Belfast's May Day parade

by Wolfie Smith - Tooting Popular Front Tue May 09, 2006 22:32

The trouble with anarchists is that they're not well organised.

by Mark P - Socialist Party (personal capacity) Tue May 09, 2006 13:22

Yes I think the various marching bands, both Republican and Loyalist, are blatantly obviously sectarian. They are there to drum up support for paramilitarism and intimidate the other "side". They express a kind of swaggering communal braggadocio. The degree of out and out sectarian bile openly expressed by bands from each side may vary, but their function is much the same.

As for whether it should or shouldn't matter if a "pro-INLA flute band" tries to associate itself with the anti-water tax campaign, you are asking an irrelevant question. The fact is that it does matter to many people. Like it or not, disagree with them or not, the vast majority of working class Protestants in the North do in fact view the INLA as a murderous sectarian militia. And that perception does matter if you want to build a cross-community campaign.

You go on to ask if I want republicans involved in the anti-water tax campaign. The answer is simple, I want people from republican, nationalist, unionist or loyalist backgrounds involved. I don't much care what their current views are either as long as they are committed to building a cross-community campaign. But what I don't want is the sectarian paraphenalia and communal triumphalism of either side being dragged in because, yes, that will undermine the kind of working class unity which will be needed to beat the water tax. You sneer at this in typical republican fashion, but you don't offer any alternative. How do you propose to beat the water tax if the campaign against the water tax is seen as the preserve of only Catholics or only Protestants? Are you going to drive it away by strutting about in berets banging drums?

I note by the way that even Pat, who by no means agrees with me about the national question, agrees that associating the issue with communal marching bands would be tactical idiocy.

by Worker and Marcher Tue May 09, 2006 13:03

You were on this thread from the start. There was no reaction from you when it was mentioned about a loyalist band being on the march or any commnet as to how hard it might be to organise trade unionists in republican areas as a result. But as soon as there was mention of a republican band we have a much quicker reaction time. Of course no bias intended.

But then with comments like "Adopting ridiculous chants to wind up other sections of a march is a proud tradition" is it surprising. Would you draw the line at doing it at bystanders when passing bookie shops?

by pat c Tue May 09, 2006 12:55

"I don't think that the sight of pro-paramilitary marching bands from either sectarian camp associating themselves with the anti-water tax movement is likely to help build a cross-community campaign."

"As far as the May Day march itself goes, I am also of the view that sectarian marching bands shouldn't be invited to take part."

There, IF there ever was any doubt about Marks position on such bands it has now been dispelled. I can understand how protestant workers could be intimidated by a republican band, just as catholic workers could be intimidated by the prescence of a loyalist band which had to be forced through the lower ormeau road Mark is correct, at the moment it would be best if such bands did not participate.

I hasten to add that I dont equate republicans with loyalists. but i do to some extent understand how things are viewed in the protestant community.

btw. were the PUP on the march?

by Ciarán Ó Brolcháin Tue May 09, 2006 12:50

"I suspect that if there's one thing guaranteed to mark something out as belonging to one sectarian camp it's an association with the marching bands of either "side". Do you think that the sight of a pro-INLA flute band parading around the city centre in anti-water tax regalia makes it (a) easier or (B) harder to build an anti-water tax movement in Protestant working class areas?"

Firstly, do you think that a republican band is somehow sectarian, or representative of a "sectarian camp"?

It shouldn't matter to anyone if a "pro-INLA flute band" is playing in support of the anti-water tax campaign. This leads on to my second question. Do you not want republicans in general involved in the anti-water tax campaign, in case it turns Protestants away? Are you afraid they'll undermine your dream of short-term workers' unity on gas-and-water issues?

Your entire argument sounds like little more than ultra-leftist tripe.

by Mark P - Socialist Party (personal capacity) Tue May 09, 2006 12:45

With the usual paranoia of the "left" republican, "worker and marcher" detects some supposed pro-loyalist bias in my comments about a republican marching band wearing anti-water tax t-shirts. For the record, I don't think that the sight of pro-paramilitary marching bands from either sectarian camp associating themselves with the anti-water tax movement is likely to help build a cross-community campaign. And in fact, if "worker and marcher" were to read the comment just above his own petty contribution he would find me expressing exactly that sentiment - 'I suspect that if there's one thing guaranteed to mark something out as belonging to one sectarian camp it's an association with the marching bands of either "side"'.

As far as the May Day march itself goes, I am also of the view that sectarian marching bands shouldn't be invited to take part.

by Shane - SP (personal capacity) Tue May 09, 2006 11:34

Firstly to . I said Communist not communist. It's the capital C that made it a noun rather than adjective. In this I was referring to a variety of Stalinist organisations in Spain attached to the Communist International. And it is precisely this kind of nitpicking that gets us nowhere.
To worker and marcher you are entirely right that these slogans do no good, but I do think it was funny and I will concede this to be a peurile contradiction to my own point. But the aim was to wind people up and look how wound up they got. There have been almost sixty posts already! But in reality it would be better to have conversations with people than hurl abuse at them from the safety of a group. And I really am sorry but you have to admit it was just a bit funny, but not big and not clever.

by Worker and Marcher Tue May 09, 2006 11:22

I've absolutely no idea what you are talking about but would you care to address the point I was making?

