Socialist Worker

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The truth about Blair's Britain — born poor, stay poor

After eight years of New Labour rule, Britain remains one of the most class divided societies in the world — and things are getting worse. If you are born into poverty, you will almost certainly live and die in poverty.

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International Comment Features Reviews What We Think Other

News

Voices from Africa, Voices of Resistance — an inspiring day of debate on Africa

Around 300 people gathered in Glasgow last Saturday for a conference on "Voices from Africa, Voices of Resistance".

Ambala Foods — better pay must be on the menu for workers

Forty Asian workers are gathered outside the Ambala Foods factory in Stratford, east London. They stand in small groups chatting in several different languages, playing cards or eating curry from polystyrene bowls.

Reports round-up

No welcome for academy plan Teachers and parents got an excellent response from the public when they petitioned last weekend against plans to introduce city academies into Islington, north London.

A wonderful reception for these Respect and SSP candidates

Birmingham Teams of volunteers flocked to Salma Yaqoob’s campaign headquarters over the weekend and distributed 3,000 placards around the Sparkbrook & Small Heath constituency. Others spent many hours canvassing, distributing campaign material and organising.

Pay strikes shut down Glasgow’s subway system

Striking workers closed Glasgow’s subway system for four days from Friday of last week. The workers, members of the T&G union, struck in support of their pay claim and against attacks on conditions.

AUT conference votes to take a historic step to unity

Jubilant delegates left the conference of the university lecturers’ AUT union in Eastbourne on Friday of last week after a historic gathering.

Blair’s lies on Iraq exposed as victim toll rises

The Iraq war was illegal, and Tony Blair knew it. That is the central charge of a leaked document about advice presented to the prime minister before the assault on Iraq began.

Vietnam — the war that won’t end

The front page news in New York City last week was former senator Bob Kerrey’s announcement that he was considering a campaign for mayor next year against incumbent Michael Bloomberg. Kerrey (not to be confused with fellow Democrat John Kerry) is a famous war hero — winner of the Congressional Medal of Honour, the US’s highest military decoration.

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International

What lies behind the anti-Japanese protests in China?

China has witnessed three weekends of anti-Japanese protests. Small protests began at the start of April. Then on Saturday 9 April thousands of protesters, mainly university students, marched through the capital Beijing and smashed windows at the Japanese embassy.

The US’s power game intensifies the tension between China and Japan

Japan has been a key element in US global policy since the US occupied the country after the Second World War. The Japanese and US ruling classes want to see greater Japanese military power.

Saddam’s man Wafiq al-Samarrai has a new job

The US has appointed one of Saddam Hussein’s most feared generals as "a special security adviser" to the new Iraqi government. Wafiq al-Samarrai was head of General Military Intelligence during the uprisings in the Shia south and Kurdish north following the end of the 1991 Gulf War.

‘Outlaws’ in Ecuador bring down president who betrayed voters

The South American country of Ecuador is in turmoil. Lucio Gutierrez, the president in whom the mass movement once placed great hopes, has fled the country.

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Comment

Priests on the barricades

In a series of meditations the Nicaraguan poet and priest Ernesto Cardenal described the "kingdom of god" as a socialist society. Twenty years later, in 1979, Cardenal and three other Catholic priests became ministers in a Sandinista government which came to power through revolution.

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Features

Today's Nazis cloak their thuggery in smart suits

Next month marks the 60th anniversary of the defeat of Hitler’s Nazi regime. But May will also see over 100 candidates standing for the fascist British National Party (BNP) in the general election.

The real liberators of Italy

One of the greatest myths about the Second World War is that Allied armies liberated Europe from Nazism on their own. The truth is that many national liberation movements played a key role in driving the Nazis out of their own countries.  

Giovanni Pesce's Testimony

Giovanni Pesce was born in France to a family of anti-fascist Italian emigres working as miners. He joined the Communist Party and fought in the Spanish Civil War for the International Brigades.

Media’s myth of the Muslim monolith

Muslims form the biggest non-Christian religious group in Britain. There are 1.6 million Muslims in the country, about 2.7 percent of the population. Most are concentrated in inner city areas.

Galloway wins ovation in east London Telco debate with Oona King

George Galloway, the Respect candidate for Bethnal Green & Bow, went head to head with his Labour opponent Oona King in a heated debate held in the east London constituency on Wednesday of last week.

