CANADIAN ANARCHIST MOVEMENT-ONTARIO:

'BLACK FLAME' AUTHOR ONTARIO TOUR:

The Ontario platformist organization Common Cause, along with other allies are sponsoring an Ontario book tour by the South African author of the new and acclaimed book 'Black Flame'. Here are the details from their website, supplemented with further information from the Ontario section of the Anarchist Black Cat discussion board. There is also a Facebook page for the tour which has a link to a short video and also an excerpt from the book.

Black Flame attempts to place the history and theory of anarchism squarely in the mass movements of class struggle and also gives a wealth of detail about non-European movements that have achieved perhaps as great success as the more commonly known European ones have. Well worth the read. If you live in Ontario try and see this fascinating author.

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

Common Cause organizes "Black Flame" Ontario book tour:

South African writer and activist Michael Schmidt, co-author of “Black Flame: The Revolutionary Class Politics of Anarchism and Syndicalism” will be in several Ontario cities between March 15 and March 21 to promote and discuss this important new book on the global history of anarchist movements and ideas. The tour, organized by Common Cause with support from AK Press and several local sponsors, is scheduled to pass through the following cities listed below. To promote the tour Common Cause has also produced a short video which can be seen here

March 15 - Waterloo,

4PM to 6PM

School of Business and Economics, Room 2260

Wilfrid Laurier University

75 University Avenue West
Sponsored the Communication Studies and Global Studies departments.
March 16 - London
March 17 - Hamilton

1)McMaster University,

12-2pm

MUSC Rooms 311 and 313

1280 Main St. West

Limited seating.

Please RSVP at commoncauseontario@gmail.com

2)Sky Dragon Centre,

7-9pm

27 King William Street

Hamilton, ON

Organized by Common Cause Hamilton

commoncausehamilton@gmail.com

March 18 - Montreal

March 19 - Ottawa

March 20, 21 - Toronto

Full details to follow soon.

Organized by Common Cause Ontario with support from AK Press.

For more information contact

commoncauseontario@gmail.com

and check www.linchpin.ca.

About the book from AK Press:

“Black Flame (Counter-Power, Volume 1) is the first of a two-volume set examining the democratic class politics of the worldwide anarchist movement, its vision of a decentralized planned economy, and its impact on popular struggles on five continents over the course of the past 150 years. From anarchism's first glimmers as a nineteenth-century ideology to today's anticapitalist struggles, Black Flame traces anarchism's lineage and contemporary relevance, outlining the movement's insights into questions of race, gender, class, and imperialism. With Black Flame, Michael Schmidt and Lucien van der Walt, both writers and activists in South Africa, have begun what promises to be the definitive synthetic account of the international anarchist tradition. Nearly exhaustive in scope, and rigorous in its scholarly detail, this first volume significantly reframes the work of previous historians and, especially, examines coherent alternatives to Marxist and nationalist approaches to revolutionary theory and practice. An indispensable conceptual roadmap to the history and continuing relevance of anarchist praxis”

Reviews:

“In recent years, there has been an upsurge in class struggle anarchism or social anarchism. In these circumstances, there is a need for a clear and more forceful theoretical statement of principles, and Black Flame serves as an excellent opening statement of the relevance of class struggles anarchism in a twenty-first century context...this book is an impressive introduction to the history of anarchist theory and anarchist movements.”

-Sean Benjamin,

Upping the Anti no. 9,

November 2009.

"This highly worthwhile book represents the fruit of considerable scholarship and deep reflection. The authors have done a remarkable job in drawing together a vast international body of literature. They show convincingly that anarchism and syndicalism were far more significant political forces in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century world than historians have generally given them credit for. They provide excellent accounts of the movement's global political reach, supported by an impressive knowledge of disparate literatures. Schmidt and van der Walt also make a powerful and lucidly written case for anarchism as a serious and coherent political philosophy."

—Jonathan Hyslop,

University of the Witwatersrand,

Johannesburg

"This book fulfills a daunting task. Covering anarchism in all parts of the world and emphatically tying it to class struggle, the authors present a highly original and challenging account of the movement, its actions and ideas. This work is a must for everybody interested in non-authoritarian social movements."

—Bert Altena,

Rotterdam University

"A well-thought out and nuanced study of the intellectual, political, and social history of anarchism."

—Steven Hirsch,

University of Pittsburgh

About the authors:

Michael Schmidt is a Johannesburg-based investigative journalist and journalism trainer, with more than twenty years experience in the field as a reporter for South Africa's leading newspapers including the Sunday Times and ThisDay, and as a co-editor of the anarchist news and analysis website anarkismo.net. A seasoned activist, his work has taken him to Chiapas, to Guatemala during the civil war, to the Democratic Republic of Congo, Mozambique, Rwanda, Darfur, Lebanon, and beyond.

Lucien van der Walt is based at the University of Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, where he teaches in development, economic sociology, and labor studies. His recently completed PhD on the history of anarchism and syndicalism in early twentieth-century South Africa was awarded the prestigious Labor History international prize for the best doctoral thesis of 2007. He has written and lectured widely on contemporary working-class struggles and the relationship between race and class, and, together with Steven Hirsch, he is the editor of the forthcoming volume, Anarchism in the Colonial and Postcolonial World, 1880-1940 (Brill 2009).

CANADIAN ANARCHIST MOVEMENT-TORONTO:

TORONTO ANARCHIST ASSEMBLY COMING SOON:

Following the success of last year's Toronto Anarchist Assembly it's going to be happening again this year on April 9 to 11. Here's the callout from the Ontario section of the Anarchist Black Cat discussion board.

@@@@@@@@@@@@

****

Toronto Anarchist Assembly

April 9, 10, 11

****

Friends,

It’s time for us to gather. To assemble and talk to each other. To bring together folks who secretly or not so secretly identify with anarchism, and continue to build a larger and more vibrant community. Building on last year’s ‘Toronto Anarchist Gathering’ this will be a bigger and better weekend of events including panel discussions, booktables, workshops, social events and more.

We need your help!

We’re writing to invite you to participate in a weekend of fun and anarchism at the Toronto Anarchist Assembly on April 9-11th. This will be a space for a wide variety of anarchist individuals, radical political groups, and anti-authoritarian organizations to come together, meet, greet, educate, skill-share, and hear about each other’s projects and plans.