by Watcher watched Tue May 09, 2006 10:52

I think I know what you are getting at. Enhance the Organise! photo and you get the WATCHER

by Worker and Marcher Tue May 09, 2006 10:42

Mark picks straight up on the comment about the republican band and had nothing to say on the two loyalist bands (although I only saw one) in this years march. But luckily nobody suspects the SP of having a pro loyalist bias over a republican one.

by Mark P - Socialist Party (personal capacity) Tue May 09, 2006 00:38

I suspect that if there's one thing guaranteed to mark something out as belonging to one sectarian camp it's an association with the marching bands of either "side". Do you think that the sight of a pro-INLA flute band parading around the city centre in anti-water tax regalia makes it (a) easier or (B) harder to build an anti-water tax movement in Protestant working class areas?

by Ciarán Ó Brolcháin Tue May 09, 2006 00:03

What's wrong with a republican band in anti-water tax shirts?

by Mark P - Socialist Party (personal capacity) Mon May 08, 2006 23:22

A republican marching band in anti-water tax t-shirts? I'd say that anyone who is serious about building a cross-community campaign would welcome that like they'd welcome a hole in the head.

by sophka Mon May 08, 2006 22:52

Just to express my astonishment about the word guerilla between the Socialist Youth and the other Anarchists groups. I'm a French student, i actually came to Belfast in 2004 as part of my political studies. i've been walking on saturday behind the Organise! flag (but this is not of much importance, as i do not belong to any political party).
Eager to learn foreign slogans, i was quite happy when the water charges one came. Though, it was quickly followed by the Socialists ones (not bad indeed if you find yourself at a socialist meeting) but honestly, what are these kind of slogan doing in a workers' march? I do not think that Mayday is the good day to do the promotion of your own party.
Is there that small cooperation (and this not even has to be call cooperation) between all of you (political groups) that you cannot even shout the same slogans?
Ironically, I was marching with my partner who is polish and lived most of his life under a communist dictature and was all joy about the lenin bit as you can imagine!
I am sorry for i have respect for all of you trying to make things move in Northern Ireland, but you are not very numerous and you already puke on each other; this is the lack of cooperation that usually makes the game of the opposition.

by wondering Mon May 08, 2006 21:03

hows the book going. it must be flying of the shelves

by Davy Carlin - Organise! Mon May 08, 2006 20:17

My misunderstanding then

Again great Pics -

All the best mate - D

by Ciarán Ó Brolcháin Mon May 08, 2006 19:47

Pat C wrote: "Would you comment on the assertion that 2 Orange bands took part in the march? One of those bands appears to be one that was involved in Orange parades that were forced through the Lower Ormeau Road, the Ballymacarrett Defenders."

I'm no expert on loyalist bands but I do recall that there were some there. I specifically remember seeing at least one band with a Union Jack and Loyalist 'Ulster' flag on their sleeve. I don't know if they were there at the invite of any of the trade union groups, but it's possible that they were. They could have been there off their own bat as well.

I remember that two years ago the Republican Socialist flute band was at the parade; they had went of their own volition but were there as part of the anti-water charges contingent. They wore shirts with 'Communities Against the Water Tax' (or something to that effect) inscribed on them as opposed to some kind of marching uniform.

Davy Carlin wrote: "On Ciaran’s point – I think the pictures are excellent but the gloves of’ Statement – well what can I say – only that Boul - Organise! opening point hits the nail on the head.

Ur better than that Ciaran!"

I'm sorry if something I wrote above offended you, Davy. I made the "in this corner" comment in jest because I still had a photo of the anarchist bloc and of the Socialist Party still unpublished, and I just wanted to add them to the collection.

John wrote: "Looks good, were Sinn Fein there at all?"

There was no SF presence at the parade. I know that some people were planning to go down as a contingent with a banner and all that, but most were busy with the Hunger Strike commemorative events that day.

And, to finish off, a big 'Thank you' to everyone who enjoyed the photos.

by Davy Carlin - Organise! {PC} Mon May 08, 2006 18:27

On the BAWM – I am to go into this in the next issue on my Diary, in some detail.

So it shall be linked here, for discussion.

But I will say that accountability and democracy play a big part in what I have to say – and as for 'being ignored – well the Movement – in recent times - - in real terms - has unfortunately already ignored it, due in large part to such - as has been shown.

Therefore the question is, I believe, not so much as ‘what therefore is to be done to extend this’ but more of, what needs to be done in that regard.

I will go into this shortly as I am about to pen my May Diary over the next few days and will attach accordingly.

On Water Charges – I agree, I believe that there should be on unified campaign. And again if there is no accountability or democracy within whatever campaign then, again, I believe, eventually, it will go nowhere.

Indeed the politics of ‘Control’ in whatever campaign – I believe will see such campaigns gathering little support - and therefore that ‘type’ of ‘Politic of Control, should have no such 'controlling role in the Movement, as it will be detrimental to it.

Again I will go into this a bit more in my Diary - D

by sn Mon May 08, 2006 17:33

good think were goin sumwhere
so what do we need to do make next years even better, what with more victories and mobilisations under our belt
The two main things seem to be building the Anti War and Anti water charges campaigns.
Although uve already expressed difficulties with the BAWM they were the only ones to bring the antiwar arguements about Iran/Iraq so therefore it cant be ignored. What therefore is to be done to extend this should be the debate
Water charges
There are 2 campaigns. CErtainly We wont pay is much better organised than CAWT, but again they had a sizable contingent so cant be ignored.
I think wee need one campaign.
Il belive WWP is still much 2 narrow

by Davy Carlin - Organise! {PC} Mon May 08, 2006 17:21

Good stuff SN.

