Direct Action posts

A Century of Writing on the IWW (Steve Kellerman)
Boston IWW 2007 – 38 pages – $5.00

This bibliography of books on the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) is the most complete work of its sort by a considerable margin. It is divided into four sections – general works (books exclusively about the IWW); biographical works; miscellaneous works with some bearing on the IWW; and writings by IWW members. The appendix on the IWW in fiction is so extensive relative to what has been available in the past as to constitute virtually an original work.

Available for $5 a copy from: IWW Literature Dept., PO Box 42777, Philadelphia, PA 19101 ($2 shipping for first item, 50¢ each additional item). For bulk orders contact Boston IWW, PO Box 391724, Cambridge, MA 02139 (50% discount on orders of six or more).

Realizing Hope: Life beyond Capitalism (Michael Albert)
Zed Books 2006 – 208 pages – £14.99 – ISBN: 978-1842777213

Michael Albert is perhaps most renowned for his acclaimed exposition of participatory economics in Parecon and Moving Forward. In Realising Hope, his most recent work, he transcends the primarily economic framework of participatory economics, and thoughtfully applies the principles of equity, diversity, justice and self-management to wider domains of human organisation, interaction and experience.

This well constructed text critically evaluates the theoretical tenets and practical application of both marxism and anarchism (and their derivatives) in the contemporary world. The counterproductive and dysfunctional elements of each tradition are convincingly dismissed, while the more useful tendencies are discerned to good effect. The net result forms a fresh, but nevertheless pragmatic vision of a better world.

The Colombian state’s policy of murdering trade unionists, indigenous people and social movement activists continues unabated in 2009. In London, the Colombian embassy sees frequent pickets protesting against these abuses. The photograph here shows a picket on October 23rd last year, which was specifically in solidarity with sugar cane cutters, striking public sector unions and the indigenous Minga people. The organisers, Polo Democrático UK and Colombia Solidarity Campaign, were joined by the Solidarity Federation / IWA, the Latin American Workers Association and Hands Off Venezuela. The sugar cane cutters have since won a major victory in December bringing pay increases and improvements in terms and conditions – further info: http://upsidedownworld.org/main/content/ view/1625/

The cowardly police murder of 15 year old Alexandros Grigoropoulos in Athens on December 6th was the catalyst for days of rioting, protests and occupations. Although these have now largely died down, the country remains on a knife edge.

Greece has a turbulent history, being ruled between 1967 and 1974 by a US-backed military dictatorship – a regime brought down by a mass rebellion inspired by students at Athens Polytechnic in 1973.

In the run up to the recent shooting, the country was rocked by a series of high-profile scandals implicating the government, church and judiciary. Wanton police brutality and racism are rife; unemployment levels have soared to 70% among the 18-25s; 1 in 5 Greeks live in poverty, and low pay and high prices run in parallel. To top it all, neo-liberal reforms and austerity measures have compounded a biting recession.

Since October last year, students from all over Italy have been involved in a wide number of protests against new laws which are aiming to introduce neoliberal reforms in both schools and universities. These new laws, law 133 and law 169, have been put forward by minister of education Mariastella Gelmini who is aiming to balance the government’s books through cutting public expenditure in education. The main thrust of the new laws are:

“Women are consumed by men who treat them as sex objects; they are consumed by their children (whom they have produced!) when they buy the role of super mother; they are consumed by authoritarian husbands who expect them to be willing servants; and they are consumed by bosses who bring them in and out of the labour force and who extract a maximum of labour for a minimum of pay….They are consumed by men who buy their bodies on the street. They are consumed by church and state, who expect them to produce the next generation for the glory of god and country.”

Carol Ehrlich: Socialism, Anarchism and Feminism

Much work carried out in today’s society is boring, useless and stressful, affording workers little in the way of genuine autonomy or self-determination. Further, the forces of capitalist industry are profligate in the use of our time, talents and natural creativity, making us mere minions to the machinery of profit. This wastefulness is compounded during times of recession when unemployment levels soar. Under capitalism, workers are typically paid far less than the true value of their labours, while the owners of capital grow ever richer by creaming off the surplus value in the form of profit. Mass poverty and social inequality are other by-products of the profit economy, sanctioned in the final analysis by the institutions of government. Moreover, capitalist production as a whole is damaging to the environment and leads to wars between nation states over resources, territory and markets.

As the global economy plunges deeper into crisis, people everywhere are facing home repossessions, unemployment, pay cuts and rising prices. The very same governments that for decades extolled the virtues of unfettered market forces, have committed the ultimate U-turn by promising billions of taxpayers’ money for bailing out ailing financial institutions. This, they argued, was necessary to avert a complete economic meltdown on the scale of the 1930s. But before the full horror of crisis unfolded, some speculators and hedge fund managers, who gambled on the chaos big style, have pocketed the cash and disappeared merrily off into the sunset.

We are told that this latest financial crisis was caused by a combination of mounting unserviceable debt, greedy bankers and the collapse of the American sub-prime mortgage market. But this is only half the story. As many are coming to realise, cycles of boom and bust are part and parcel of capitalism itself.

There is a common misconception that anarcho-syndicalists aren’t remotely interested in anything unconnected with workplace struggle. This is, to put it very mildly, rubbish! Without practicing solidarity, mutual aid and organisation outside, as well as inside, our workplaces, we could never change society for the better.

One of the enduring plus points of mutual aid and voluntary cooperation is that people practice them daily in every act of kindness, unselfishness and community spirit. Looking out for one another or sharing our skills, time and resources go a long way in reversing the selfish dog-eat-dog individualism that our rulers love. This spirit is also reflected in the growing popularity of DIY politics.