2014
19 December 2014 · 1 comment
Greek socialist organisations merge
Socialist Resistance has sent greetings to two Greek socialist organisations which are merging at their conference this weekend and we will be publishing a report in the near future. Sociali…
18 December 2014 · · 12 comments
Banning the SWP isn't an answer
The SWP leadership's handling of the rape allegations against a former prominent full-time staff member identified as "Delta" has left the organisation more isolated and numerically as well …
16 December 2014
Greece - Prospect of Syriza government
Prime Minister Samaras has called for a presidential vote to be held over three rounds in Parliament starting Wednesday 17 December and ending on 29 December. A snap election will be called …
12 December 2014
Vigil for Syria's Forgotten Cities
SATURDAY 20 DECEMBER, 6pm -8pm Trafalgar Square, London Vigil organised by Syria Solidarity Movement This Christmas Syria's people need your support and solidarity. This will be the fourth C…
4 December 2014
Autumn statement: Osborne slashes public services
Professor Özlem Onaran (Economist at the University of Greenwich), in a comment to the Centre for Labour Social Studies, writes: The Autumn Statement paints a rosy picture of Britain as the …
3 December 2014 · · 1 comment
Protesting 21 years of immigration detention at Campsfield
November 29 marked the 21st anniversary of the opening of Campsfield House - one of the first centres in Britain where migrants are imprisoned indefinitely without any criminal conviction or…
30 November 2014 ·
Left Unity opposes NHS privatisation
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Nyht8oNBM0 We held a successful meeting of Southwark Left Unity on 26 November dealing with the rapid privatisation of the NHS writes Jane Kelly . We showed …
27 November 2014
Videos - Iraq, Syria & Kurdistan between reaction and revolution
Socialist Resistance hosted a public meeting in London on November 25th with Gilbert Achcar a Lebanese academic, writer, socialist and anti-war activist, Sarah Parker who has been very activ…
26 November 2014
Climate caravan completes its journey through India and Nepal
On the morning of 16 November 2014, the South Asia Climate Justice, Gender and Food Sovereignty Caravan attended byparticipants from India, Indonesia, Nepal, Philippinea, Sri Lanka, Sweden, …
26 November 2014 · 1 comment
Climate justice built from the grass roots
Badrul Alam, central organiser of the climate caravan from Bangladesh, through India and Nepal, summed up the objectives and achievements of the caravan in a speech to the People's South Asi…
24 November 2014 · · 2 comments
Ofsted, Tower Hamlets and parental choice
Ofsted, the organisation responsible for inspecting schools in England, released seven reports on the same day which offered extremely damning verdicts on some education provision in the eas…
24 November 2014 ·
TTIP:regulations and investment protection, growth, jobs and wages.
'I hear claims that the Commission is negotiating lower safety standards for food, restricting Europe's ability to regulate on health and the environment, and that we are doing this through …
22 November 2014
Scotland's Radical Independence Campaign
Alister Black, a member of the Scottish Socialist Party and editor of Frontline thinks Scottish politics are getting very interesting. Over the past few decades we have been told that politi…
21 November 2014 · 2 comments
Bangladesh: Caravan for Food Sovereignty Climate and Gender Justice hits the road
Setting the Stage The inaugural function of the Bangladesh-India-Nepal caravan on Climate Justice, Gender and Food Sovereignty took place on 10 November 2014 at 11am at Shahid Reshel Manch i…
20 November 2014 ·
How the SNP benefitted from the referendum
The campaign around the referendum in Scotland was a remarkable and unique example of political engagement writes Terry Conway . The success was partly summed up by the numbers – a 97% regis…
19 November 2014 · · 11 comments
Left Unity conference – some important steps forward and challenges still ahead
Four hundred members attended Left Unity’s Conference in London over the weekend of 15 -16 November 2014, marking a further positive stage in the evolution of the party into a serious challe…
13 November 2014 ·
Lutfur Rahman rallies support against Tory Islamophobes
Upwards of a thousand Tower Hamlets residents packed into a meeting to defend the east London borough’s directly elected mayor, Lutfur Rahman writes Andy Stowe . Rahman, who describes himsel…
5 November 2014 ·
The IPCC sounds the alarm
Daniel Tanuro The International Panel on Climate Change has now published the synthesis of its fifth evaluation report and also a summary for policy makers. The diagnosis is not a surprise: …
3 November 2014 · · 2 comments
We need to democratise local government
The Scottish vote for independence demonstrated mass popular alienation from the mainstream political parties writes Richard Hatcher . A burning grievance that people are voiceless and power…
2 November 2014 · · 1 comment
Why is the British state so undemocratic?
