Socialist Appeal

On International Working Women’s Day – Fight Back Against Women’s Oppression

By Julian Benson
Friday, 06 March 2009
The present economic crisis, through its sheer scale and reach, is bringing about a wholesale change in the consciousness of working people the world over. It is the poor, the oppressed, and the workers who shoulder this weight in order to hold up the privileges of the rich. There is no portion of the working class that has so greatly and extensively borne this affliction than working women.

Remembering International Women’s Day 1917 - The gains made for women by the Russian Revolution

By Miriam Martin in 2007
Friday, 06 March 2009
March 8th is International Working Women's Day – originally instituted not as a day to celebrate, but as a day for militancy and action. Now many liberal institutions and feminist organizations recognize International Women's Day, but few acknowledge its roots or its historical significance. They have in fact attempted to remove the class content of this day of struggle.

London School Students Union Report - No-Fees!

By Tali Janner-Klausner, LSSU
Friday, 06 March 2009
As school students, our future is increasingly placed at risk by economic crisis. Education cannot be where our government goes to for cutting corners; it must be a priority especially during these times. It was with this in mind that on Wednesday 25th February, a modest yet energetic group from London School Students’ Union joined the national demonstration against tuition fees in marching through London to protest against the government’s plans to lift the cap on tuition fees, and to demand free education!

Remembering the great miners' strike 1984-85

By Mick Brooks

Thursday, 05 March 2009

The ruling class did not forget the humiliation of Saltley Gate in 1972. After 1974 the Tories began to contemplate vengeance. As we reported they worked out a calculated plan (The Ridley Report) for the bosses to regain the initiative and settle accounts with an over-mighty working class.So, as soon as Labour was turfed out in 1979, Thatcher and the Tories began a systematic confrontation with the labour movement. They started by introducing anti-trade union laws to strengthen their hand – making secondary picketing illegal and demanding a ballot before any industrial action.

Miners strike: ‘A turning point in the history of the movement’

By Nigel Pearce in 2004
Thursday, 05 March 2009
Twenty five years ago on March 5th 1984, miners at Cortonwood pit walked out. That was the beginning of the great 1984-85 miners' strike. Nigel Pearce of the Yorkshire National Union of Mineworkers and a participant was interviewed by Socialist Appeal in 2004 about the strike. " The strike is full of lessons. One of the main ones is the need for unity among the working class, that stands out above all else - unity is strength, and united the working class can achieve anything. Divided we are weak, and even small divisions can have a destructive effect."