Yes things are starting to move again this year, after the wonderful actions, mobilisations and common struggles in unity last year.

The Movement in all its diversity, loud and colourful 3000 strong on the Streets of Belfast!,

Indeed some - one over from London had said to me on the day.

That – ‘In Belfast

‘ You could actually breathe in the Movement here’ –

This on the back of the Postal workers, and Joanne Delaney mobilisations and victories in Belfast!

And as was again sampled on May Day..

Yes we need to take the positives out of this, while discussing, debating an engaging with and about all aspects of the Movement.

by john - none Mon May 08, 2006 17:09

Looks good, were Sinn Fein there at all?

by sn Mon May 08, 2006 16:55

this thread is loosing its way a little, what with a discussion on Lenin chants, anarchists describing socialists as "t****S", which i think is a disgusting anti woman word but anyway, and quotes from the simpsons.
Ok so how a bout a discussion on the following.
A slightly larger Mayday than last year, 3000
Much livlier than last year
A loud Anti war contingent, mainly made up of students
A loud SY contingent
The usaul well attended anti racism contingent
A communties aganist Water Tax contingent
A much bigger and well organised We wont Pay contingent
A bigger than usual, as far as im aware, anarchist contingent.
Things are starting to happen in Belfast. I think thats something to take out it. Last years march was so dull.
so i think we should debate around these positives and see where we can go

by hs - sp (per cap) Mon May 08, 2006 16:50

Alot of this is just ridiculas mudslinging, the youth were obviously taking the piss out of the anarchists a bit with their slogan, (seems it worked too!) but if you can't do things like that when your young then when can you? I can assure you none of us grown ups would do such a thing : - ) On a more serious note, anarchism has offered a lot of colour, energy and ideas to the general movement, and socialists would be very foolish to write them off, but like all young movements there can be a little arrogance and anarchists have a terrible habit of telling me what I think from time to time. (which is annoying) although most of the anarchists i've come accross in real life are fine. and i've been impressed by their conviction and their balls (ie baldonnel). Anarchists like the entire left have working class and middle class followers, anarchism is a younger movement so there'll obviously be more students which can go either way nowadays. In the same vein anarchists would be foolish to write of young socialists and to believe they all worship every sentence marx or lenin ever wrote, in fact you'd be hard pressed to find someone who's read everything! Anarchists need to realise what it means to be a socialist, rather than what they'd like to imagine asocialist to be. We don't all fit neatly into your leninist/trotskyist/dictatorinwaiting box. For me I find some anarchists to be just as dogmatic at times as any dyed in the wool commie, often more so. Some (unamed) anrchists really remind me of the old "revolutionary" swp. But like I say it's a young movement and who know which way it can go.

by pat c Mon May 08, 2006 16:36

it reminds me of my own trotskyist youth: "we are young, we wwill fight, we are trotskyist dynamite!". so let ye who are without sin cast the first stones. that slogan was at a USFI youth camp in the south of france. i remember padraic wilson sf (& also ira o/c long kesh) was also attending and the brit delegates wanted some slogans to chant (assauging their guilt complexes). i gave then "tiocfaidh ár lá" and "eiróimid arís".

later that day walking through the forest i heard some eerie sounds, making my way towards the noise i came across a bunch of my briotish comrades practising their irish slogans!

have to say though the SY chant reminds me of the simpsons episode where homer hijacks a nuclear sub and causes an alert. lenin comes to life and starts stalking saying: "must destroy capitalism! must destroy capitalism!"

by Worker and Marcher Mon May 08, 2006 15:25

You make excellent points of course but your failing is not identifing the root of the problem. With a march of 2,000 - 3000 people there is going to be a large contingent of normal people and a lot of people watching the march go by. Please tell what they would make of the following chant?

"Lenin lived, Lenin lives, Lenin will live!"

And I used to think SWP slogans were funny. This nonsense is in the same league as the sparts.

by . Mon May 08, 2006 15:01

shafted by stalinists and liberals...

incorrect to call stalinists communists, if you please. they are in favour of state capitalism, not communism.