The massive surge in support for Scottish independence in the recent referendum was motivated more by democratic than nationalist sentiment writes Piers Mostyn . It was an expression of long…
31 October 2014 ·
Israeli State: Pariah State
Once again, a brutal Israeli attack on Gaza has caused massive destruction and loss of life writes Roland Rance . Although the Gaza Strip is smaller than the Isle of Wight, during the course…
24 October 2014 · 1 comment
Bangladesh climate caravan appeal
Climate Justice, Gender and Food Sovereignty Caravan 2014. The 4th Bangladesh caravan on climate change, gender and food sovereignty will be leaving Dhaka on the 10th of November and travel …
21 October 2014 · 8 comments
Scotland's Yes campaign shows how Farage can be beaten
The new issue of Socialist Resistance is out next week and this is the editorial. For a moment it looked like there was a real possibility that a radical, mass campaign would cause the break…
17 October 2014 · · 6 comments
SWP unity appeal leaves the big questions unanswered
The current edition of Socialist Worker carries an appeal for the left to start working together writes Liam Mac Uaid . As active supporters of Left Unity, this is an aim that Socialist Resi…
15 October 2014 · · 1 comment
UKIP’s ‘Tanks on the Lawn’ have Labour in their sights
What would Freud say? There were two shocks in the result of the recent parliamentary by-elections in Clacton in Essex and Heywood and Middleton in Greater Manchester writes Michael Pickens …
14 October 2014 · · 5 comments
Kobani - what can we do to help?
The fate of the town of Kobani, under intense siege for several weeks, is in the balance. Sarah Parker explains the background. The representatives of the people of Kobani have been demandin…
13 October 2014 · 1 comment
Another Wales is possible
Socialist Resistance interviewed Leanne Wood (pictured), leader of Plaid Cymru, on what she thinks are the implications of the Scottish independence referendum. SR: You were a very high prof…
13 October 2014 · 1 comment
The age of extinction
The Living Planet Report 2014 published by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF). Reviewed by Alan Thornett This impressive report from the WWF is yet another wake-up-call regarding the catastrophic…
12 October 2014 · 3 comments
UKIP surge changing face of politics in the UK
It is now universally predicted that the next parliament will have between 30 and 100 UKIP MPs. This is widely expected to cause a split in the Tory party. Some pundits are predicting a coll…
11 October 2014 · · 1 comment
What fresh hell is this? Oh, Belfast
Liam Mac Uaid reviews ‘71, a gripping anti-war thriller https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kIYDNyEkJP4#action=share It’s always the way. When a soldier in an occupying army gets separated from …
8 October 2014 · 2 comments
Left-Wing Danish Party Backs Syrian Kurdish Rebels
COPENHAGEN, Denmark—Kurdish organizations and a leftist party in Denmark have donated funds to support Kurdish rebels engaged in fierce battles with Islamic State militants in Syria. Salih M…
7 October 2014 · · 1 comment
Kobane solidarity update
Sarah Parker The situation in Kobane is getting tougher by the hour – fierce fighting around the outside and in the outskirts between the defenders of the Kurdish town and ISIS forces. Prote…
2 October 2014 · · 2 comments
Why and how we should oppose ISIS
Sarah Parker looks at how and why we should oppose ISIS. Sarah argues that we should also oppose US and British airstrikes because they are intended to increase imperialist control over the …
1 October 2014 · 2 comments
Solidarity with Kobanê - an urgent task
Sarah Parker writes about the siege by ISIS of Kobanê, and the need for urgent solidarity. The city of Kobanê in Aleppo province, northern Syria, is being heroically defended against ISIS by…
30 September 2014 ·
Hong Kong ‘Let the era of civil disobedience commence!’
