The latest news and analysis from The Communist, alongside reports of our activity. For Marxist theory and history, click here.
John McArthur, a 59-year-old North Lanarkshire resident, has for the past three months been staging a one-man protest against the draconian policies of the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). John, a former electronics specialist, had been ordered by the DWP to perform six months unpaid work for LAHM recycle – a company which until recently had actually employed him!
Over 200 attendees from across the UK and Europe met in London over the weekend of 31st October – 2nd November to take part in the highly successful and incredibly inspiring Marxist Winter School 2014. With energy and enthusiasm in abundance, this was the most successful weekend school organised by the IMT in Britain yet, marking a qualitative leap forward for the Marxists in Britain and internationally.
In this talk at the UCLU Marxist society, Ben Gliniecki – the youth organiser for the Solidarity with the Anti-Fascist Resistance in Ukraine campaign – analyses the latest developments surrounding the crisis in Ukraine, and discusses how Marxists can support the struggles against fascism in Ukraine.
The situation in Burkina Faso has been moving at lightning speed since the revolution erupted on Thursday 30th October. Not only did the revolutionary masses overthrew the hated Blaise Compaoré, but also his hand-picked successor, general Honoré Traoré, just a few hours later. The military tops and major imperialist powers have been scrambling to hatch some kind of a deal to pacify the masses and restore some sort of bourgeois normality.
We publish here an article written last week by Ben Morken of the International Marxist Tendency in South Africa, who reports on the revolutionary events unfolding in Burkina Faso. The situation has developed since this article was written, but it nevertheless provides a useful analysis and background to the events taking place.
Urgent solidarity action is required for Pakistan Marxists in Malakand. Early on Sunday morning at 5.45am, comrade Ghufran Ahad’s home in the village of Allahdand in the district of Malakand, was attacked by a hand grenade. Fortunately no one was injured but the windows and other parts of the home were severely damaged.
The recent parliamentary elections in Ukraine have been almost unanimously characterised with the ambiguous “Pro-Western camp wins”, while at the same time admitting that the new parliament’s role will be to push through harsh and unpopular austerity measures, on a population already in a dire situation. This assertion also overlooks some significant divisions within the post-Maidan ruling class.
A new official report from Credit Suisse paints a grim picture of the growing divide in the UK between the rich and the poor. Britain now tops a shameful league of G7 economies on income inequality. Despite years of austerity – with more to come say the Tories – the super-rich in the UK have done very well for themselves.
The probation system has undergone a radical transformation in recent months, which has seen the most brutal and systematic dismantling of yet another public service by the Tory-Lib Dem Coalition. Steve Brown looks at the disasterous effects of privatisation of the probation service.
The International Marxist School 2014 begins in one week, taking place in the Bloomsbury area of London from 31st October to 2nd November. Hundreds of revolutionary youth and workers will be attending from across Britain and Europe for what promises to be an excellent weekend of discussions about Marxist ideas and their relevance to today. We publish here the full schedule for the weekend, including links to some recommended reading for each session.
Hundreds of thousands marched this week in Mexico city and tens of thousands more in dozens of other cities across Mexico to protest at the kidnapping of 43 student-teachers from Ayotzinapa. They were clear in pointing the finger squarely at the Mexican state. The actions were part of a widespread nationwide 48 hour student strike. Jorge Martin looks at the latest developments in Mexico.
With the planet facing environmental crises, some have sought to bring about change through individual efforts, trying to change the environmental practices of corporations by altering individual purchasing choices. We publish here an article by Kevin Harriman and Kevin Nance of Socialist Appeal USA, who look at the question of consumerism and the environment under capitalism, and explain the socialist alternative.