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UK Social Struggles Newswire Archive

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Brighton Squatters - Update on a crazy week

03-02-2012 22:44

The PDSA squat, now empty
Seven squatters arrested, at least six evictions, four court hearings, at least three assaults, two charged, one IPO... an update from some Brighton squatters

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New Unionism: a conference on how workers can fight back

03-02-2012 12:15

In the late 1880s, workers (often unskilled or semi-skilled, often migrants and often working in casualised and precarious environments) organised militant industrial unions to fight back against their bosses. Socialist activists like Eleanor Marx, Tom Mann and Will Thorne were crucial to the struggles.

Faced with increasingly similar conditions today, can we build a New Unionism for the 21st century that transforms and revolutionises the modern labour movement? Organised by Workers' Liberty.

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Irish Workplace Occupations Highlight Class Tensions

02-02-2012 23:50

Vita Cortex foam packers are determined to get redundancy pay from Jack Ronan
The Republic of Ireland was one of the original PIGS, or heavily indebted states targeted by bankers after the great crash of 2008. Under the previous Fianna Fáil government, the Irish working class was pummelled with hammer blow after hammer blow, as dictated by the international finance elite, but offered little resistance when compared with their counterparts in Portugal, Greece and Spain. To some extent, this could be attributed to the treacherous machinations of the trade union bureaucracy. But in recent weeks, with the Fine Gael administration of Enda Kelly continuing the onslaught, a small but significant section of workers have taken matters into their own hands, and occupied their workplaces.

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Citizens Advice Bureau in New Funding Cut Difficulties

02-02-2012 16:50

Last year, Birmingham City Council cut its £600,000 funding to Birmingham Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB), which handles around 120,000 enquiries each year on a wide range of issues including employment, debt, benefits and immigration problems.

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Protest Outside Atos in Solidarity with the Nottingham 2

02-02-2012 13:08

Friday 3rd February 1-2pm Triton Square.

Benefit claimants, disabled people and supporters will be gathering outside Atos’ head office in Triton Square this Friday in solidarity with the Nottingham 2 who were charged with ‘aggravated trespass’ at a previous protest in Nottingham.

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Cuts to Bus Services Come to Cambridgeshire Today.

31-01-2012 16:25

Small but very significant...
This morning (Tuesday 31/01/2012) a small demonstration took place outside of Cambridge Shire Hall, but it was about something very big indeed.

In fact, decisions made today in that building will change many peoples' lives forever, as there was a meeting by county councillors to decide which rural bus services are to have their funding cut.

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Catholic Workers Jailed in U.S. as part of the Occupy Movement

31-01-2012 12:04

Des Moines (iOWA/ USA) Catholic Worker founder Frank Cordaro was sentenced to 30 days in Polk County, Iowa early this morning, after he and 10 other members of Occupy Des Moines were arrested for criminal trespass at "People's Park" at the Iowa State Capitol at 11pm last night. Des Moinies Catholic Worker Eddie Bloomer was sentenced to 14 days.

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Dale Farm: Second Eviction Threat

31-01-2012 06:31


Following clearance from their own land
last October, families on the Dale Farm
estate have now been warned they could
face imprisonment for contempt of court
if they continue to live within the eviction
zone.

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Venezuela – El Libertario #65: Opening up free spaces

29-01-2012 19:49

El Libertario #65
The February-March 2012 issue of this voice for anarchist action and thought is out, as always committed to liberty and equality in solidarity since 1995. This issue includes the following:

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Video: Syrian Khamenei supporters attack anti-war Iranians

29-01-2012 14:53

On January 28 around 300 protesters gathered at the American embassy to oppose the increasingly bellicose rhetoric against Iran and Syria. Called by the Stop the War Coalition under the title of ‘Stop the war before it starts: don’t attack Iran/Syria’, the protest was in many respects something that seasoned activists in the anti-war movement would be all too familiar with. Well-meaning, if often slightly tedious and repetitive speeches, a few chants and the promise to build an enormous opposition that could finally scupper the imperialists’ plans once and for all. However, it soon became apparent that this was not going to be simply ‘business as usual’. In a somewhat embarrassing indictment to the approach of ‘as broad as possible’ typified by the coalition, several speakers were booed or chanted down, and fights broke out between protesters. At one point a group of Iranians from the London Green movement lined up against supporters of the Syrian Baathist regime under the sway of Bashar Al-Assad. It was not pretty.