Or why Hong Kong’s Occupy Central Movement has Beijing very, very scared The mass demonstrations of Occupy Central, striking students and workers challenging the Chinese Government’s decisio…
26 September 2014
Acting now to defend the climate - demonstrations on 21 September
The World Leaders' Climate Summit in New York in September is a key moment in the fight against climate change. It certainly saw the most extraordinary movement of global resistance with ove…
21 September 2014 · · 11 comments
Scottish Independence Referendum: How the vote was lost & the way forward
The Scottish independence referendum last Thursday was lost by a significant but not overwhelmingly majority with just fewer than 45% voting for independence and just over 55% voting against…
19 September 2014 · · 9 comments
Scottish independence denied by "Project Fear"
The proposal for an independent Scotland has been defeated in the referendum and the ruling elites have expressed a huge collective sigh of relief. It was a defeat based on fear and intimida…
19 September 2014 · 2 comments
Stop the brutal attacks by ISIS in Kobane
P rotest Friday 19 September 2014, 12-3pm at the Turkish Embassy 43 Belgrave Square, SW1X 8PA Since 15 September the Islamic State has been carrying out the heaviest attacks yet on the Kurdi…
13 September 2014 · · 4 comments
Something to be proud of
Liam Mac Uaid reviews Pride. Potential recruits who visit MI5’s website are reassured “We work with Stonewall and have an active Lesbian Gay Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) staff network, wh…
12 September 2014 · · 2 comments
Shock and Awe against a yes vote in Scotland
Alan Thornett It was as if an earthquake had hit the debate on Scotland. Shock polling last weekend put the yes campaign in front while others indicated that the two campaigns were neck and …
10 September 2014 · 3 comments
Why the left should support a yes vote for Scottish independence
On 18 September 2014 one of the most important votes in the history of the British state will take place when people living in Scotland have the opportunity to vote on whether the country sh…
6 September 2014
We need an independent Scotland - Bernadette McAliskey
The independence referendum has galvanised the Scottish left and has created a debate which is drawing millions of people into politics. We present two videos from " Scottish Independence - …
3 September 2014 · · 2 comments
The truth about UKIP and the Tory right
Phil Hearse examines what’s behind the continuing rise of UKIP The defection of Clacton MP Douglas Carswell from the Tories gives the UK Independence Party (UKIP) the near certainty of getti…
1 September 2014 · · 1 comment
Land and Labour: Marxism ecology and human history
A useful but controversial book Alan Thornett reviews Martin Empson's book, published in 2014 by Bookmarks at £13.99. Martin Empson is a prominent activist in the Campaign Against Climate Ch…
29 August 2014 · · 1 comment
Two days of quiet desperation
Liam Mac Uaid reviews "Two Days, One Night" "They think that they have purchased half of us and intimidated the other half." In late 1960 and early 1961 the Belgian working class took to the…
28 August 2014
Women Cleaners become the soul of resistance to austerity policies of Greek government and Troika
After 11 months of bitter struggle, 595 public sector cleaners, all women, have become the embodiment and the soul of the most ferocious resistance against the politics of austerity in Greec…
27 August 2014 · · 6 comments
Carney says privately what currency union really means for Scotland
In the run up to the referendum, we republish Ralph Blake's article from February on currency union Mark Carney private words to the Scottish Financial Enterprise (SFE) members on his visit …
24 August 2014 · 1 comment
Stop the Russo-Ukraine War
Statement by the Ukraine Solidarity Campaign Pro-Russian para-militaries are surrounded in the cities of Luhansk and Donetsk but peace in Ukraine is far from certain, the remaining inhabitan…
22 August 2014 · · 6 comments
Kurds resist Islamic State butchers
Kurdish fighters If we are looking for any signs of hope in the long-running tragedy of the people of Iraq, suffering from the rapaciousness of outside powers and the tyranny of sectarian pa…
19 August 2014 · 2 comments
A book to stimulate discussion
Green Capitalism: why it can’t work by Daniel Tanuro; first published in French in December 2009 as L’impossible Capitalisme Vert by Editions La Decouverte in Paris, then translated and publ…
8 August 2014 · · 10 comments
The imperialist carve-up of Ukraine: where does the left and anti-war movement stand?
The imperialist carve-up of Ukraine is leading to a stand-off between Russia and Western imperialism on a scale not seen since the Cold War writes Fred Leplat . But it has also exposed the d…
5 August 2014
Fight Job Cuts! Defend George Thompson!
PCS, the Civil Service Union is at the forefront of the fight against job cuts in the public sector (it has been estimated that the Tories plan to axe 1 million public sector jobs by 2019). …
5 August 2014
The case for boycott, divestment and sanctions against Israel
The BDS movement’s success so far demonstrates that the tactic works August 4, 2014 by Rafeef Ziadah @RafeefZiadah The massacre that is taking place right now in Gaza must be stopped. But wh…
4 August 2014 ·
One-fourth of Gaza’s population displaced by Israel’s violence
by Rami Almeghari The sounds of Israeli airstrikes, tank shells and drones are the only ones one can hear in Gaza. The noise is overwhelming. On Sunday, 55 Palestinians were killed in multip…
31 July 2014
Effective BDS actions more important than ever to support Palestinians in Gaza and hold Israel to account
Occupied Palestine, 10 July In light of the on-going brutal military assault on Palestinians in Gaza and elsewhere, the Palestinian Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions National Committee (BNC)…
23 July 2014 · · 1 comment
The downing of MH17 Boeing 777: Between “Yes” and “No” – Can Putin back down?