by Shane - Socialist party (personal capacity) Mon May 08, 2006 14:07

It's just an awful pity when people need to get involved in this kind of mud slinging it soes nobody any good. Now of course I like to bitch about the swp and lifestyle anarchists, who doesn't but do we really need to air our dirty laundry in public? Lets save it for constructive debate where we can actually get somewhere with it rather than driving wedges where unity is needed. On the point of people reading Capital, have you seen the size of it? Why would it be surprising that a sixteen year old hasn't read it? And having met a lot of the Belfast SY at the party conference on Easter I sincerely doubt that they don't know what democratic centralism is. As for Anarchists some are first class activists with solid ideas and unquestionable integrity, some are just tossers who haven't developed politically at all and probably have a more stalinist mentality than anything else. I think that it doesn't really matter what they call themselves they're just muppets and that any anarchist of integrity I've met has conceded this. You see folks sooner or later you just have to ask yourself one question, Am I a revolutionary or not? And then ask do you think your ideas are so big and so important that the world is going to take exactly the shape you want? If you think they are then you could be called neither an anarchist or a socialist rather you are a potential despot or megalomaniac. It is easy to focus criticism on a group like the Sp because our agenda is clearly stated. It's all there to be researched and read, as many above have done. Now what I resnt is that certain anarchists behave as if we are the ones who want to oppress and they are like bloody buddhists or something sitting on a hill doing no harm or wrong and not forcing their opinion on anybody, this is bullshit of course. Any sort of a revolutionary act has as it's going effecting conciousness, whether it calls itself anarchist or socialist the aim is to encourage people to act for themselves and take control of their society in a democratic manner. There is no one sort of way of doing this and in a revolutionary setting we will all have to work together. Look for example at the Spanish civil war where the Trotskyists and Anarchists provided the revolutionary momentum only to be shafted by the Communists and Liberals leading to the eventual victory of Franco. Or look to Venezuela or Bolivia where a mixture of Social movements and elected officials have provided the only real secular opposition to neo-liberalism in any nation today. For too long the left has fallen into pointless arguments and by becoming divided we play into the establishment's hands. It is a mistake that the youth no matter what banner they march behind should not fall into, it's classic divide and conquer and they've been doing it to us for centuries now. I sit on a shell sea committee in Galway with people from the Swp, sinn fein, the greens and various anarchists and non affiliated environmentalists and when there is a common aim and goal we can work towards it. Hopefully the same will now become apparent in the North with the campaigns against water charges. As I say If you are a REAL activist and REAL revolutionary you will bite the bullet and work towards a better world and you probably won't have so much time to post on indymedia.

by Davy Carlin - Organise! {PC} Mon May 08, 2006 12:41

A Trade Unionist day, an activist's day. - a 'workers day

The 'movement’- marched as one.

‘One of the biggest and most diverse May Day Marches in years’-

-Well done all.

Mayday in Belfast had seen Trade Union, Political organisations, and Community campaigns and activists come together on this day – in one of the biggest and most Diverse May Day marches in recent Years {see photos above}.

Banners and flags from the ARN - WARN fluttered in the wind while the young chanting students who made up the BAWM and the SY contingents made their voices heard. Banners and activists from the IPSC to Cuban Solidarity, from the ‘ We wont Pay Campaign’ to the Campaign Against Water Privatisation, from the NI Anti Poverty Network through to Amnesty and refugee support, marched together with many more on this Day.

– All such campaign banners and more joined banners from across the Northern Trade union Movement, and it must be said it was excellent to see AY, -. WSM, Labour, Dublin Council for Trade Unions and more joining us from the ‘South’

Forget ‘North - South – it was a Workers Day, and the complete Diversity of the Movement was on Belfast’ streets.-

On a personal note it was good to meet up and speak to the AY and WSM, many of whom I had only known through Indymedia.

It most be said {Re -PC} the Organise! banner, was very well received, indeed the amount of not only ‘established’ photographers, but activists and others who had took pictures and videos of it was incredible – with the WSM banner fluttering directly behind.

Similarly was the interest shown in the Anarchist book stall afterwards–

On Ciaran’s point – I think the pictures are excellent but the gloves of’ Statement – well what can I say – only that Boul - Organise! opening point hits the nail on the head.

Ur better than that Ciaran!

On a further Boul’ point, I am disappointed to read that the SP –

is a ‘party that edits the people who called the first Belfast picket in support of Joanne Delaney out of their coverage of the event (not to mention not mentioning anyone else who supported the picket apart from SY and the SP)? Or indeed who were involved in leafleting in working class communities to build for the April 1st 'We Won't Pay Campaign' rally in Belfast? Sitting on our arses doing nothing - aye whatever.

- But I am not surprised, I 'think the SWP also ‘left’ out Organise! Also.

And as the statement finishes’

‘Hopefully this'll all stay lightheartened enough to avoid damaging future work together on issues that actually have relevance to the lives of working class people up here though’

I would hope similar.

On SY point–

Quote - ‘snotty, middle-class, lifestylist way’ – ‘armchair anarchists’

Well I know Comrades in Organise! come from solid working class backgrounds, indeed so do I.

But -

if chanting is the mark of ones ‘Revolutionary working class credentials’ then on this occasion I must say that I have been beaten - hands down -and of course will return to my middle class lifestyle’.

However if such ‘credentials of working class background and activism is required to inform’ such debate, then I would of course be willing to debate such, As an Anarchist’ with any from SY’ or indeed with any from the SP if one prefers.

Indeed Anarchism is growing, this in Ireland as a whole – and Anarchists have been, are - and will be -at the forefront of ‘local initiatives and struggles – there is no if’s and no but’s about that

I had planned to link this and these wonderful pictures of’ A Movement’ on the march, to ‘Local and ‘International’ Networks and my Diary, so I hope this ‘bickering’ does cease.

Whatever the case, it was a great day, one of the best in years, lets move forward to the challenges ahead, where we can again march together, to engage together and show unity in struggle.

Well done all who attended – it was truly -

A Trade Unionist day, an activist's day. - a 'workers day!
________________________________________

by NRcist Mon May 08, 2006 12:38

Mayday belfast is bigger, brighter and better than dublin, it's well worth a trip.

by Sean - Organise! Mon May 08, 2006 12:36

Text of the Mayday leaflet, which was delivered on Saturday.