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Cops riot, 300 nicked as Occupy Oakland tries to Occupy Social Centre

29-01-2012 14:17

Oakland Tear Gas-A-Go-Go
Yesterday, Occupy Oakland moved to convert a vacant building into a community center to provide education, medical, and housing services for the 99%. Police responded with tear gas, rubber bullets, beanbag rounds and mass arrests. The state has compounded its policy of callous indifference with a ruthless display of violent repression. The Occupy movement will respond, as we have always responded: with an overwhelming show of collective resistance. Today, we take to the streets. Across the country, we will demonstrate our resolve to overcome repression and continue to build a better world grounded in love and solidarity for one another. All eyes on all Occupies.

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Daisy lane eviction,north wales

28-01-2012 14:39

With evictions up and down the country we can see a clear pattern of ethnic cleansing in action, excluded from society and looked upon as second rate citizens,the caravan act of 1968 to provide camp sites is no longer in force councils do not have to comply, so folk buy there own land ,but planning applications are often refused.

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Eviction at St Paul's delayed while Court of Appeal considers the evidence

28-01-2012 00:49

The Court of Appeal has ruled there can be no eviction at St Paul's protest camp until Tuesday 31 January at the earliest while the judges consider the evidence presented by Occupy London and the eco-warriors.

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Eco-warriors propose turning St Paul's Cathedral into Extinction Eco-Village

27-01-2012 23:35

With eviction at St Paul's protest camp apparently imminent some of the eco-warriors are proposing that the anti-capitalist protesters should take sanctuary inside the cathedral and transform it into the Extinction Eco-village to avoid being violently attacked by the police.

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crackdown on radical left groups in Italy

27-01-2012 21:24

the arrest and trial of some members of CARC, an Italian Maoist party, under renacted fascist mussolini era laws, for 'subversive association for purposes of terrorism'. This law has not only targeted Maoists, but other far left groups, including Anarchists and Autonomous groups that are in some way independent of the 'official left'. Demonstration in London at Italian Embassy on the 8th February.

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Do you want to help stop the world’s most destructive project?

27-01-2012 17:15

UK Tar Sands Network is looking for a volunteer to join our small Oxford-based team. You would help us with a range of activities, including organising protests and campaign events, keeping our website and social media up to date, public education, outreach and network-building, and some day-to-day administrative tasks that help keep the show on the road.

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Eco-warriors are appealing against St Paul's protest camp eviction

27-01-2012 15:35

Occupy London and the eco-warriors are in the Court of Appeal RIGHT NOW applying for a stay of execution on the order to evict St Paul's protest camp and we have until 4pm to get an injunction otherwise the eviction can legally begin almost immediately.

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#15MGlobalStrike – Italian Grassroots syndicalist general strike on 27 January

27-01-2012 02:00

We recognize that the strike on 27 January called by the USB, Unicobas, Orsa, SICobas, Snater and USI unions is an opportunity for this renewal of the ability to mobilize of the workers’ movement in Italy and as anarchist communists, we declare our solidarity with the workers of all kinds and with all those who join the strike and participate in the demonstration in Rome on Friday 27 January.

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Michael Gove Visiting Birmingham Tomorrow (Friday) – Protest 1pm

26-01-2012 23:51

Michael Gove, education secretary, is visiting Ninestiles Academy tomorrow (friday 27th). There will be a protest from 1pm

Ninestiles Academy, Hartfield Crescent, Birmingham, B27 7FQ

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Leeds Antifascist Film Festival Programme

26-01-2012 19:33

Never mind the bollocks, here's the programme