by Ilya Budraitskis We can say with confidence that the tragedy of Boeing 777, which took the lives of 298 people, has brought the conflict in Eastern Ukraine to a principally new level. Now…
23 July 2014 ·
The worlds of ‘Tarka the Otter’ and Henry Williamson, its author
by Dave Bangs I have just finished reading Henry Williamson’s book ‘Salar the Salmon’ (1935), soon after re-reading his more famous ‘Tarka the Otter’i (1927). Though I had enjoyed ‘Tarka’ on…
22 July 2014
Legitimate support of the Palestinians has no common ground with anti-Semitism
This statement is a translation of the Nouveau Parti anticapitaliste's (NPA) response to scandalous claims by the French political establishment. François Hollande et his prime minister, Man…
19 July 2014 ·
“We are all Palestinians”
Tens of thousands of people marched from Downing Street, home of the British prime minister to the Israeli state’s London embassy on Saturday July 19th writes Liam Mac Uaid . It was a nice w…
13 July 2014 · · 1 comment
Workers rebel against pay cuts
The British labour movement's response to austerity has been among the most passive in Europe writes Liam Mac Uaid . The announcement that the Tories intend to keep on imposing real terms wa…
13 July 2014 · · 1 comment
Defend Kobanê against ISIS!
The Kurds of Kobanê are fighting for their lives against Islamic State of Iraq and Syria ( ISIS) writes Sarah Parker. A ssaults on the area began two years ago but have increased in intensit…
13 July 2014 · 51 comments
Ukraine campaign overcomes nationalist disruptions
The Ukraine Socialist Solidarity Campaign has already started winning. RMT-sponsored MP John McDonnell chaired the meeting, which aimed to give Russian and Ukrainian socialists the chance to…
7 July 2014 · 1 comment
UKRAINE - Popular movements and imperialisms
This is an edited version of the resolution adopted at the meeting of the Fourth International Bureau on 7 June 2014. The original can be viewed at http://internationalviewpoint.npa2009.org/…
2 July 2014 ·
A call to arms for the NHS
Norman Traub reports from the annual general (AGM) meeting of Keep Our NHS Public (KONP) on Saturday 28th June 2014 at Unite HQ, London I attended the AGM as a delegate of Southend KONP. The…
1 July 2014 · 1 comment
Iraq: the continuous suffering
The events of recent weeks in Iraq that led to the capture of Mosul (the second largest city in the country), causing 500,000 people to flee, as well as the fall of other cities, by a coalit…
1 July 2014
Ukrainian miners struggle shows solidarity wins
John McDonnell giving letter to EVRAZ Chris Ford of Ukrainian Socialist Solidarity reports on the victory of miners of Kryvyi Rih owned by EVRAZ. The top share-holder of the company is Roman…
23 June 2014 · 8 comments
The 'Trojan Horse' in Birmingham: the community fights back
From ‘Trojan Horse’ to ‘Putting Birmingham School Kids First’: the community fights back Rick Hatcher is the author of this comprehensive analysis of the ‘Trojan Horse’ in Birmingham. It has…
23 June 2014
21 June - a brilliant day
After the demonstration on Saturday 21 June, Fred Leplat, a member of Socialist Resistance and a signatory of the People's Assembly, offers his assessment of the day and for the prospects fo…
16 June 2014 · 4 comments
The Indian Ideology by Perry Anderson - a review
Perry Anderson, The Indian Ideology , London/New York: Verso, 2013, pp. 191. ISBN 13:978-1-78168-259-3. The sweeping electoral victory of the Hindu nationalistBJP under the leadership of Nar…
16 June 2014 · 1 comment
Ukraine Between a Rock and a Hard Place - Is There a Way Out?
Ukraine Between a Rock and a Hard Place - Is There a Way Out? by Joanne Landy - May 20, 2014 The governments of the United States and Russia are attempting to shape events in Ukraine in thei…
11 June 2014 · 2 comments
What is ecosocialism?
Alan Thornett’s speech at the Ecosocialism conference on June 7 : I will also try to make an optimistic contribution like Natalie Bennett (who had just spoken) but that is not easy on this s…
10 June 2014 ·
Three steps to cutting CO2 emissions by 90%
Jonathan Neale We know what has to be done to stop climate change. We also know why the ruling class refuses to take decisive action. To do so means a total break from thirty years of neo-li…
8 June 2014 ·
What can we do about fuel poverty?