Hopefully this will be an opportunity to educate some people about what anarchism is all about, to encourage people to get involved with some of the organizing and organizations that exist in Toronto, and to provide a space for already-established groups to hear about each other’s work.

On Friday April 9th, there will be an evening panel discussion on “Anarchism in the 21st Century”

On Saturday April 10, there will be booktables, group tables, displays, and workshops from 11am-3pm. Then from 3pm-5pm there will be a giant go-around so folks can hear what other people are up to. From 5pm on there will be a family-friendly social with food, games, and movies, followed later by music, a bar, and all kinds of anti-authoritarian hijinks.

On Sunday April 11, there will be more booktables, group tables, displays, and workshops.

PLEASE GET INVOLVED.

Want to have a table for books, literature, flyers? Or to sell buttons, shirts, or whatever else?

Send us an email at: torontoanarchistassembly@gmail.com

(priority given to folks with literature)

Want to put on a workshop? If so, send us an email with a short description of what you want to do. We’ll try to put on as many workshops as we have space for.

If you want to help out in any other way, for example, by making a donation, putting up posters, or volunteering to do childcare, that’d be awesome. Give us a shout at torontoanarchistassembly@gmail.com. Also please let us know if you have any particular accessibility requests. We’ll do our best to accommodate.

The Toronto Anarchist Assembly is open to anyone who shares our anti-oppressive perspective against classism, sexism, racism, ableism, colonialism, homophobia, and other hierarchical attitudes, practices and crap.

http://torontoanarchistassembly.blogspot.com/

CANADIAN ANARCHIST MOVEMENT-TORONTO:

PLANNING THE 2010 TORONTO ANARCHIST ASSEMBLY:

It's an anarchist bookfair by another name, perhaps one more true to what actually happens at such events, something like the word favoured in the Spanish speaking world, "encuentro", meaning more or less "encounter". More happens at anarchist bookfairs than just gazing at books laid out on a table. Building on their success this year with their "assembly" people are now laying out plans for a bigger and better one next year. If you live in the Toronto area consider hooking up and lending a hand. The following appeal is from the Ontario section of the Anarchist Black Cat discussion board.

◘◘◘◘◘◘◘◘◘◘◘◘◘◘◘
Help build the 2010 anarchist assembly!:
Recently a group of anarchist activists who were involved in organizing the 2009 Toronto anarchist gathering got together to start planning a similar event for 2010.

What we came up with at our initial meeting was to call an anarchist assembly to be held in Toronto in March 2010.

We see this as a public assembly consisting of assembly meetings, workshops, book tables, and social spaces that will build the anarchist movement.

Attend the next organizing meeting!

The next organizing meeting for the 2010 anarchist assembly will be held:

Sunday November 29

Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE)

252 Bloor St. West (St. George Subway)

4pm

Meet in the lobby

We encourage all anarchist activists to participate in making this a productive and exciting event for all.

AMERICAN LABOUR:

SOLIDARITY WITH QUAD CITY DIE CASTING WORKERS:

The following item came to Molly's attention via the Anarchist Black Cat discussion board. It is originally from an Illinois blog titled 'At Home He's a Tourista'. The United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America mentioned below is a member controlled union that is on the forefront of creative labour struggle in the USA. They are the people who won the struggle at Republic Window and Doors in Chicago via an occupation of the Chicago factory. As the signs above say, Wells Fargo is a "roadblock to recovery", and the protesters involved did their own roadblock to demonstrate that.

ALALALALALALAL

UE Workers Block Intersection, Get Arrested In Attempt to Save Jobs:

On Thursday, July 9th, United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America members, SDS-Milwaukee and a host of supporters picketed a Wells Fargo branch in Rock Island, Illinois. Twelve people were arrested, cited, and then released after unfurling a banner and blocking an intersection in an act of civil disobedience.

This action is part of a UE driven campaign to pressure Wells Fargo into using some of the $25 billion in government bailout money it received for extending credit to the Quad City Die Casting company in Moline, Illinois. Without the money, the plant will be forced to close and around one hundred workers will be left unemployed.

http://athomehesaturista.wordpress.com/2009/07/10/ue-workers-block-intersection-get-arrested-in-attempt-to-save-jobs/

ALALALALALALAL

Here's the story as told by the UE themselves on their website.

ALALALALALALAL

Workers Arrested in Big Protest at Wells Fargo, As Quad City Workers Continue Fight for Jobs:
10 July, 2009
Rock Island, IL
A big group of UE Local 1174 members and supporters from other unions demonstrated at Wells Fargo’s Rock Island branch on Thursday, July 9. Nearly a dozen workers were arrested after they blocked a street to symbolize how Wells Fargo is a “roadblock to recovery.”

Workers are continuing their fight to keep Quad City Die Casting open and save 100 jobs. The plant is slated to close because Wells Fargo – recipient of $25 billion in the federal banking bailout – has cut off operating credit to the company.

Asked by a TV reporter why she’d been willing to be arrested, Local 1174 Recording Secretary Deb Johann replied, “Because I want to save my job.”

More details on this protest and Local 1174’s continuing struggle at ueillinois.com.

ALALALALALALAL

The protest at Rock island is only part of a continuing campaign on the part of the UE to save the Quad City jobs. Wells Fargo, a recipient of government bailout aid, is being picketed across the country to do the right thing. Here, once more from the UE website, is a report on the 'Day of Action' last June 23.

ALALALALALALAL

EXPANDED COVERAGE: Day of Action Against Wells Fargo:
26 June, 2009
MORE: PHOTOS, VIDEOS and STORIES are at ueillinois.org
In some 20 cities across the U.S. on June 23, UE members and allies took action at branch offices of banking giant Wells Fargo, and in some cases its subsidiary Wachovia, from Boston to Los Angeles. Joined by members of other unions, Jobs with Justice and community organizations, members chanted and carried signs with the message, “You got bailed out, we got sold out!” Wells Fargo, one of the largest banks and the recipient of a $25 billion bailout from taxpayers, is unfairly forcing the closure of Quad City Die Casting, a viable factory in Moline, IL where the members of UE Local 1174 work, by cutting off the normal line of credit the company needs in oder to operate and stay in business.

Here are brief reports from some of the protest sites.
PHILADELPHIA
Some 33 people from UE and Jobs with Justice protested at a Wachovia bank (owned by Wells Fargo) in downtown Philadelphia, and handed out nearly 500 leaflets on the Quad City jobs fight.

