Report on the regular Thursday picket of Marks and Spencer, Marble Arch, London. Every week the Victory to the Intifada group demonstrates outside this store from 6 to 8pm to highlight M&S’ support for Israel.
The picket of Marks and Spencer, Oxford Street, London went well this week, despite the usual heckling from the Zionist counter-demonstration, organised by Betar, reaching a new level of hysteria and filth.
Although for the past two weeks, the police have chosen to put barriers around the Betar counter-picket, leaving us free to leaflet and discuss with members of the public, this week they were back to corralling us in as well. Apparently this was due to a complaint from River Island, which is next to M&S!?
The regular attenders from the Victory to the Intifada were joined by visitors, including people from Lebanon, Libya, France and Kashmir, some of whom are active in supporting the Palestinian struggle at home and were delighted to see us spreading the message in London. Speeches were made in English, Arabic and French and particularly highlighted the current situation in Zionist prisoners where 3,500 prisoners are on hunger strike in an attempt to obtain basic rights and humane conditions. A comrade from France also spoke about the solidarity work his group is engaged in, and the approaching anniversary of the massacres at Sabra and Shatila.
As well as the London picket, there are also weekly pickets in Manchester and regular demos in other cities, including Glasgow, Leicester, Canterbury and Durham and other parts of London, including Camden, Holloway and Brixton. M&S has just launched a poster campaign with the slogan ‘Your M&S’ – so why not find ‘yours’ and start an action in solidarity with the struggle of the people in Palestine?
Victory to the Intifada!
Although for the past two weeks, the police have chosen to put barriers around the Betar counter-picket, leaving us free to leaflet and discuss with members of the public, this week they were back to corralling us in as well. Apparently this was due to a complaint from River Island, which is next to M&S!?
The regular attenders from the Victory to the Intifada were joined by visitors, including people from Lebanon, Libya, France and Kashmir, some of whom are active in supporting the Palestinian struggle at home and were delighted to see us spreading the message in London. Speeches were made in English, Arabic and French and particularly highlighted the current situation in Zionist prisoners where 3,500 prisoners are on hunger strike in an attempt to obtain basic rights and humane conditions. A comrade from France also spoke about the solidarity work his group is engaged in, and the approaching anniversary of the massacres at Sabra and Shatila.
As well as the London picket, there are also weekly pickets in Manchester and regular demos in other cities, including Glasgow, Leicester, Canterbury and Durham and other parts of London, including Camden, Holloway and Brixton. M&S has just launched a poster campaign with the slogan ‘Your M&S’ – so why not find ‘yours’ and start an action in solidarity with the struggle of the people in Palestine?
Victory to the Intifada!
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Hide the following 6 comments
Why boycott M&S?
04.09.2004 13:04
H. Ignoramous
Some background on M&S
04.09.2004 22:55
And just in case you don’t care about people but are moved by the plight of ducks:
Leila K
Moved by ..
05.09.2004 15:02
BOC Gasses supply the deadly poison gas to HLS to end the lives of 2,500 animals per week at the Huntingdon animal experimentation hell hole HLS.
BOC’s Logistics’ arm is called GIST. They do all the freight deliveries for every single Marks and Spencers in the country. Please help spread the word nationwide that BOC and GIST are in it up to their necks with the animal killers at HLS.
We are asking M & S to review their involvement with BOC in light of their involvement with HLS. M & S have a strong ethical policy and any connections to companies involved in killing animals are certainly not ethical.
Stop Huntingdon Animal Cruelty Website: www.shac.net
Stop Huntingdon Animal Cruelty Email:
People Against Cruelty to Animals - West Midlands Website:
People Against Cruelty to Animals - West Midlands
serious question
05.09.2004 16:34
Red
vegetarianism...
05.09.2004 20:38
i would have thought that the reason you would be against vivisection would be something like this:
a) vivisection causes immense pain and suffering to animals
b) pain and suffering is bad
c) i) vivisection does not bring significant good welfare benefits AND/OR ii) if it does bring welfare benefits (to people) they are not justified by the amount of pain required to generate them
THEREFORE: d) vivisection is bad
but you can replace 'vivisection' with 'the meat/animal products industry' and get an equally true argument, right? i.e. meat is unnecessary to you, biologically, and causes immense pain to sentient creatures. so why not give it up? it's not like it's difficult...
btw. M&S is also definitely worth boycotting/stealing from on the basis of the whole occupied palestine thing. for a cool perspective on the links between social struggles, such as the occupation, and animal liberation check out Israeli Vegan Anarchist group One Struggle...
Veg
Another Reason to Avoid M&S
06.09.2004 05:55
Thank you
Caz
Independent Left