Sharon: biography of a war criminal
Sai Englert looks back at Ariel Sharon’s bloody legacy and his life of political and military service to the Zionist colonial project: The media’s attempted whitewashing of Sharon’s legacy is not just brushing the history of one man under the carpet; it is an attempt to hide the present reality of Israel as a violent […]
Demo attacks Benefits Street as ‘poverty porn’
(report and picture by Stef) Around 60 people demonstrated outside the office of TV firm Love Productions in central London today to call for an end to biased media portrayal of welfare recipients. Love Productions is responsible for Channel 4’s Benefits Street programme. One protester said: “All they’re showing you is a few snapshots taken […]
“I was unable to eat” : food banks in Tory Britain
From the Kent International Socialists The sight of Tory MPs laughing at stories of hungry families during a debate on the use of food banks in December was another demonstration of how out of touch the “Nasty Party” are with ordinary people. The Daily Mirror reported at the time: “In one of the most shameful […]
London says no to new Spanish abortion law
Around 40 people joined a protest yesterday outside the Spanish embassy in London in solidarity with those in Spain opposing the new anti-abortion law there.
Subdued anger as hundreds gather at Mark Duggan vigil
Around 1,000 gathered today outside Tottenham police station in north London at 2pm for a vigil to remember Mark Duggan, who was shot dead by police on 4 August 2011.
“Mark Duggan was executed. We still believe that.”
A wave of shock and fury swept across the country today as news broke that Mark Duggan’s inquest jury had delivered a verdict of “lawful killing”.
Lawyers walk out in protest at legal aid cuts
Solicitors and barristers withdrew from courts today across Britain in protest against proposed changes to criminal legal aid.
Egyptian socialists sentenced to two years in jail
Two leading activists with the Revolutionary Socialists in Alexandria, Egypt have been sentenced for defying anti-protest laws.
Crisis – which crisis?
Terry Wrigley argues that socialist thinking has become dogmatic and not dialectical on four key issues: precariousness, the trade union bureaucracy, electoral alliances and anti-fascism.
Hero to zero
Jamie W and Sølvi G reflect on how they and others responded to the sudden proliferation of awareness about, and anger towards, zero-hour contracts, seeking to inform the way we operate and organise in the future.
Class, Gender and Neoliberalism
Nancy Lindisfarne and Jonathan Neale present an updated version of their article on Class, Gender and Neoliberalism.
“Our necks have the rope around them but we remain firm”
Mark Bergfeld reports on unofficial strike action hitting healthcare call centres in Portugal.
‘Adapt or Die?!’
Luke Evans continues the debate that began in the International Socialism Journal on sexuality and addresses the notion of ‘primitive communism’.
2013 in YouTube videos
Mark Bergfeld collects videos showing episodes of resistance from across the world in 2013.
Craft, gender and politics
Why would a revolutionary socialist spend time knitting? Amy Gilligan writes on craft for production and pleasure.
Ukip in the Fens
Mitch Mitchell looks at the impact of UKIP where he lives in Cambridgeshire, and how the party combines racist anti-immigrant appeal with a more populist edge.
Open statement: Resignation from the SWP
The signatories to this statement can no longer remain members of the Socialist Workers Party (SWP) following events at its annual conference on 13-15 December 2013.
The revolutionary paper today
A website can work as “the central organ” for the party’s message and regenerating a culture of local leaflet production.
A note on intersex and transgender issues
Colin Wilson provides a 101 on trans and intersex people’s lives and struggles.
Neil Davidson on the crisis in the SWP
Neil Davidson spoke at a meeting in Edinburgh on 3 November 2013, organised by the Rebuilding the Party faction of the Socialist Workers Party.
Jonathan Neale on class struggle and neoliberalism
Neoliberalism has changed us “in ways that make struggle harder, and easier, and different, and more explosive”.
A response to John Molyneux on sexuality
Colin Wilson’s reply to John Molyneux’s views on sexuality and human nature has been published on the ISJ website.
Halloween strike: the mood on the picket lines
Here’s a round-up of mini-reports on today’s higher education strike, taken by comrades on phones and uploaded to social media.
What’s at stake in the Halloween strike
Andy Cunningham works at Manchester Met university. He explains why he’s on strike today – and why higher education workers need to escalate their action.
A letter to Alex Callinicos
In her letter Tithi charges Alex and Charlie with using “blatantly sleight-of-hand arguments” over the date of the first dispute complaint and over the issue of confidentiality.
“The politics of the SWP crisis” – a response
A response to the ISJ article by Charlie Kimber and Alex Callinicos is now up on the journal’s website. It is signed 18 journal board members.
Updates on International Socialism Journal 140
The latest edition of the International Socialism journal has been published and is available online.
Review of Luis Suarez-Villa’s Technocapitalism
Mark Bergfeld examines the arguments put forward by Luis Suarez-Villa’s book Technocapitalism.
To those arrested: my heart
Last Saturday’ anti-EDL demonstration in Tower Hamlets successfully kept the fascists out of the borough – but at a heavy cost. The police used powers under the Public Order Act to mass arrest anti-fascist protesters, journalists and even legal observers.
Pop-ups through history – the NASD
Brian Parkin looks at the history of the dockworkers’ NASD union and its rivalry with the TGWU – and considers the lessons for revolutionaries today.