Coming events

Thursday 28 AprilWorkers Memorial Day

Anti-fascist veterans back George and Oliur

Harold Rosen, one of the surviving veterans of the struggle against Oswald Mosley’s fascists in east London in the 1930s, has thrown his weight behind George Galloway’s election campaign.

South African activist rejects Blair’s neo-liberal agenda for Africa

I hear that Trevor Manuel, South Africa’s finance minister, has appeared in the British press calling for people to vote Labour because of the party’s commitment to tackling world poverty.

Make history with Respect in east London this weekend

The issue of Iraq has moved to where it should be — at the centre of this election campaign.

Sugar — a sweet and deadly multinational racket

Sugar is as much bound up with the history of slavery and colonialism as cotton, which this column looked at last week.

Janet Alder’s campaign shakes up Tottenham

Respect candidate Janet Alder, who is standing against Labour minister David Lammy in Tottenham, north London, took her campaign to the Broadwater Farm estate last week.

The anti-war generation at Newham Sixth Form hustings

Lindsey German, Respect’s candidate for West Ham, won loud applause when she told a student hustings that we have to fight in the coming election to "make poverty history, make war history".

Hypocrisy of Labour’s leaflets in Bethnal Green and Bow

Labour candidate Oona King has been accused of "dividing the community" in Bethnal Green & Bow after her campaign distributed two different leaflets to different areas — one of which removed any reference to Muslims.

Election campaign in brief

Babar calls for anti-war vote Babar Ahmad, the south London IT worker facing extradition to the US on trumped up terrorism charges, has called on voters to back anti-war candidates, including George Galloway.

Respect in the news

"Galloway is a popular man in Bethnal Green & Bow, where over 40 percent of the population is Muslim, and King’s 10,000 majority is looking increasingly shaky."UPI press agency report syndicated to papers around the world last week

May Day greetings

Download a PDF of <a href="graphics/1949/1949_mayday.pdf">Socialist Worker's May Day Greetings</a>. Six tabloid pages 1,283 KB

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Reviews

Bloody Sunday play holds state to account

The reality that Bloody Sunday the play depicts is not that of Bloody Sunday itself, but of the tribunal.

Play that takes you to the heart of the events

Bloody sunday is the latest in the series of tribunal plays staged by the Tricycle Theatre in London.

Four dynamite films to make you laugh, cry or dance released on DVD

Vera DrakeDirected by Mike Leigh

Reviews round-up

The Jerwood Photography awardsOpen Eye Gallery, Liverpool, until 4 JunePhone 01517099460

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What We Think

Iraq is the issue that defines this election

The general election campaign has only caught fire when the issue of Iraq has been raised. On the doorstep and on the streets, people are angry about being lied to, angry at Tony Blair’s arrogance and angry at the soaring cost of the war — both in terms of lives and money.

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Other Categories

Steve Donnelly 1956–2005

The death of Steve Donnelly is an enormous loss to the labour movement. Coming from Kirkby, a solid working class town on the outskirts of Liverpool, Steve began and finished his working life with AC Delco, a car components engineering business.

Postal votes are an invitation to fraud

Your story (Socialist Worker, 16 April) on the scandals surrounding postal voting points to a very serious issue.

Marxism 2005 — Make capitalism history

The new millennium has already seen millions march against war — from London to Mumbai, from Washington to Cairo. Governments have toppled in the face of mass opposition on the streets in Bolivia, Argentina and Ecuador.

Don’t miss Socialist Worker

Socialist Worker has been vital reading for Respect and anti-war activists during this general election campaign. Last week we brought together reports from across the country that highlighted the vibrancy of the left’s challenge to New Labour.

Special Yo Yo Mundi Sciopero CD offer

To celebrate International Workers Day, Socialist Worker presents a special price CD offer on Yo Yo Mundi’s Sciopero.

UNITE — may day music against fascism

ESTELLE PETER DOHERTY TERRI WALKER Lady Sovereign | Roll Deep | Ras Kwame | Skitz &amp; Rodney P with MC D | Skemer &amp; Big P | Wiley | Bruza, Crazy Titch with DJ Cameo | Bigga Fish

Socialist Review — May issue out now

Respect at the polls John Rees, Lindsey German, Janet Alder and Judy Cox provide reports and analysis

Forums, events and film showings

Meetings And Events

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