Every year for 120 years May 1st has been celebrated as a day
of workers resistance and solidarity. But the reasons behind
this tradition, its origins and its true history are often
forgotten.
The history of May Day begins in the USA in 1884 at
convention of the Federation of Organised Trades and Labour
Unions, the predecessor to the American Federation of Labour
(congress of reformist US business unions). This convention
marked the beginning of the global movement to win the 8–
hour day. The plan was to spend two years persuading
employers to adopt the 8–hour day as standard. In the USA
the campaign was to climax on May 1st 1886, at which time
all workers not yet on an 8–hour day would stage a nation–
wide strike until the demand was met.
Many employers did not meet the deadline, and accordingly
on May 1st great demonstrations took place all across the
US. The largest was in Chicago where an estimated 80,000
people marching down Michigan Avenue. The business
leaders saw it as a prelude to ‘revolution’ and demanded a crackdown. So when a strike broke out
at Chicago's McCormick Reaper plant it was brutally repressed by police, who fired on strikers
and their supporters, killing and injuring several, on May 3rd 1886.
A mass protest was organised for the following day at the city’s Haymarket Square. Some 20,000
people attended the rally. As the last speaker was finishing it began to rain and a force of 200
police arrived to disperse the crowd. Up until then the meeting had been peaceful, a fact later
testified to by the mayor of Chicago in court. But as the police moved in someone threw a bomb at
the police, killing one. They opened fire, killing at least four workers and wounding many more.
Several more police were killed, whether by workers or ‘friendly fire’ is unknown.
In the aftermath, unions and the homes of labour organisers and anarchists were raided all across
the country. The 8–hour movement was derailed in the US where it was not enacted in legislation
until 1935. Eight anarchists were arrested and put on trial. They were not accused of the bomb
throwing itself but that by their words and publications they had incited the attack.
Michael Schwab, Oscar Neebe, Adolph Fischer, August Spies, Louis Lingg, George Engel and Samuel
Fielden were arrested. Albert Parsons evaded arrest, but in a show of amazing solidarity presented
himself at the courthouse to be tried with his
comrades. The trial was a fraud, the jury packed
with people hostile to the cause of Labour.
Parsons, Spies, Fischer, Engel and Lingg were
sentenced to hang. Lingg escaped the noose by
committing suicide in his cell. Schwab, Neebe and
Fielden were jailed until June 26th 1894, when
Governor John P. Altgeld ruled the trial a
miscarriage of justice and pardoned all eight
defendants. Scant comfort to the comrades and
friends of the four hanged on November 11th 1887
despite world wide outcry.
2006 - THE STRUGGLE CONTINUES
If we look around today, we see many of the gains
that workers like the Chicago Martyrs fought for
being swept away, whether it is the privatisation
of our public services, victimisation and bullying
at work, attacks on our conditions and standards
of living, the assault on the ‘welfare state’, the
huge rise in casualisation and use of ‘temp’/agency
workers, or in the moves to introduce water
privatisation and charges. Our history is a history
of struggle and resistance, a history that demonstrates that as working people we can organise
ourselves and fight such attacks.
If we are to reclaim the true history of May Day, it is most fitting that we do so by renewing the
struggles begun by the comrades we commemorate and celebrate today. We also take inspiration
from more recent struggles such as the defeat of the poll tax in Britain and the defeat of water
charges in the Republic of Ireland, from the successful campaign for the reinstatement of Joanne
Delaney sacked by Dunnes for wearing a union badge, and from the victory of Belfast posties forced
to take wildcat action against bosses who thought they could get away with bullying. By fighting
the government’s ‘reform’ package, building a campaign of mass non–payment of water charges,
resisting attacks on people on benefits, refusing to tolerate the intimidation of our fellow workers,
by standing against racism, in the ongoing battle against global capitalism, we will fulfil the
prophecy of August Spies, whose words are inscribed on the bottom of the Martyrs monument:
“The time will come when our silence will be more powerful than the voices you strangle today”

Contact Organise! At:
PO Box 505, Belfast , BT12 6BQ
http://www.organiseireland.org
Email: [email protected]

by Joe Mon May 08, 2006 12:28

The photo I see when I look at the comment I just posted in of the dragon but the photo posted and the one that appears when I click on the image is a small gif of the leaflet.

by Joe - Leaflet Mon May 08, 2006 12:26 wsm_ireland at yahoo dot com

AN ANARCHIST ALTERNATIVE

Anarchist ideas link a criticism of capitalist society with a vision of a new way of organising human society. Essentially anarchism is a system of socialism which opposes capitalism as well as the state and hierarchy which impose and reinforce capitalism.

An anarchist society can’t be brought about by a small group of people. Even in Ireland a successful anarchist revolution would require tens of thousands of active anarchists. Anarchists living on every street and active in every workplace. One anarchist organisation active in Ireland is the Workers Solidarity Movement (WSM). This leaflet allows us to tell you a little about what we do and what we stand for.

We believe that an anarchist society can only be created as a result of the class struggle between the vast majority of society (the working class) and the tiny minority that currently rule. A successful revolution will require that anarchist ideas become the leading ideas within the working class. This will not happen spontaneously. Our role is to help popularise and promote these ideas.

A major focus of our activity is our work within the economic organizations of the working class, the trade unions. As members of the working class it is only natural that we should also be members of these mass organizations. Within the unions we fight for democratic structures so that they can be controlled by the rank and file.

We also see it as vital to work in struggles that happen outside the unions and the workplace. These include struggles against particular oppressions, imperialism and indeed the struggles of the working class for a decent place and environment in which to live. Our general approach to these, like our approach to the unions, is to involve ourselves with mass movements and within these movements, in order to promote anarchist methods of organisation involving direct democracy and direct action.