Clare Welton It's estimated that about 10 000 people died in Britain last year because they could not afford to stay warn. Hundreds of thousands more are forced by benefit cuts to choose bet…
8 June 2014 · · 2 comments
Ideas for an ecosocialist world
Natalie Bennett Natalie Bennett, leader of the Green Party said that sewer cleaners should be paid more than bankers because their job is more useful. Speaking at the Ecosocialism - Fracking…
6 June 2014 · 6 comments
Support Ukrainian miners
JUSTICE FOR UKRAINIAN MINERS Picket outside AGM of EVRAZ Corp THURSDAY 12 JUNE, 10:30am Chelsea Football FC, Stamford Bridge, Fulham Road, SW6 1HS Protest called by Ukrainian Socialist Solid…
4 June 2014 · 3 comments
No socialism without ecology - new Socialist Resistance now available
image no longer in the archive No socialism without ecology To coincide with this weekend's conference "Ecosocialism – Fracking, Climate and Revolution" hosted by Socialist Resistance and Re…
3 June 2014 ·
Jimmy's Hall and the Irish Counter Revolution
A visual representation of counter-revolution triumphant Liam Mac Uaid reviews Ken Loach's new film. The two states in Ireland were the product of a revolution that acknowledged defeat in 19…
31 May 2014
Recovery based on debt accumulation instead of pay increases: What is the problem?
The Great Recession in Britain is not over for the majority of the working people writes Özlem Onaran . Real Wages and salaries have increased much less than the rise in prices (measured by …
30 May 2014
Would you let Peter Robinson go to the shops for you?
And can you get me a pint of milk? Liam Mac Uaid draws some conclusions from the DUP leader's off the cuff Islamophobia. Most members of the Democratic Unionist Party would resent being desc…
26 May 2014 ·
EU elections: Farage shakes it all about
Dave Kellaway examines the results of the European Union elections and the impact of the far right UKIP on the traditional pro-austerity parties. Despite a strong support for the far right, …
24 May 2014 · · 10 comments
UKIP leads race to the gutter
image no longer in the archive The best place for it From the coverage of the English local election results and the relentless Farage mania you would think that the United Kingdom Independe…
24 May 2014 · · 1 comment
Demonstrate against austerity on June 21st
image no longer in the archive The battle against austerity continues after the elections of the 22 May writes Fred Leplat . The People’s Assembly is organising a demonstration on Saturday 2…
16 May 2014 ·
Greece 18-25 May: Our patience is over
By Giorgos Baskozos (member of SYRIZA) The most critical electoral battle in modern Greece will is taking place this month. May 18 is the first round of the local elections. May 25 is the se…
16 May 2014
“Conversations with my gardener” A film by Jean Becker
This film is about an artist and a gardener and is set in the Provencal countryside. It is completely engaging, slow, but full of talking, gentle, sure-footed, and beautifully observed. The …
14 May 2014
Turkey - Erdogan under pressure
image no longer in the archive Not even Thatcher was that barbaric Ecehan Balta [1] reports from Turkey. “These accidents are things which are always happening. Please, we should not interpr…
10 May 2014 · 2 comments
Left Unity on the right course
Dave Kellaway is enthusiastic about Left Unity. Several hundred members joining in a week after a Ken Loach Guardian article and a Salman Shaheen appearance on the Daily Politics show… new b…
8 May 2014
£3000 development fund - urgent appeal
Socialist Resistance has been extremely busy over the last year. All this costs money and prices are going up. Rail Fares, printing, fuel and phone bills – most of our basic costs have incre…
8 May 2014 · 2 comments
Climate change and socialists
Fleeing New Orleans Jonathan Neale asks why does the environment matter to socialists? This is a frequent question on the left, but it's the wrong question, about the wrong thing. Talking ab…
7 May 2014
Demand safe free unrestricted access to abortion - public meeting called by Left Unity Women’s Caucus
Pass the baton of freedom – Demand safe free unrestricted access to abortion. This is Susan Pashkoff's contribution to the meeting on behalf of the Left Unity women's caucus Back in January,…
7 May 2014 ·
What will a Labour government do about local school systems?
image no longer in the archive The typical picture now is of local fragmentation, spreading academies and chains, pseudo-autonomy of schools under Gove’s dictatorial control, and local autho…
6 May 2014 · 1 comment
Capital by Thomas Piketty, a review by Eric Toussaint
Flying off the shelves What can we do with what Thomas Piketty teaches us about capital in the twenty-first century? Eric Toussaint believes that the recently published Capital in the Twenty…
6 May 2014 ·
James Hansen’s ‘exit strategy’ from global warming
James Hansen on the campaign trail Alan Thornett examines James Hansen’s ‘exit strategy’ from global warming. James Hansen has long been recognised as the world’s foremost climate scientist.…
5 May 2014 · · 2 comments
Scotland: Vote yes and campaign for a constituent assembly
image no longer in the archive People in Scotland should vote yes in the forthcoming independence referendum because it is the option for progressive change writes Ralph Blake . A Yes vote w…
2 May 2014 · · 1 comment
Adams arrest - Sinn Fein responds to British attack by calls to the dark side.
