Community activist groups can be a significant force in local politics, as experiences in both Haringey and Tower Hamlets show.
Solidarity at the doorstep
Tag: community organising
They started the revolution without you… but you are welcome to join in
Easter weekend I was transported to a vision of the future. Not in some vague, William Morris, utopian way (although, all power to that!.. we definitely need more utopian visions to counter the pathological cynicism of dystopian fun-sponges), but in a very real, practical and inspiring way. The host for our latest DIY Alliance (DIYA)
Haringey Solidarity Group: A Celebration of 30 years of radical ideas and campaigning in Haringey and beyond
May 11th 2021 was the 30th anniversary of the Haringey Solidarity Group in North London. To celebrate we held a special online event looking at some of the activities and struggles the group has been involved in over the 3 decades since its foundation. Those attending contributed some memories and reflections, and some views on
Northumberland: Alnwick Community Larder forced to close following ‘vandalism’ allegation
Alnwick is a town of around 8,000 people in north Northumberland. Although historically it’s been a relatively prosperous market town, we also have a food bank that has seen a massive increase in use since the start of the pandemic. A mutual aid group sprung up last year too, and one of our main initiatives
Crops NOT Shops: Growing the Mutual Millennium
Last month I suggested that there was good reason to believe that we were witnessing the birth of the ‘mutual millennium’. Austerity, socio-economic polarisation and the shuffling incompetence of the zombified neoliberal economy had already seen a slow and steady stream of grassroots community innovation as the wages and social securities of the poorest were
Save Sinjajevina: Herders and activists protect unique Montenegrin pastures from military occupation
After a mobile blockade lasting almost two months, a small group of traditional herders and activists has successfully repelled NATO and the Montenegrin military’s efforts to occupy the territory of Sinjajevina in Montenegro – the largest mountain grassland in the Balkans and the second in Europe. In an archetypal David and Goliath encounter, Sinjajenivan herders
Don’t despair, organise!: Affinity Collective
Immense urban belts are encroaching unrelentingly on the countryside, replacing flora and fauna with concrete, metal and glass, and enveloping large regions in a haze of atmospheric pollutants. In the mass urban world, human experience itself becomes crude and elemental, subject to brute noisy stimuli and crass bureaucratic manipulation… Years ago, the French students in
Poland: Anarchists successfully stop allotment gardens eviction
Anarchists from Rozbrat squat in Poznań, together with other groups, have successfully stopped the eviction of neighbouring allotment gardens “ROD Bogdanka”. The allotments are a part of the city’s green belt and have been used by the community since 1953. For decades, the land belonged to the state treasury. In the early 90s, it was
Shunning Treesponsibility: South Yorkshire still a dangerous place… if you’re a tree!
Learning absolutely nothing from the 8-year-long Sheffield Tree Felling Protests, South Yorkshire’s Doncaster Metropolitan Borough Council (DMBC) have been busy implementing their own legally dubious plan to fell 64 healthy lime trees on Middlefield Road in the Doncaster suburb of Bessacarr. The unfortunate trees have been targeted because of suspected root damage to pavements and
From Mutual Aid to Food Co-ops
It has been almost a year since Cooperation Town came into being. In December 2019, Labour lost yet another election and Corbyn was out of the game. Surprisingly or not, depending on your conviction, the electoral system failed to deliver and it became clear to many on the left that continuing to invest energy and
Recent Articles
Rojava: Civilians defy Turkish bombing to defend Tishrin dam
Despite deadly airstrikes and international silence, hundreds are risking their lives to protect a vital infrastructure ~ Blade Runner ~ Over the past two weeks, thousands of civilians in northeastern Syria have been carrying out a human shield operation at Tishrin dam, enduring drone attacks that have killed over ten civilians and injured dozens, including
Will the real Proudhon please stand up?
Instead of anarchist lore, we need historical context and an open mind ~ Shawn P Wilbur ~ It’s challenging to think about Pierre-Joseph Proudhon today: like it or not, we struggle with him in his role as a progenitor, precursor, pioneer, as the first to say “Je suis anarchiste”, under circumstances where that declaration simply
Proudhon in the 21st century
From decentralised organisation to critiques of war, Proudhon’s thought remains a provocative force ~ Alex Prichard ~ On the 160th anniversary of the death of Pierre-Joseph Proudhon, it’s time to look at his work with historical distance.
Who needs Proudhon?
160 years after his death, the first self-proclaimed anarchist deserves criticism—but not oblivion ~ Maurice Schuhmann ~ Pierre-Joseph Proudhon died on January 19, 1865, at the age of 56.
Hung jury for climate activists, Elbit protesters to plead ‘not guilty’
Heathrow spray-painters were denied defence of necessity, while weapons facility invaders are being treated as ‘terrorists’ ~ Cristina Sykes ~ Two climate protesters who sprayed Heathrow departure boards with orange paint last July face a retrial, after their jury yesterday failed to reach a majority decision.