We reject the idea that society can be changed through ‘good people’ gaining control of the power structures. This means we reject both the electoral strategy of the social democratic and green parties and the ‘revolutionary’ strategy of the various left groups. We oppose imperialism but put forward anarchism as an alternative goal to nationalism. We actively oppose all manifestations of prejudice within the workers’ movement and society in general and we work alongside those struggling against racism, sexism, sectarianism and homophobia as a priority. We see the success of a revolution and the successful elimination of these oppressions after the revolution being determined by the building of such struggles in the pre-revolutionary period. The methods of struggle that we promote are a preparation for the running of society along anarchist and communist lines after the revolution.

The WSM has been helping to build an anarchist movement since the 1980’s. For most of this time we have been active in Dublin and Cork where we fought against ‘social partnership’ in the unions and have worked in many strike support groups. For our small numbers we played an important role in the fight for divorce and abortion rights in the republic. In both Dublin and Cork we fought against the imposition of bin tax on the working population and helped defeat the attempt to bring the water tax to Dublin. We also helped organize the major protests against the 2004 EU Summit in Dublin. Currently we are active in the anti-war struggle, in particular in opposition to the republic’s policy of allowing US war and torture planes to use Shannon and Baldonnel airports. Our members are taking part in the solidarity camp at Rossport where Shell are trying to force a potentially dangerous pipeline on the local inhabitants and jailed 5 of the locals for resisting this pipeline. We are also involved in struggles to organise insecure and in particular migrant workers.

As the WSM has grown in recent years we are expanding outside of Dublin and Cork. We are currently organizing a branch in Derry but we also want to make contact with people elsewhere interested in anarchism who may want to work with, or indeed join the WSM. If you’re interested contact us.
By Email: [email protected]
By Post: PO Box 1528, Dublin 8

If you would like more information write to us for a membership pack or visit our web site at http://www.wsm.ie On the web site you will find articles from our free paper Workers Solidarity and our magazine Red and Black Revolution as well as an archive of thousands of articles about anarchism and struggles in Ireland.

by pat c Mon May 08, 2006 12:13

They are both good pictures. Would you comment on the assertion that 2 Orange bands took part in the march? One of those bands appears to be one that was involved in Orange parades that were forced through the Lower Ormeau Road, the Ballymacarrett Defenders.

by Ciarán Ó Brolcháin Mon May 08, 2006 11:57

My apologies, I wasn't trying to drag Organise! into it but I had just dug up those two photos that weren't published and decided it would be fun to post them together.

by May - NIPSA Mon May 08, 2006 09:26

Great pictures don't know why people can't just appreciate them, but as usual descend into petty squabling

by Dismissing Marx Mon May 08, 2006 04:25

As far as I'm aware the only pamphlet that AY has ever produced is the prole.info pamphlet which has Marx quotes in it. So errr sorry mate anarchists don't dismiss marx we just aren't marxists. (Kind of like marx in that sense).

----

Uppidy working class youth who don't take shit, dont want to be working class and won't be talked down to = (for anarchists) good revolutionaries = (for leninists) snotty, middle-class, lifestylist

by boul - Organise! Mon May 08, 2006 02:27 organiseireland at yahoo dot co dot uk PO Box 505, Belfast, BT15 2HQ

Ciaran I thought I was reading a row between Anarchist Youth and the SP, no one from Organise! has contributed to this little online spat at all so far...

But sure, its a pretty stupid chant, inspired not even by the works of Lenin but by a desire to wind up people who had chosen to join the same 'We Won't Pay' section of the May Day parade in Belfast. Its been followed by lotsa stupid and petty comments about 'midddle class' or 'lifestylist' anarchists - but sure what would ye expect from a party that edits the people who called the first Belfast picket in support of Joanne Delaney out of their coverage of the event (not to mention not mentioning anyone else who supported the picket apart from SY and the SP)? Or indeed who were involved in leafletting in working class communities to build for the April 1st 'We Won't Pay Campaign' rally in Belfast? Sitting on our arses doing nothing - aye whatever.

Hopefully this'll all stay lightheartened enough to avoid damaging future work together on issues that actually have relevance to the lives of working class people up here though.

BTW the Just Books stall was selling a few of Marx's works, none of the SP (or SWP) members I asked had read Capital, a couple of anarchists had - and certainly don't dismiss all of his work out of hand.

by w. - wsm - anarchist youth Mon May 08, 2006 00:51

Apologies to SY-belfast for being boring. Seems to me if we do a black bloc we're middle class lifestylists and if we leaflet the public we're middle class lifestylists. Some of your "members" didn't seem to know what democratic centralism was, I'd say it's safe to say the AY people there had read more Marx than most of them.

by Mark P - Socialist Party (personal capacity) Mon May 08, 2006 00:35

Shouldn't that be "In the red corner... and in the red and black corner..."?

Revol, not knowing too many of the Belfast Socialist Youth people at first hand I couldn't tell you much about their reading habits. I can tell you though that the Socialist Party doesn't agree with the passage in "What is to be Done?" (itself a quote from Karl Kautsky) about trade union consciousness. If you'd been at the latest installment of the Socialist Youth versus WSM public debates you'd know that!

by Ciarán Ó Brolcháin Mon May 08, 2006 00:25

...and in this corner...

by revol68 Mon May 08, 2006 00:13

Sorry but having seen the Socialist Youth lot I don't think they are in any position to call anarchists middle class, I mean aside from the ridiculous class analysis it displays it's simply not true of anarchists in the North, even in the crudest sociological criteria.