John McAnulty reports from Belfast. When Sinn Fein claim that the arrest of Gerry Adams is a political act they are clearly correct. The arrests of former IRA leader Ivor Bell and Adams on t…
1 May 2014 · 2 comments
An important contribution towards far-left unity
All aboard! In our view a very good balance sheet can be drawn of the (regroupment) conference organised last Saturday (April 26th) between the International Socialist Network, the Anti-Capi…
25 April 2014
Exploring revolutionary unity - documents
Socialist Resistance has contributed to a series of documents which are part of a process of exploring possible convergences on the far left. The International Socialist Network, the Anticap…
21 April 2014 · 18 comments
Revolt and repression in Ukraine and Russia - London meeting
image no longer in the archive Meeting hosted by RS21 and Socialist Resistance Tuesday 29 APRIL, 7:30pm Community Centre, 62 Marchmont Street, WC1N 1AB (Kings Cross and Russell Square tube) …
19 April 2014 · · 2 comments
An imitation of Christ
image no longer in the archive May this cup be taken from me. Liam Mac Uaid reviews Calvary. In his book Reason, Faith, and Revolution: Reflections on the God Debate Terry Eagleton took up t…
12 April 2014 · 1 comment
Nigel Farage's nightmare
Vikings: life and legend, British Museum, to 22nd June Britain: one million years of the human story, Natural History Museum, to 28th September Piers Mostyn A referendum on Scottish independ…
6 April 2014 ·
Why are the Tories, the BBC and Labour out for Luftur Rahman?
Andy Stowe looks at what's behind the co-ordinated attacks by Labour, the Tories and the BBC on Tower Hamlets mayor Luftur Rahman Peter Davies was best man at the wedding of Chancellor of th…
26 March 2014 · 7 comments
The next mass extinction
The Sixth Extinction - an Unnatural History by Elizabeth Kolbert published in 2014 by Bloomsbury at £17.99. Reviewed by Alan Thornett Elizabeth Kolbert is an American journalist and author, …
24 March 2014 · · 52 comments
Ukraine - the Russians are the aggressors
Putin! Hands off Ukraine - at Moscow anti-war protest (pic Ben Neal via RS21) The Russian seizure of Crimea has sharply divided opinion on the British left writes Liam Mac Uaid . On one side…
21 March 2014 · · 1 comment
Fourth International debates key issues
Alan Thornett reports from the annual meeting of the International Committee of the Fourth International (FI), which took place in Amsterdam from February 22-26, attended by around 80 delega…
17 March 2014 ·
Peoples Assembly delegate conference – a step forward in the anti-austerity struggle
Bob Crow’s family sent a message of solidarity to the People’s Assembly conference on March 15th writes Dave Kellaway . They recognised that he was fully supportive of this movement. A truly…
17 March 2014
British Capitalism, Russia and Ukraine
Andrew Hutchins looks at the relationship between Britain, Russia and Ukraine British capitalism and the British state are deeply involved in the crisis that is evolving in Russia and Ukrain…
15 March 2014 · · 4 comments
Tony Benn: a vision to inspire and mobilise
It is a bitter irony that Tony Benn has died in the very same week as Bob Crow, two giants of the labour movement who will be cruelly missed writes Phil Hearse . Numerous instant obituaries …
15 March 2014
Tony Benn - he encouraged us
“The Labour Party used to be there to change society but now it seems to organise working people to adapt to society” Tony Benn in recent Radio 4 interview. Dave Kellaway reflects on his imp…
14 March 2014 · 2 comments
The significance of Syriza
This paper was submitted by Alan Thornett, for the discussion on Greece, at the International Committee of the Fourth International in Feb 2014. image no longer in the archive Athens, May 27…
14 March 2014
Tony Benn
Socialist Resistance offers condolences to the many people who are like us mourning the death of Tony Benn today. image no longer in the archive Tony Benn at Tolpuddle in 2011 Benn was a pas…
13 March 2014
Fourth International resolution on Syria
This resolution on support for and solidarity with the Syrian people's uprising was adopted by an overwhelming majority at the International Committee meeting of the Fourth International on …
12 March 2014 · 3 comments
Truth - a casualty in the ideological war
There was nothing glorious about it The new issue of Socialist Resistance is out next week. This is the editorial. Imperialist militarism is as much a part of the ideology of the British sta…
11 March 2014 · · 2 comments
Bob Crow - an appreciation