Local 155 President Ron McCullough explained to the group – and to hundreds of onlookers – the struggle by Local 1174 to save their jobs and Wells Fargo’s role in forcing the pending plant closing of Quad City Die Casting. Protesters picketed for about 30 minutes, and then a delegation, consisting of Philadelphia Jobs with Justice Chair John Braxton and McCullough went inside to deliver a “notice of default” on Wells Fargo’s obligations to the American people.

McCullough repeatedly asked to see the bank manager in order to deliver the notice, but one bank employee after another refused to summon the manager, ordered McCullough and Braxton to leave immediately, and threatened to call the police. McCullough refused to leave, saying he’d do so after he delivered the document to the manager. The attention of the 30 or more customers in the bank lobby was riveted onto this confrontation. In an effort to silence free speech in the city that's the home of the Liberty Bell and birthplace of the Declaration of Independence, bank managers called the cops. But before the police arrived a bank official, identifying himself as the assistant manager, finally accepted the letter.

The picketing continued for a while after Ron and John emerged from the bank. One young woman stopped to observe the protest. After she read the UE flyer she became so incensed by Wells Fargo’s action that she also went inside to tell bank officials what she thought of Wells Fargo.
LOS ANGELES
At Wells Fargo’s main office center in downtown Los Angeles, activists ranging in age from 11 to 81 conducted an informational picket line. Chants like “Wells Fargo, Shame On You – You Got Bailed Out and Workers Got Sold Out,” echoed off the high-rise building while security guards kept close watch. Hundreds of fliers explaining the struggle of UE Local 1174 workers were distributed and well received, especially by bus riders and building workers, but got a less friendly response from executive types in expensive pin-striped suits. The action was organized by the Los Angeles Bail Out the People Movement.
COSTA MESA, CA
A relatively small UE group picketed Wells Fargo’s branch in Costa Mesa, but their presence and their signs got plenty of notice on one of the busiest streets in Orange County. There were plenty of friendly from passing drivers, and Bryan Martindale of Local 1421 uses a megaphone to lead the group in chants. After about about 25 minutes the members went inside to present a letter to the branch manager. She smiled and did not ask any questions. Local 1421's Brian Barrington presented the letter and we asked that she pass the message on to higher corporate management.
CEDAR RAPIDS, IA
Twenty members of UE Local 893/IUP and Local 896/COGS, along with supporters from the Hawkeye Labor Council and other local groups, picketed and leafleted a Wells Fargo office in Cedar Rapids over their lunch hour, in solidarity with UE Local 1174 members at Quad City Die Casting. Passing motorists honked their horns in support. Two local TV stations and the Cedar Rapids Gazette sent reporters to cover this event.
DAVENPORT, IA
Workers and clergy from the Quad Cities area, including Local 1174 members, confronted Wells Fargo management at its Davenport, IA office and asked bank officials to accept “a plea for justice from the community.” Bank executives called the police, but this did not deter a five-person delegation from entering their building. The bank official they encountered refused to give her name, but accepted the letter handed her by C.J. Hawkins of Interfaith Worker Justice, and agreed to deliver it to the bank’s regional president. UE Director of Organization Bob Kingsley told the group, “We can’t let this giant bank default on its obligation to the American people and the people of the Quad Cities. Wells Fargo is a roadblock to economic recovery.”
CHICAGO
In Chicago some 75 protestors from several unions and community groups cordoned off the parking lot of a Wells Fargo Home Mortgage branch with crime scene tape, and traced chalk outlines of the bank’s worker victims on the pavement, charging the bank with “jobicide” and “homeicide.” They chanted, “Wells Fargo, this sucks. Where’s our 25 billion bucks?” The group included UE Local 1110 members and members of UFCW Local 881, Teamsters Local 743, SEIU Local 73, the Graduate Students Organization at the University of Illinois at Chicago, Arise Chicago, Center for a New Community, and South Austin Coalition.
ATLANTA
Barbara Joye of the Atlanta Fighting Foreclosures Coalition reports that some 20 intrepid demonstrators picketed in front of the midtown Wachovia branch today, in punishing afternoon heat. The giant regional bank Wachovia was bought out by Wells Fargo last October, in the midst of the banking industry meltdown. Besides demanding that Wells Fargo extend the credit needed to keep UE Quad City Die Casting workers in their jobs, Barbara writes, “We also reminded the bank that we are still demanding a foreclosure moratorium and reasonable settlements for Atlantans at risk of losing their homes.”
CHARLESTON, WV
Wells Fargo managers in Charleston seemed to know protestors were coming and were waiting for them. The branch manager and his posse met union supporters at the entrance before they had even picked up a sign.