And sure weren't the middle class intelligentsias the producers of socialism, sure aren;t the workers only capable of "trade union consciousness", ah right none of the Socialist Youth have read What is to be Done then?

Apart from that I'd be interested in how many of the gobshites encanting the spectre of Lenin have actually read his writings, and more importantly how many of them have read Marx?

by @ Sun May 07, 2006 23:49

In the past few months Anarchist Youth have organise countless meetings, film showings, printed up hundreds of leaflets and pamphlets, had banner and stencil workshops, helped organise the red and black bloc on March 18th, attended AAAs, went to the Anarchist Picnic, Critical Mass, had a succesflul benefit gig, helped to organise the Baldonnel Action, have recently set up a forum, attended the RAR demo, the polish anti fascist one, did leafleting in solidarity with the french students, attended Shell to Sea actions and on Saturday four members travelled up to Belfast for the Mayday march where we gave out leaflets and made new links with the Organise crew.

All that plus a lot more since December.

Boring?

get real.

by Mark P - Socialist Party (personal capacity) Sun May 07, 2006 23:48

Adopting ridiculous chants to wind up other sections of a march is a proud tradition. I spent part of one of the big London anti-war demonstration trapped behind a contingent of hippy peaceniks with a few other socialists. Within about half an hour we were chanting Spart slogans as loud as we could. Defend North Korea's right to nuclear weapons! Happy days.

by Jack White Sun May 07, 2006 23:46

Have the SY in Belfast developed some crazy socialist super powers? How else could you tell from walking behind someone that they are "snotty, middle-class, lifestylists". Maybe they've developed some kind of genetic enhancement that enables political x-ray or something?

Needless to say its way off whack anyway. You might not come across Belfast anarchists from Mayday to Mayday but then they don't tend to congregate around city centre stalls trying to lure people into front groups through signing petitions which are used as contact databases rather than ever being handed in to anyone.

"And we stand by our slogan. Lenin lived, Lenin lives, Lenin will live!"

Yes he did, no he doesn't, and no he won't. In fact looking the legacy from his long list of achievements - from the ex-USSR to Cambodia, from the strangling of genuinely socialist movements worldwide to the pro-paedophile globetrotting Sparticists its a real pity he ever did.

Don't let that interfere with your cult of personality though.

(After all without the example of leaders like Lenin or Trotsky it would be hard to justify the kind of undemocratic hierarchical top-down structures groups like the SP have today).

What crazy capers will those SY kids get into next?

by Zoo Keeper Sun May 07, 2006 23:24

It must have been quite enjoyable to shout your barking mad religious mantra 'Lenin lives, lenin lives, the spirit of lenin will live' at passers by on that march after all that bed room practice. Even the bleeding Hare Krishnas have more of a sense of style than that. Your criticism of Anarchist Youth is hilarious, they are boring in comparison to the other anarchists you've come across. Where did you come across these other anarchists? Is there a room marked Zoo Of The Ultra Left Deviantists in your democractiuc centralist organisaitons HQ where all sorts of specimens are kept ranging from Euro crust mullet sporters, to quaint peasant sorts that need leadership from the urban proletariat to full on raging chaos punk bezerker rioters?

If your party leadership let you get up close enough to Anarchist Youth, you might have seen that they are in fact normal kids, who were probably engaged in the ever useful act of giving out political literature. While you were doing what exactly? Trying to squel Lenin's name loud enough at each other in supplication to some charicitured working class? How did they answer? I hear some of the mammies and daddies couldn't decide what to make for the sunday lunch today, maybe you can step in during this crisis of leadership and serve us up a right turkey of a political project.

by Red - SY (personal capacity) Sun May 07, 2006 22:39

The reason Socialist Youth used that slogan a couple of times was to piss off some of the anarchists standing in front of us who started to make some smart comments in their usual snotty, middle-class, lifestylist way to our slogan 'Fight the power! Smash the system! What we need is socialism!'. Obviously, we were successful

Most of them were from Dublin but those from Belfast who made the comments are armchair anarchists who I, as an activist, never see from May Day to May Day. Get off your arses and people might take you more seriously!

Also, congratulations to Anarchist Youth on being the most boring group off anarchists I've ever seen. Not a peep out of them the whole way round the route.

And we stand by our slogan. Lenin lived, Lenin lives, Lenin will live!

by carlito Sun May 07, 2006 22:26

He writes off everything that certain philosophers every wrote without ever bothering to read it, arrogant? For me they are the post-modernist SWP. Down with everything Marx wrote, because he doesn't belong to your peer/group mentality he couldn't have possibly contributed anything to political thought, hopefully the best of them will move on soon enough, "question everything" including your own certainties you might just be suprised.

by Paul Sun May 07, 2006 20:59

There were two loyalist bands on this workers parade..can anyone say why they were invited and what relevance their playing in the parade has to working class unity?

by jack white - ` Sun May 07, 2006 18:30

"fair play to SY Belfast, keeping the spirit of Lenin alive!!! smash the ultra-leftists."

Necrophiliac Trotskyites! Best thing you could do with the spirit of Lenin would be to leave it rot - rather than constantly molesting and trying to reanimate it.

Anyone deluded enough to believe that Stalins regime fell from the moon or was some sort of deviation from that of Lenin should check out the following links:

http://libcom.org/library/the-bolsheviks-and-workers-co...group

http://www.struggle.ws/wsm/russia.html

Anyway apart from all that well done on the photos.

