Fighting oppression is at the heart of socialism
The fight against oppression needs to be fully integrated into the fight against capitalism and for socialism.
Racism: old, new and neoliberal
Anindya Bhattacharyya reflects on the changing nature of racism under neoliberal austerity, and its lessons for activists today, UN anti-racism day, 22 March 2014.
The trouble with social reproduction theory
Nancy Lindisfarne and Jonathan Neale look at the shortcomings of Social Reproduction Theory and ask if there is an alternative that doesn’t rely so much on the biological differences between the sexes.
Moscow anti-war march says no to Russian imperialism
We should not forget the ordinary people of Ukraine and Russia who will pay the price for any conflict.
What is social reproduction theory?
In the first of a series of articles looking at and debating social reproduction theory, here we republish Tithi Bhattacharrya’s introductory piece on some of the basics.
Whatever happened to the indignados?
Luke Stobart has written the first column in a three part series tracking the radicalisation that has swept the Spanish state since the 15M protests of 2011.
Tony Benn (1925–2014)
Ian Birchall looks back at the life of a genuine socialist who fought to the end: Tony Benn, who died today.
The year that Goldsmiths’ students supported the miners strike: an activist’s account
On the 30th anniversary of the start of the 1984-85 miners strike, Colin Revolting remembers the support and solidarity he and other students offered towards those on strike.
Interview: “I won’t be blamed anymore”
Sara is an activist in the Egyptian group Operation Anti-Sexual Harassment (OpAntiSH).
The radical roots of International Women’s Day
Though celebration of IWD today is often dominated by governments and NGOs, the day has its origins in revolutionary struggle.
Joel Geier on Zinoviev v Lenin
Joel Geier from Chicago, in a piece originally written for the ISO, argues that the distortions inflicted upon the Bolsheviks by Zinoviev fatally weakened the party prior to Stalin’s coup de grace.
Unite halves affiliation to Labour
The move is a sign of the discontent within the unions caused by Labour’s failure to stand up for workers and a reaction to the attacks on the union links by the Labour leadership.
Atos: We’ve won the battle but not the war
As Atos is forced to rebrand and pull out of Work Capability Assessment, Gill George discusses the misery they have inflicted and argues we need to take on the Tories as well.
Ukraine: “We cannot hand the movement over to the right.”
Ilya Budraitskis, the Moscow-based socialist, was interviewed by marx21.de magazine earlier this month about the protests in Ukraine.
What do we mean by… uneven and combined development?
Neil Davidson continues an rs21 series on the fundamentals of our political tradition by looking at uneven and combined development.
Fracking, corruption and poison
Fracking will poison the water, corruption is behind government support, it won’t bring down gas prices, and it has been banned in much of Europe.
Where next for Ukraine?
As the major news services shut down their live coverage of events in the Ukraine, the battle for the country’s future might be just beginning.
Is Venezuela burning? A letter from Caracas
Caracas is seeing an uprising of the middle classes and the rich. The working class neighbourhoods remain loyal to the government, but also deeply cynical about the extraordinary corruption of the heirs of Chavez.
Blood on the streets in Ukraine
What is happening in Ukraine is clearly more than a simple protest movement. From day one it has had an insurrectionary character.
What might constitute a Marxist philosophical canon?
Selective readings of Marxist theory that favour “guides to action” can lead to a skewed and unhelpful understanding of Marxist ideas
Poland’s Gender Trouble
Dan Swain examines the debate over gender issues that is dominating Polish politics.
Hypocrisy, homophobia and the neoliberal ruling class
As the Sochi Olympics began, many politicians and multinationals have statements supporting LGBT rights and condemning Russia’s homophobic government, but there are doubts about these new friends of equality.
What do we mean by… class?
Terry Wrigley takes a look at the Marxist concept of class, in the first of an rs21 series on the fundamentals of our political tradition.
Condemn reactionary violence in Venezuela
We need to fight against the coup attempts of the extreme right wing, but this should not translate into uncritical support for the existing state.
Scarlett, Soda Stream and shifting sands
The crisis over Soda Stream has been picked up by media across the world, with more people now aware of their illegal activities and about the BDS campaign in general.
Pakistan: Baloch families march as state kills and dumps
(picture via International Voice for Baloch Missing Persons) Yesterday a mass grave was discovered in Balochistan, Pakistan’s largest and poorest province. It is likely that the bodies within belong to “missing persons”, victims of a bloody campaign of repression carried out by Pakistan’s security forces since at least 2005. Now the relatives of the disappeared […]
Rennard and the culture of sexism
Estelle Cooch writes on the Rennard scandal and its lessons The Liberal Democrat party inquiry into allegations of sexual harassment against Lord Christopher Rennard – and how it ended – have been headline news for a week. The inquiry found there was credible evidence of “behaviour which violated the personal space and autonomy of the […]
Institutional racism and unsolved murders
Mitch Mitchell writes on the cases of Stephen Lawrence, the New Cross Gate fire, Kelso Cochrane, Rolan Adams and Ricky Reel.
Trayvon Martin and Mark Duggan
Bill Crane compares the workings of the justice system for Trayvon Martin in the US and Mark Duggan in the UK – and notes the role of “colourblind” ideology to prop up racism in both cases. As an American who moved to Britain four months ago, I saw similarities between the cases of Trayvon Martin […]
Patrice Lumumba’s legacy
Last Friday marked the 53rd anniversary of the assassination of Patrice Lumumba. Miriyam Aouragh looks at his legacy and western complicity in his murder. In Une Saison au Congo (A Season in the Congo) from 1966, Aimé Césaire tells an unapologetic story about brutal colonial exploitation and the subsequent transformation of the Belgian Congo into […]