About 20 members of UE Local 170 were joined by activists from the Citizen Action Group and Mountaineers for a National Health Plan. They got a good response from the public as they leafleted, picketed, and chanted, “You got bailed out, we got sold out.” The event received TV and newspaper coverage.
BOSTON
In the midst of a nasty nor’easter storm, 30 picketers marched outside the Boston Wells Fargo Commercial Bank building. Members from UE Locals 204, 262, 279, other unions, Jobs with Justice, housing groups, and students joined the National Day of Action on Wells Fargo locations. An excessive number of security personnel were in place before the picket even began, and they prevented a delegation of UE members and supporters from entering the building to deliver a message to bank executives.
NEW HAVEN, CT
A delegation of UE members and supporters took the Quad City workers’ struggle to the downtown New Haven branch of Wachovia bank, now a subsidiary of Wells Fargo. It included six members from Local 243 at Sargent Manufacturing, Local 222 President Marie Lausch, former Local 299 President Dorothy Johnson, and Bill Collins, a singer with the Rabble Rousers who’s written a song about the Republic plant occupation. A delegation went inside to meet the branch manager, but neither he nor the assistant manager were available. They spoke to a lower-ranking bank operative who took the leaflet and “managed to look very concerned over workers losing their jobs,” reports UE International Rep. Carol Lambiase. She was banned from taking photos inside marble walls of the bank. Marie Lausch and Local 243 President Ray Pompano led chants, using Local 243’s bullhorn. Passersby took leaflets and expressed support.
PORTLAND, OR
A small but spirited group of 20 including Marianne Hart, retired Local 1421 leader and former member of UE's General Executive Board, carried both Jobs with Justice and UE signs supporting the fight of Quad City workers, and received a welcoming response from passersby. The Portland Wells Fargo branch is a large classic bank building in the style of a Greek temple, and the group took over the platform in front of the entrance, at the top of the marble stairs. They shouted a call-and-response chant: “When I say bankers, you say gangsters. Bankers! Gangsters! Bankers! Gangsters!”
LACROSSE, WI
UE Local 1121 President Charlene Winchell blasted Wells Fargo for its failure to use taxpayer bailout money as intended, to make credit available to businesses and save jobs, as a dozen UE members picketed its branch in LaCrosse. “If they don’t keep their jobs, people are going to lose more homes,” said Winchell. “More people on unemployment. It’s going to be awful. It’s going to affect all of us.” A union delegation got inside the bank and spoke to a bank official about the plight of Quad City Die Casting and the 80 members of Local 1174. The event received local TV coverage.
ERIE, PA
A dozen UE members from Locals 506, 618, 683 and 684, as well as Eastern Region Pres. Andrew Dinkelaker, took the case of Local 1174 members against Wells Fargo to the bank’s office in downtown Erie. Two local TV stations covered the action.
WASHINGTON, DC
Over the past several days a UE lobbying team has visited over 100 congressional offices, including every member of both the Senate Banking Committee and the House Financial Services Committee. The members of Congress were given information on the injustice being perpetrated by Wells Fargo, and asked to intervene. While on Capitol Hill UE Political Action Director Chris Townsend spoke with Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA) chair of the House Financial Services Committee, and delivered a detailed letter explaining the situation at Quad City Die Casting to Frank's office. Rep. Frank has assisted UE members numerous times over the years, including his personal intervention on behalf of UE Local 204, Taunton, MA, during a difficult recent round of contract negotiations.

In a brief encounter in a corridor, Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-MD) told Townsend, “Everyone is mad at Wells Fargo.” The largest city in her state, Baltimore, is suing Wells Fargo for racially-discriminatory predatory mortgage lending practices that resulted in massive foreclosures and cost the city tens of millions of dollars in taxes and city services.

INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS-IRAN:

MESSING WITH THE MULLAH'S MINDS:

Here's an interesting suggestion for possible help for the insurgent people in Iran. This comes from the Anarchist Black Cat discussion board. Whether this sort of thing would actually work and whether it would be of assistance is hard for Molly to say. What is interesting is the large role that Twitter has taken in this revolt. If the recent Greek rebellion could be said to have run on text messaging this Iranian rebellion seems to be running on Twitter. If the suggestion below were to actually become popular I can foresee one potential difficulty...the vast majority of the Twitter posts would be in English or Spanish. Seems like an easy one to filter out. But, there again, there may be something that I don't know. The paradigm behind the idea is actually quite valid. If you want to tie a secret police force in knots feed it an overwhelming amount of useless and trivial information. Recipes for hamburger anyone ? Paying the employees of spy agencies overtime can only go so far. Eventually they do little but count grains of sand on the beach and never get to do anything else. It's actually an old tried and trusted tactic has been used in a different context in syndicalist free speech fights and other civil disobedience ie "clog the courts and the jails" rather than the information gathering apparatus. Sometimes it works.

Would it work in this case, at least temporarily ? Who knows. See what you think. Here's the suggestion...

TTTTTTTTTTTT

From friends in Iran :

Dear all:

Set your twitter time and location to Tehran. Makes it harder for the Iranian secret service to track people down in Tehran.

We need your help. Thank you.

Please repost widely!

INTERNATIONAL ANARCHIST MOVEMENT-BULGARIA:

SOLIDARITY WITH QUEER BULGARIA:

The following item first came to Molly's attention via the Europe section of the Anarchist Black Cat Discussion board. It is originally from the International Queer Solidarity Network.

QAQAQAQAQAQA
Solidarity with Queer Bulgaria: 27 June 2009:

The International Queer Solidarity Network calls for a European mobilization, with support from the United States, that will stand in solidarity with Queer Bulgaria. On June 28th 2008, neo-Nazi groups aggressively attacked the first LGBTQ Pride march in Sofia, Bulgaria. A week before the march, the Bulgarian National Alliance, the most visible nationalist organization in the country, called for a “week of intolerance.” The BNA strongly encouraged nationalistic groups to organize themselves against the right of the queer community in Bulgaria to peacefully march, which resulted in loosely organized violence during the festivities.(I find it pleasant that the other side can be at least as "loosely organized" as we anarchists all too often are-Molly)

BNA members and other neo-Nazis threw molotov cocktails and small explosives at the participants of the Pride march. Fortunately, no injuries were reported. However, more than eighty skinheads, including Boyan Rasate (head of the BNA) were arrested for their attempted harm and direct violence toward pride participants. This year neo-Nazi groups are once again organizing themselves against the march and Bulgarian queers’ ability to defend their human rights. The Bulgarian government not only tolerates but also encourages such attitudes. Two of the parties in the Parliament of Bulgaria are nationalistic and one of them, Ataka, called for “the men to beat up the gays.”

In addition, the Prime Minister of Bulgaria and head of the “socialist” party, Sergei Stanishev, subtly, through hidden sparks of hatred, said that he did not like the “manifestation and demonstration of such orientations.” Even though the rights of LGBTQ people in Bulgaria are protected by the constitution, this is yet more empty rhetoric in the hands of the powerful. The queer community refuses to give up its rights to a free assembly. There will be another Pride march on the 27th of June 2009. Let’s unite and stand together against the homophobic and transphobic state of Bulgaria and growing neo-Nazism in Europe.

The International Queer Solidarity Network calls for a European mobilization, with support from the United States, that will stand in solidarity with Queer Bulgaria. For more information on how you can help you can contact: iqsn@riseup.net or sofiagaypride2009@gmail.com If you cannot attend the Pride, visit http://www.iqsn.org/ for more information on how you can help. www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6oz3yeW5yo

e-mail:

iqsn@riseup.net

QAQAQAQAQAQA

For those curious about what the International Queer Solidarity Network is all about see the following statement from their website.

QAQAQAQAQAQA
About Us:
The International Queer Solidarity Network is a developing network of collectives and individuals working to strengthen the global movement of queer liberation. IQSN brings to light the injustices faced by the Queer community world-wide, and builds global solidarity with local struggles. IQSN is part of the larger movement building a world that is free from oppression of all people, including queer and trans people.
Points Of Unity:
* Our work thrives to provide a true sense of total liberation for everyone as we desire to live in a world that is free from discrimination, hatred and intolerance.