The conclusion that most union leaders in Britain drew after the defeat of the miners’ strike was that militancy, strike action and class struggle didn’t work writes Liam Mac Uaid . A genera…
11 March 2014
A tribute to Bob Crow
image no longer in the archive © skuds: http://bit.ly/ccsa20 We are deeply shocked at the news that Bob Crow has died suddenly early this morning of a heart attack at the age of 52. We send …
10 March 2014
The People's Assembly - uniting resistance against austerity
image no longer in the archive The People’s Assembly Against Austerity will hold its first policy conference on Saturday 15 March. The first Assembly last June was a tremendous success when …
10 March 2014 · 1 comment
The uprising in Syria - three years on
image no longer in the archive This Saturday 15 March, on the third anniversary of the uprising, there is a demonstration in London to support the struggle of the people of Syria for freedom…
6 March 2014 ·
Bosnian workers rebel against corruption and poverty
image no longer in the archive A media silence on Bosnia While western newspapers, radio and television news programmes have been full of events in Ukraine you have to search very hard for a…
23 February 2014 · 10 comments
Ukraine can be explained without conspiracy theories
image no longer in the archive We can bring down a government? This article on the situation in Ukraine was written on the evening of February 21st. Events have moved even more rapidly than …
22 February 2014
Tackling floods and climate chaos.
The following resolution was proposed by Alan Thornett and agreed by Southwark Left Unity on March 19 to be submitted to the Left Unity conference on March 29: Despite the devastating floods…
21 February 2014 · 1 comment
Syria in the context of the Arab uprisings - video here
image no longer in the archive Syria in the context of the Arab uprisings Saturday 15 February Har Syrians, Middle East scholars and socialists at a teach-in on the Syrian uprising. Speakers…
19 February 2014 ·
Can you have sex with an operating system?
Computer love is coming soon Dave Kellaway reviews Her and dares ask the question that's on everyone's mind. Directed by Spike Jonze. With Joaquin Phoenix, Amy Adams, Scarlett Johansson. 126…
19 February 2014 · · 6 comments
Is private enterprise possible in a post-capitalist economy?
Why would you want to nationalise this? At the end of the Left Unity founding conference last November, a member of the Class Struggle platform (aka Workers Power) jumped up with a ‘point of…
16 February 2014 ·
Italy - new faces, same austerity
Renzi (right) rescues Berlusconi Recently back from Italy, Dave Kellaway reports on the latest developments. Matteo Renzi is poised to take the baton from fellow Democratic Party (PD) leader…
14 February 2014 · 2 comments
Bangladesh - super-exploitation and climate crisis: leader of peasant federation tours Britain
Bangladesh is one of the areas of the world most vulnerable to climate change, with sea levels rising faster than the global rate. Estimates suggest that up to 20 million Bangladeshis in low…
14 February 2014
Green Capitalism: Why it Can’t Work - a review by Michael Barratt Brown
Daniel Tanuro, Green Capitalism: Why it Can’t Work, Merlin Press and Resistance Books, 2013, 224 pages A review by Michael Barratt Brown originally published in the Spokesman Journal £11 inc…
10 February 2014 · 6 comments
The way forward for revolutionary unity
This paper has been written by Socialist Resistance (SR) as a contribution to the current Unity discussions. Other contributions appear here . Divisions on the far left have long been damagi…
3 February 2014
Green Capitalism - a review by Derek Wall
image no longer in the archive Derek Wall, International coordinator of the Green Party of England, reviews Green Capitalism: why can't work by Daniel Tanuro. Derek is author of The Sustaina…
2 February 2014
The emergence of the post 1968 left -videos
Ian Birchall and Alan Thornett Socialist Resistance hosted a unique public event on February 1st in London bringing together activists from the Fourth International and former members of the…
29 January 2014
Marxism and feminism - three videos
To mark the launch of Cinzia Arruzza’s book Dangerous Liaisons: The Marriages and Divorces of Marxism and Feminism Socialist Resistance hosted a meeting on 28 January in London with speakers…
28 January 2014 · · 4 comments
Llewyn Davis, troubadour as hipster wastrel
image no longer in the archive In Dalston over the sea If you’ve spent a lifetime going to the cinema you probably won’t have heard one character accuse another of being a Shachtmanite write…
26 January 2014 · · 4 comments
Sex, moral panics and capitalism
