s GLOBALISE RESISTANCE IS NOT GOING DOWN TO BRIGHTON TO
SHUT DOWN THE LABOUR PARTY. THEY ARE NOT PART OF THE
ANTI-CAPITALIST MOVEMENT. THERE GROUP IS JUST A VEIL FOR THE SWP.
Comments
Hide the following 4 comments
Not just capitalist
31.08.2001 18:53
I have often wondered what makes these middle class types so mercenary. Once they lose their regional accents they seem to lose any trace of scruples /social concience ect.
you can see what Pol Pot was getting at..
LB
Luther Blissett
SWP/GR ;reformist laborites
01.09.2001 16:08
To further this aim of radicalising the Trotskyists
(i.e.,those that are genuine revolutionaries) we should, as the above article suggests, seek to blockade the Labour party conference to clearly show to people that we are not seeking the reform of capitalism but its abolition!
name
SWP/GR ;reformist laborites
01.09.2001 16:10
To further this aim of radicalising the Trotskyists
(i.e.,those that are genuine revolutionaries) we should, as the above article suggests, seek to blockade the Labour party conference to clearly show to people that we are not seeking the reform of capitalism but its abolition!
myself
Hows and whys of blockades
01.09.2001 18:20
The SWP organises a lobby of the Labour Party conference every year. These started by being organised by 'Trade union Fightback' or something similar (SWP trade union members), then the SWP tried an 'Action programme' (written by SWP) and this was the banner, now its the Socialist Alliance and Globalise Resistance's turn (both controlled by the SWP). The slant changes but the purpose is the same: to recruit people to the SWP.
I do not find this as objectionable as some people clearly do. The SWP's basic political position is they essentially know the truth about the way the world is and what needs to be done to change it, so the quicker the rest of use hurry up and put ourselves under the direction of their central committee the better. If they are honest about that I don't have too much of a problem. At least then we can start a discussion about how they don't understand the way the world is and they don't really know what needs to be done to change it. One small piece of evidence for this is the way that the vanguard advanced leadership of the working class managed to miss the development of, and were not involved in, the anti-capitalist movement until May 2000, AFTER SEATTLE. This is not to say that if you weren’t in at the start you can’t join in, it’s just that the SWP prides itself on how its clever Marxist theoreticians know what is happening in the world. Maybe they missed out because the anti-globalisation movement started amongst in the poor countries not the rich.
Globalise resistance by the way is a really insulting name. Our resistance has been as global as capitalism for a long time. If anything we, in the rich north, need to localise resistance if anything, its time the chickens came home to roost.
(Don't believe anarchists have the answers either and some of them can be as arrogant, dogmatic and even as authoritarian as the SWP)
So the SWP September 30 march will be organised in such a way to recruit maximum numbers to the SWP so doing something else is a good idea
BUT
Is the focus of this radical bloc going to be GR/SWP or the labour party
Lots of people will come with the SWP or GR who are angry about what New Labour is doing. Not every young person carrying a GR placard is a hardened Leninist.
A blockade may work if leaflets advertising it are directed at Labour and not rants attacking the SWP. If anyone wants to hand something like that out on the day....
Anyway here are the reasons I would want to blockade New Labour:
During the conference they will be carving up the rest of the public sector for PFI with their big business mates and plotting the success of tube privatisation
During the conference they will not be talking about how to achieve the 90%cuts in CO2 we need urgently to stop climate chaos
During the conference they will be congratulating themselves on the way they have managed to take away even more of our liberties over the last year and how they can stop us from travelling to protests in the future.
During the conference they will be meeting with their friends in the arms trade who are making a killing from people being killed
During the conference the trade union leaders will be swapping tactics on how to stop their members taking action to fight for decent wages or against job losses
Add your own
So lets have a blockade that focuses on New Labour's pro-capitalist policies. That is the way to show people attracted to GR that the SWP pay lip service to anti-capitalism in order to try to make friend with the trade union officials
Blair is not going to take any notice of the SWP marching in the back streets. He isn't gonna take much notice of a blockade either but at least it will get the message out that we aren't going to take their shit and just shout about it any longer. If new labour are going to act like the IMF/WB and rich capitalists then they are going to be treated like it.
Grim and Blair it