* We support a diversity of tactics, ranging from web-based and person-to-person education, to electoral/legislative campaigning to direct action and militant resistance.

* We stand in solidarity and support the tactics used by the community most affected.

* We oppose domination and hierarchy in all it’s forms.

* We value the skills and wisdoms(sic-Molly) possessed by the many different cultures in our world, and support the right to cultural self-determination.

* We believe that governments and institutions are violent and oppressive forces to queer and trans people and other marginalized peoples.

* As part of a global movement towards universal liberation, we recognize the interconnectedness of all forms of oppression. Queer and trans people will not be free until all people are free! and that means you, muthafuckas!!!

* We are in solidarity with all groups and individuals working to end oppression on institutional, socialized, and inter-personal levels.

CANADIAN LABOUR:

TORONTO HOMECARE WORKERS OCCUPY OFFICES OF COMMUNITY ACCESS CENTRE:

Since initiating strike action workers employed by the Toronto Community Access Centre have gone on to occupy the offices of the organization in the face of massive layoffs. As has been predicted here at Molly's Blog such workplace occupations are indeed becoming more and more frequent in these tough economic times as workers look for extra leverage as traditional methods fail to pressure the bosses. The workers involved are represented by the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 1. The following story is from a press release by the SEIU, via the Ontario section of the Anarchist Black Cat discussion forum.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

TORONTO, ONTARIO-- Home care workers and their supporters occupied the headquarters of the Toronto Community Access Centre today after learning that 350 women and men who work for Red Cross were going to lose their jobs because they exercised their right to bargain for a better contract.

"These women and men are trying to improve their lives and the quality of the home care system. No one should lose their job for that," said Louise Leeworthy an SEIU home care worker. "We've been taking strike action for over a month and not a single person with essential health needs has gone without support. Home care workers in Toronto haven't missed a day of work."

Last night, SEIU was informed by Red Cross management that they would be firing 350 home care workers in the Toronto-area after the Toronto Community Care Access Centre (CCAC) declared that they would be switching to other providers. Camille Orridge, the CEO of Toronto CCAC, claimed that they decision was a result of Red Cross home care workers decision to take strike action.

Members of SEIU Local 1 Canada employed by Red Cross have been in a legal strike position since March. Rotating one-day strikes have taken place in communities across Ontario. All clients with essential health needs have received the same regular care. No strike action has been taken in Toronto.

Home care workers have chosen to take strike action after years of poor work conditions. While the government has set a "minimum wage" of $12.50 an hour - home care workers are only paid for a fraction of the hours in their work day. Home care providers spend as much as a third of their day travelling from client to client - time that no home care agency provides real compensation for. Statistic Canada calculates a "low income cut off" annually. In 2006, a single mother in Toronto with one child had to earn $21,384 a year to be above that cut-off. Many home care workers don't earn this much. By contrast, Camille Orridge, the CEO of the Toronto CCAC, receives over $180,000 in annual compensation.

"I'm not asking for a six-figure salary," said Leeworthy. "All we want is to be able to do our job."

INTERNATIONAL LABOUR-EGYPT:

LABOUR UNREST IN EGYPT:

The following report is from a correspondent of the Anarchist Black Cat discussion board. Please see the Africa section of that board for more details and commentary.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Growing Economic, Social and Political Tensions in Egypt:

by Ahmed

Not a day goes by in Egypt without demonstrations, strikes, sit-ins and clashes between workers and the police.

Textile workers have been at the forefront of the struggles, as factory bosses are seeking to cut wages and pressure workers to leave. The most serious was the strike last month in Mahalla over low pay and rising prices. Three people were killed during the protests, 80 were injured and about 400 arrested.

Workers at Nile Cotton went on strike against delays in paying salaries, while at Daytex in Alexandria and Andrama Textiles in Menoufia, there were sit-ins over the non-payment of bonuses and allowances for 228 working days.

In Port Said, 300 workers at Eurotex Clothing staged a sit-in over their ill-treatment by management. At Mansoura-Spain Garments in Dakahlia, 150 female workers went on strike over the suspension of their union leader and the delay in paying their social allowances. At Cotton Ginning in Menya, 950 workers went on strike over the failure to pay their salaries at the rate agreed after a previous strike, or to pay the statutory 30 percent allowances. These strikes followed earlier sit-ins and strikes when workers in four provinces found that they had not received their full wages for December.

Industrial unrest extends far beyond the traditionally militant textile workers.

Tens of thousands of truck drivers and owners went on strike in many parts of the country to demand the government abandon its decision to ban articulated trucks and trailers in 2011. Violence broke out in Gharbiya in the northern Nile Delta province when strikers hurled heavy rocks at scabs. Police arrested more than 25 strikers. The strike led to long delays on roads in many parts of the country and an increase in building materials and food prices.

More than 1,000 employees from around the country have mounted a vigil outside the National Research Centre over the government's failure to pay incentives and allowances agreed last year.

Last month pharmacists went on strike against attempts by the government to enforce a new law that would include all merchandise sold in drugstores, not just medicines, in their tax returns. Since medicines were unprofitable and were cross-subsidised by other products, any increase in taxation would make their businesses unviable.

At Hebei Medical Supplies in Qena, 250 workers went on strike over the failure to pay their wages. Some have gone on hunger strike.

At the Technology Institute in Qalyubia, 3,000 students went on strike. Workers at the Egyptian Fertilisers Company in Suez went on strike over the company's agreement to export phosphates to Israel.

These strikes follow 609 industrial actions last year, slightly less than in 2007 but still far more than in previous years, according to statistics from the Land Center for Human Rights published in El-Badeel. The strikes, sit-ins and demonstrations involved all social groups: workers, farmers, Bedouin, nurses, pensioners, professional workers, the self-employed and the homeless.

But the real number is far higher, since strikes by professional workers were not included and many others go unreported in the media. If they were, according to Amr El-Choubaki of the Al-Ahram Centre for Political and Strategic Studies, the number in the first quarter of 2008 alone would equal the whole of 2007. He said, "This escalation was last seen in the [demonstrations that led to the 1919 Revolution and subsequently the] 1923 constitution".