A rather grandiose title perhaps writes Jane Kelly , but how else to write about young people, sexuality and new technology without trying to relate it all to the society within which we liv…
26 January 2014 · 1 comment
Mandela - Long Walk to Freedom
It was always going to be a tall order to adequately cover the tumultuous events of the overthrow of apartheid and the transition to majority rule in South Africa in a little under 150 minut…
26 January 2014 · 1 comment
The 1960s and the New Left - Saturday 1 February
May 68 - the beggining of a long struggle MEETING AND DISCUSSION hosted by London Socialist Resistance Saturday 1 February, 1:30pm – 5pm Room B35, Birkbeck College Malet Street, WC1E 7HX (En…
25 January 2014 · · 1 comment
The amoral, drug addled, anti-social, thieving Wolf of Wall Street
An amoral, drug addled, misogynistic, anti-social, thieving, wife beater? If your inner anti-capitalist has ever suspected that major financial institutions are home to a bunch of coked up w…
25 January 2014 · · 1 comment
Daumier's contemporary resonances
Jane Kelly reviews the Royal Academy of Arts' exhibition Honore Daumier (1808-1879): Visions of Paris (26 October 2013—26 January 2014). I left it very late to go to this and it finishes on …
24 January 2014 · 5 comments
Osborne’s Britain: poverty, insecurity and cuts
"This year will be harder than last year. On the other hand, it will be easier than next year." (Photo Andy Worthington) Alan Thornett debunks the Tory lies about the "recovery". Few people,…
23 January 2014 · 1 comment
Dangerous Liaisons; Revolutionary Theory and Practice
Cinzia Arruzza’s Dangerous Liaisons: The Marriages and Divorces of Marxism and Feminism (published in English edition by Merlin Press, available from Resistance Books) Ian Parker Women’s lib…
21 January 2014 · 3 comments
Ignorance of your culture is not considered cool
the thing about state capitalism.... Socialism from Below (Unkant publishers, 2013. 161 pages) A critical look at the IS tradition reviewed by Dave Kellaway Sometimes the classical tidiness …
21 January 2014 · · 3 comments
The New Left and the 1960s: 1956-66 : The Crystallisation of a Militant Left
Members of the Young Communist League outside Charing Cross station sell Challenge protesting Queen Frederika’s state visit “The ‘first’ New Left was born in 1956, a conjuncture—not just a y…
20 January 2014 · · 4 comments
The First World War: Truth and Lies
image no longer in the archive Harry Patch was there. Gove and Johnson weren't 2014 was barely a few weeks old before various right wing politicians and historians began making clear their v…
20 January 2014
Cinzia Arruzza speaks in Britain
Cinzia Arruzza, author of Dangerous Liaisons : the marriages and divorces of Marxism and Feminism will be speaking at three meetings next week about her book In Oxford on Monday 27 January 7…
19 January 2014 · · 1 comment
Debt Guarantee corners SNP
image no longer in the archive The placement of the story on Scotland's debt in the Financial Times ( you may need to register to view the piece) was carried out for political reasons to rai…
19 January 2014 ·
Searching for Enchantment on the Frontiers of Rewilding
George Monbiot is a superb nature writer Dave Bangs reviews George Monbiot’s latest book. “Feral”, is both a passionate polemical demand for a rethinking of nature conservation strategy and …
17 January 2014 · 1 comment
Welcome to RS21
Welcome to RS21 Socialist Resistance welcomes the news that the comrades who left the SWP in December as a consequence of the ongoing crisis over the abuse of women in that organisation have…
11 January 2014 · · 1 comment
12 Years a Slave - unflinching cinema
image no longer in the archive England was the dominant slave trading nation in the latter part of the seventeenth century writes Liam Mac Uaid . Africans were transported to the Caribbean a…
9 January 2014 · 6 comments
The Fourth International in the 21st century
The long march continues This is a presentation Alan Thornett made recently at an event in Mannheim marking 75 years of the Fourth International (FI), organised by the its German groupings. …
5 January 2014 · 5 comments
Left unity Belgian style
The Ligue Communiste Révolutionnaire (LCR) or Socialist Workers' Party ( Socialistische Arbeiderspartij (SAP) is the Fourth International's section in Belgium. In this statement it explains …
4 January 2014 · 1 comment
A moment for revolutionary ambition
image no longer in the archive You can make opportunities This piece by Tom Walker first appeared on the International Socialist Network's site. We are republishing it here because we strong…