Lenin engages with the working class.

by hmmm Sun May 07, 2006 18:06

anarchists were against all oppression, socialists are, thats y they dont use the T word or indeed the C word ie that something is so bad its a womens vagina. Whats Anarchist youths problem. Im disgraced for them.

by - Sun May 07, 2006 16:35

anarchists "liberals with bombs" (well at least anarchists in the past had a pair of balls unlike the "lifestylists" of today).

oh sorry i forgot lots of anarchists, syndicalists joined the Comintern and Bolsheviks post-1917, that was my own deluded fantasy!!!!

fair play to SY Belfast, keeping the spirit of Lenin alive!!! smash the ultra-leftists.

good photos too, fair play.

by young anarchist - AY Sun May 07, 2006 11:47

One of their slogans, i kid you not was 'Lenin lives, lenin lives, the spirit of lenin will live'.

Twats.

by sean Sun May 07, 2006 04:05

it semed that the 2 biggest contingents (and loudest contingets) were the SP/SWP contingents with the first havn a watercharges and the second with an anti war group.

by Sean - Beal Feirste Sun May 07, 2006 00:16

Yes but speedfast migration to this country would only serve as a source of revolution rather than evolution. The whole issue of raising concerns about this and respect should be treated sympathetically rather than coming up with an anti racist campaign to oust any such opinion.

Be it in Belfast or in Dublin. Afterall, this is a democracy you know...

by Patrique - nipsa Sun May 07, 2006 00:05

That's a very good question. The Ballymacarratt Defenders or something like that. Maybe they were on their way to the Cup Final.

Afterwards the Boilermakers had a party in the Duke of York with a great band, absolutely brilliant.

by ('',) - AY Sun May 07, 2006 00:02

Great march/Great Day.

Nice to meet the Organise crew.

Took loads of pics, but everything seems to be covered in the main story. :)

by Paul Sat May 06, 2006 23:28

Workers of the world unite...

as far as I'm concerned Sean, migrants add and enhance our culture, what culture are you looking to protect?

What were loyalist bands doing on the May Day march?

by Sean - Beal Feirste Sat May 06, 2006 22:27

Seen some of the photos above. But its impotant that those migrants coming here also respect our culture too and not just whitewash the whole issue of respect with an anti racist movement. Fairness please!

by pat c Sat May 06, 2006 20:30

some great photos, i'm sure they will be used elsewhere. a few good banners as well esp the Organise & the SIPTU Belfast Branch banners.

by Ciarán Ó Brolcháin Sat May 06, 2006 18:27

When the crowd reached George's Market there were a load of stalls in the place. Aside from the usual market, a number of organisations involved in the parade set up bookstalls and the like. There were stalls there on behalf of Amnesty International, the anarchists, the anti-war movement, the Communist Party, the Cuba Support Group, the Ireland-Palestine Solidary Campaign, the International Brigade Commemoration Committee, the Socialist Party and the SWP, and possibly a few more that I've forgotten.

Entertainment was also provided with music from the Jackie Lavelle Blues Quartet, and there was also a martial arts demonstration.

by Ciarán Ó Brolcháin Sat May 06, 2006 18:20

The parade made its way from the Arts College down Royal Avenue and Donegall Place then around Donegall Square, encircling Belfast City Hall. From there it went back up Donegall Place down High Street then up Oxford Street to George's Market.

The dragons entertain a crowd of onlookers

by Ciarán Ó Brolcháin Sat May 06, 2006 18:14

Anti-war, anti-racism, anti-poverty, anti-water privatisation - this parade got very negative very fast.

Um...

by Ciarán Ó Brolcháin Sat May 06, 2006 18:11

...and on...

WARN flags

West Belfast Anti-Racism Network

by Ciarán Ó Brolcháin Sat May 06, 2006 18:05

After the trade unions came the Trots and the anarchist bloc. (That was probably the most fun place to be in the whole parade.)

by Ciarán Ó Brolcháin Sat May 06, 2006 18:01

SIPTU and the teachers' unions

AUT

by Ciarán Ó Brolcháin Sat May 06, 2006 17:57

ATGWU

I'm not sure I get this banner

Tayra McKee on the march

by Ciarán Ó Brolcháin Sat May 06, 2006 17:53

Not that many left to go (relatively speaking)

More musical entertainment for the crowd

The 'fighting back' union

by Ciarán Ó Brolcháin Sat May 06, 2006 17:49

Unison members made sure that their union was well represented.

Unison members hijacked a van...

...and a bus

by Ciarán Ó Brolcháin Sat May 06, 2006 17:43

Maybe there weren't that many banners.

Belfasta nd District Trades' Union Council

Comhairle Cheardchumann Bhéal Feirste

Dublin solidarity

IPSC

by Ciarán Ó Brolcháin Sat May 06, 2006 17:37

There really were a lot of banners.

by Ciarán Ó Brolcháin Sat May 06, 2006 17:32

There were quite a few banners.

Amicus says 'No!'

Obviously not out looking for a scoop

by Ciarán Ó Brolcháin Sat May 06, 2006 17:29

The parade started after the speeches, led by a couple of Chinese dragons (we hope that they're unionised). They were followed by the trade unions vying for pole position in the parade. NIPSA won the day eventually.

NIPSA

AMICUS

A small portion of the crowd

The man, the legend