The global financial and economic crisis has had a major impact on Egypt. Foreign direct investment, its largest currency earner, fell by 30 percent during the first quarter of 2008/09, from $3 billion in the first quarter of 2007/08 to $2.1 billion.A report from the parliamentary budgetary committee said foreign investors’ contributions to newly-established companies or already existing ones collapsed from $1.7 billion to $0.4 billion because of the crisis.

The decline in world trade has affected the level of traffic through the Suez Canal, another major foreign currency earner. The report noted a steep drop in revenues of $200 million or 13.7 percent in the second quarter of financial year 2008/09, caused by an 8.8 percent fall in cargo.

Egypt's second major currency earner, tourism, is also down. According to the report, not only are visitor numbers down, particularly from Russia, Britain, Germany and Italy, but those that do come are spending less. Tourism is expected to decline by at least 18 percent in 2009. It provides direct and indirect employment to 12.6 percent of the workforce and accounts for 6.5 percent of GDP. Hotels have already started laying off temporary workers who constitute 30 percent of the industry's workforce.

The downturn in the construction industry in the Gulf, where eight million Egyptians work, means that many have lost their jobs, and remittances from expatriates have plummeted. Remittances from Kuwait and Saudi Arabia have fallen by 15-20 percent. By far the biggest casualty of the economic downturn is Dubai, where nearly half the construction sites have closed.

Last month, Prime Minister Ahmed Nazif told the People's Assembly that unemployment in the second quarter of fiscal year 2008-09 rose to 8.8 percent. But such figures are always a pale reflection of actual unemployment or under employment.

While the Egyptian economy grew by about 7 percent a year for the last three years, this benefited only the privileged financial and military elite around Hosni Mubarak's military backed regime. One percent of the population controls almost all the wealth of the country.

The vast majority of Egypt's 80 million people have experienced only rising prices—inflation is now running at 15 percent—and ever increasing poverty. A World Bank report concluded that the number of Egyptians living under the official poverty line is 20 percent of the population.

With the global recession, economic growth fell 4.1 percent in the second quarter of 2008-09, down from 7.2 percent the previous year. The deficit on foreign trade grew by 50 percent from $16.3 billion in 2006-07 to $23.4 billion to 2007-08 and has grown by a further 75 percent in the second quarter of 2008-09. The government's plans to reduce its budget deficit to three percent of GDP over the next three years will entail severe austerity measures.

The Egyptian regime's support for the US occupation of Iraq and Israeli suppression of the Palestinians has galvanised anti-American feeling and loathing for Mubarak's regime. Egypt has received $1.3 billion a year in military aid from the United States, with a similar amount pledged every year for the next 10 years. This aid comes with cash flow financing, which means that Egypt can spread out its payments over many years and buy much more than its aid allocation.

In return, Egypt protects Israel's western flank and keeps the Palestinians trapped in Gaza while safeguarding US access to key transport routes. From 2001 to 2005 Egypt granted expedited transit through the Suez Canal to 861 war ships as well as permission for 36,553 US combat aircraft to use its airspace.

There were nationwide demonstrations opposing the government's support for Israel's murderous assault on Gaza. Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni's visit to Cairo just two days before the war made it clear to everyone that Mubarak had had advance warning of the assault. He refused to bow to popular pressure and open the Gaza-Egypt border to allow the Palestinians to escape the aerial bombardment, suppressed anti-Israel demonstrations and refused to stop selling natural gas to Israel or expel Israel's ambassador. The state owned press even blamed Hamas for the war, not Israel.

Mubarak views Hamas as a threat to his government and is anxious to see it removed from power in Gaza. Hamas is an off shoot of Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood, the main political opposition in Egypt. Many members of the Brotherhood have been arrested and thrown into jail without trial.

There is deep seated anger at the corruption and ever growing wealth of the ruling elite, press censorship and political suppression. At the end of last month, the courts imposed fines of $1,800 each on five journalists from Al-Masry Al-Youm and Al-Wafd for violating a ban on media coverage of the trial of a prominent billionaire business man who is a member of Mubarak's party. Hisham Talaat Mustafa has been charged with killing his mistress, Lebanese pop singer Suzanne Tamim. Egypt's 1.4 million strong security forces are widely hated.

Tensions are rising, and the regime is beginning to disintegrate. This month a group of army cadets stormed a police station in Helwan, south of Cairo, leaving at least five policemen and three cadets injured. This followed the arrest of an army cadet for loitering and refusing to show ID. The cadet was taken to a police station, beaten and held overnight. When the army cadets surrounded the police station, chanted insults and threw firecrackers, the police opened fire on them.

So great are the tensions that the Egyptian court of appeal was forced to overturn the acquittal of Maduh Ismail over the sinking of a ferry in the Red Sea in 2006 that killed more than 1,000 people. The acquittal had outraged many who believed the corrupt businessman, a former MP, was being protected. The court sentenced Ismail, who is believed to be in London, in absentia to seven years in prison for involuntary manslaughter.

INTERNATIONAL LABOUR-IRELAND:

WATERFORD CRYSTAL WORKERS OCCUPY FACTORY:

The spill over from the bankruptcy of the Wedgewood china group has affected the Waterford Crystal factory in Waterford County Kilbarry Ireland. The famous factory was due to be closed as part of the restructuring involved in the breakup of the company. this is becoming an increasingly common scenario as workers are being made to pay for the mistakes of management when the devil comes to collect his due in hard economic times. The workers of Waterford Crystal, however, have responded by occupying their factory. It is a tactic that should be used more often to fight against plant closures. Potential buyers for the firm are apparently only interested in "the brand". This is just as bizarre as it sounds. Waterford crystal manufactured outside of Waterford would not exactly be "Waterford Crystal" except in the never never world of advertising. Here's the story from Google's AFP news service.

...........................

Ireland's Waterford Crystal workers occupy factory
DUBLIN (AFP) — Workers occupying the factory of Ireland's troubled Waterford Crystal pledged on Saturday to continue their sit-in until the future of the company is resolved.

Workers started their occupation of the Kilbarry factory and visitor centre in Waterford city on Friday after an official who has been running the company for almost a month informed staff that production would cease immediately.

Walter Cullen, organiser in south-east Ireland for the Unite trade union, told AFP they wanted the closure reversed while talks about the future of the company continued.

"We will continue to sit in until the situation is resolved. We have huge support," Cullen said.

Waterford Wedgwood, the maker of high-quality china and glass, went into administration and receivership and its shares were suspended on January 5 after efforts to find a "white knight" investor failed.

The official said the decision to cease manufacturing did not "necessarily preclude a resumption of operations in Waterford in the future."

Cullen said the receiver had been in discussions with two potential buyers, US-based investors KPS Capital and Clarion Capital.

The glass business, originally founded in the late 18th century, has been one of Waterford's major employers.

Cullen said 480 of 650 workers had received termination notices.

"Most of these workers would have long service and be aged in the 45 to 50 bracket. Even for the younger people, the chances of them getting alternative jobs are not great.

"We have had huge crises in the past. There have been nine restructuring plans put in place since 1987 and we have managed to resolve all those and move the company forward all the time."

Cullen said they had staged the sit-in because they believed the business was much more attractive as a going concern.

The glassworks visitor centre has become an import factor in local tourism, attracting about 300,000 visitors a year.

Waterford mayor Jack Walsh said the decision to close had come as a "huge shock."

"While there has been a clear awareness for some time now of how serious the situation faced by the company is, the soundings coming out of the discussions with the two interested parties from the US gave people reason to believe that a sale could be completed without the doors being closed at Kilbarry," Walsh said.

Manufacturing in Ireland has been hit hard by the global downturn.

The once-booming Irish economy will have shrunk up to 10 percent by 2010, Prime Minister Brian Cowen said on Wednesday.

...........................

Here's how the events were reported on the LibCom site from Britain.

...........................

Workers occupy crystal factory for second night:
Waterford Crystal workers have spent a second night occupying the main visitor centre at the company's factory in Waterford in the Republic of Ireland.

They are protesting at the decision by the receiver to stop manufacturing and make 480 staff redundant. The company, which employs 670 people, went into receivership at the beginning of January.

Union officials and Irish government representatives met the receiver on Saturday evening. Unions are expected to brief workers on developments at the factory on Sunday afternoon. The trade union Unite has said there are two potential purchasers of the business.

Earlier in the week, a statement by the receiver, David Carson of Deloitte Ireland, said: "The decision to cease manufacturing does not necessarily preclude a resumption of operations in Waterford in the future.

"The receiver is continuing negotiations with interested parties with a view to a sale of the company's assets and those discussions are focused on agreeing the terms upon which a transaction could be completed."

The employees have said they will not leave the plant until they meet Mr Carson.

.............................

The workers involved have, for the moment, decided to continue their occupation. As the following article from the Irish Times says they have been generously supported by the surrounding community.

.............................

Waterford workers to continue plant sit-in:
BARRY ROCHE in Waterford
WATERFORD CRYSTAL workers yesterday voted unanimously to continue with their occupation of part of the plant as they called on the Government to provide financial and other assistance to a firm of US investors bidding to buy the troubled company and retain manufacturing at the Waterford site.

Up to 800 current and former workers gathered yesterday for a two-and-a-half-hour meeting at the Waterford Crystal visitors’ centre where leaders of trade union Unite, which represents over 90 per cent of the workforce, briefed them on high-level discussions with trade union leaders, government civil servants and the receiver, David Carson, on Saturday evening.

Following that meeting involving Ictu general secretary David Begg and Dermot McCarthy, secretary at the Department of the Taoiseach, Mr Carson issued a statement yesterday morning in which he said that he would not reverse his decision made on Friday to make over 480 workers at the plant redundant.

Unite regional secretary for Ireland Jimmy Kelly confirmed that Clarion Capital, which includes former Waterford Crystal chief executive John Foley, had tabled a bid for the company and the union would be engaging with Clarion as soon as possible to discuss the proposal and how it can be supported.

Mr Kelly said the union would be seeking support from the Government including a financial package up to €30 million to ensure that workers’ redundancy and pension entitlements that are not met by Clarion as part of its proposal are still honoured and fulfilled.

While Mr Kelly was unable to say how many jobs would be retained at the Kilbarry plant or what amount Clarion had bid for the company on Saturday night, it is believed that around 300 jobs would be retained in manufacturing, leaving close to 200 manufacturing staff facing redundancy.

“We would expect the Government to be very supportive financially in terms what sort of grants are available . . . you can imagine in any town in Ireland if there was a taskforce set up after a closure and somebody came knocking at the door with so many hundred jobs, they would be given the money to set it up.

“We’re saying now that protecting 300 jobs here or whatever the final figure is must be given the financial support that is necessary and we also expect the Government to come forward with finance in terms of the workers entitlements under agreements that existed here,” he said.

Mr Kelly said that the financial package, which would total not more than €30 million, would also include pension provision as the union had taken legal advice that the Government was liable for pensions for retired workers as a result of not implementing a pension protection initiative introduced in other EU countries.

“We’re estimating €30 million max and that sorts out everything – it’s not earth shattering – we think it’s a small figure in terms of what the Government has done with banks and the €180 million given to farmers so in that context, we expect Government support.”

Mr Kelly pointed out the deal could be worked out in the context of the social partnership talks as the Government will have to recognise the need for assistance for Irish manufacturing in the current round of talks given the changed climate from when the last national pay agreement was concluded.

Asked what leverage the Waterford Crystal workers would have at the pay talks, Mr Kelly said the involvement of Mr Begg and Mr McCarthy in discussions since the company went into receivership on January 7th was encouraging for workers who were initially very disappointed at Mr Carson’s refusal to reverse his redundancy decision. Mr Kelly said the workforce was “very solidly united” on its approach to the crisis.

He added that prospective purchasers should see the continuing occupation of the plant as a statement of the workers’ commitment to ensuring that the plant was retained as a viable manufacturing facility.

Meanwhile, the occupying workers continue to draw huge support from business interests and fellow workers in Waterford, with several businesses sending out food and water supplies. Some families also visited the centre yesterday to deliver sandwiches, pastries and other food.

.............................

Finally, here's a posting on the section devoted to Ireland at the Anarchist Black Cat discussion board. It tells more about the solidarity that is being shown to the occupying workers.

............................

Waterford Crystal Factory Occupation Enters Third Day:
Tonight, Trade union officials have been addressing a meeting of around 700 Waterford Crystal employees and former staff on developments regarding the company's future.

Workers started their occupation of the Waterord Crystal factory and visitor centre on Friday after an official who has been running the company for almost a month informed staff that production would cease immediately. They are protesting at the decision by the receiver to stop manufacturing and make 480 staff redundant.

Yesterday, an estimated 2,000 people attended a rally in support of the Waterford Crystal workers. In a show of solidarity, taxi drivers across the city switched off their engines and some businesses stopped work between 1pm and 2pm. Sleeping bags, blankets and food parcels have been donated locally.

The Starry Plough, the flag of James Connolly's and Jim Larkin's Irish Citizen Army, has been raised. Workers are also conducting their own tours of the visitor centre to tourists.

More:

http://news.google.ie/news?oe=utf-8&rls ... 1299021354

http://www.indymedia.ie/article/90900

CANADIAN ANARCHIST MOVEMENT-ONTARIO:

NEW DISCUSSION GROUP FOR ANARCHISM IN ONTARIO:

Grow, grow, grow, thrive, thrive, thrive. The Canadian anarchist movement continues its growth, both in term of numbers and also in terms of organization. The latest evidence of this is a new discussion board for "anarchists and those interested in anarchism in Ontario" on the Anarchist Black Cat site. It joins it sister board, devoted to Québec at the ABC. Drop by and see what all the fuss is about. Here's the announcement from the Anarkismo website.

.............................

Ontario anarchism forum:
A new discussion forum for anarchists and those interested in anarchism in Ontario, hosted on Anarchist Black Cat. Like the other forums there a high level of discussion will be maintained through post-posting moderation according to a set of transparent rules.

http://www.anarchistblackcat.org/viewforum.php?f=61

Topics under discussion include

- York University workers on strike

- G8 2010 Huntsville, Ontario

- Hamilton organizing against health care cuts

- Debt and Exploitation: The Coming Economic Crisis

- End of ROAD Network?

Visit the forum at http://www.anarchistblackcat.org/viewforum.php?f=61

INTERNATIONAL ANARCHIST MOVEMENT-NEW ZEALAND:

NEW ANARCHIST ORGANIZATION IN AOTEAROA/NEW ZEALAND:

Here's one that has been all over the internet today. Anarchists down New Zealand way have formed a new platformist organization, the Aotearoa Workers Solidarity Movement (AWSM). Yes, the acronym is indeed one of the best. As I said this is all over the place, but Molly has taken the following announcement from the Anarchist Black Cat discussion board. All the best to the new group, as they demonstrate, once more, the increasing move of international anarchism towards serious organization and involvement in the struggles of ordinary people.

..............................
New Anarchist-Communist Organisation Launched in Aotearoa:
New Anarchist-Communist Organisation Launched in Aotearoa / New Zealand

A new organisation has been formed with the aim of building a serious revolutionary anarchist-communist movement in Aotearoa/New Zealand.

The Aotearoa Workers Solidarity Movement (AWSM) is an organisation working towards a classless, stateless society: anarchist-communism. We are made up of revolutionary class-struggle anarchists from across Aotearoa / New Zealand. For now, we are a small organisation with members in Wellington, Christchurch and a few smaller towns across the country.

AWSM came together when a few anarchists saw the need for a coherent and organised group of anarchist communists, inspired by the platformist strand of anarchist thought (amongst other things). Informal chats over the last few years turned into serious planning a few months ago and a little conference at Labour weekend (late October) in Wellington.

As class struggle anarchists our priority is active involvement in workplace struggles and industrial action as well as community based campaigns in our neighbourhoods. We aim to publish a monthly newspaper starting in 2009, and a less frequent but more in-depth theoretical magazine as well.

Being located in the bottom of the South Pacific makes us very isolated, however we hope to maintain a good level of contact with like minded groups overseas, which is why you are receiving this announcement. Our international secretary is mandated to keep up this contact, which we hope will be a two-way street - if we are able to cooperate on common projects, this is obviously worthwhile, as any genuine social revolution must be international.

Our website, http://www.awsm.org.nz, will be kept up to date with our activity.

In solidarity,

Asher

International Secretary

Aotearoa Workers Solidarity Movement

international [at] awsm.org.nz

Aims & Principles

1: The Aotearoa Workers Solidarity Movement is an organisation working towards a classless, stateless society: anarchist-communism. We are made up of revolutionary class-struggle anarchists from across Aotearoa / New Zealand.

2: Capitalism is based on the exploitation of the working class by the ruling class. But inequality and exploitation are also expressed in terms of race, gender, sexuality, health, ability, age etc, and in these ways one section of the working class oppresses another. This divides us, causing a lack of class unity in struggle that benefits the ruling class. Oppressed groups are strengthened by autonomous action which challenges social and economic power relationships. To achieve our goal we must relinquish power over each other on a personal as well as a political level.

3: We believe that fighting all forms of oppression and exploitation is necessary. Anarchist-Communism cannot be achieved while sexism and racism still exist. In order to be effective in their struggle against their oppression both within society and within the working class, oppressed groups may at times need to organise independently. However, this should be as working class people only, as cross-class movements hide real class differences and achieve little for those in the oppressed groups. Full emancipation cannot be achieved without the abolition of capitalism.

4: We support Tino Rangatiratanga and stand in solidarity with grassroots indigenous struggle and direct action, while not supporting Maori capitalism and corporatisation (we acknowledge the lack of anarchist theory on the indigenous struggle in Aotearoa / New Zealand and are in the process of researching, debating and discussing a more detailed position on this point).

5: While trade unions can never be revolutionary, we recognise that the majority of collective workplace struggle today occurs within unions and therefore our members should join unions where they exist in their workplace, while being wary of any attempts by union bureaucrats to stifle rank and file struggle. Where unions do not exist we encourage our members to engage with their fellow workers to initiate collective action.

6: We recognise that the general strike is one of the working class’ most powerful weapons and oppose all restrictions on worker’s rights to take collective action, including strikes.

7: As well as exploiting and oppressing the majority of people worldwide, Capitalism threatens the planet through war and the destruction of the environment.

8: It is not possible to abolish Capitalism without a revolution, which will arise out of class conflict. The ruling class must be completely overthrown to achieve anarchist communism. Because the ruling class will not relinquish power without their use of armed force, this revolution will be a time of violence as well as liberation.

9: We acknowledge that by implementing the organisation section of the The Organizational Platform of the Libertarian Communists - theoretical unity, tactical unity, collective responsibility and federalism - we will be best able to move forward in promoting the aims and principles of the Aotearoa Workers Solidarity Movement.