William Morris: Why We Celebrate the Paris Commune
Pioneering socialist William Morris on the Paris Commune and its legacy as a “great tragedy which definitely and irrevocably elevated the cause of Socialism.”
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Ellie Whittaker
Ellie Woolstencroft is an activist with Labour for a Green New Deal.
The Barricades of the Paris Commune
Barricades only played a part in the final week of the Paris Commune, but their imagery came to define the struggle – as the last line of defence for a revolutionary democratic experiment.
The Last Communard
Adrien Lejeune was the last Communard to pass away in 1942. His life became the subject of myth and legend – and a symbol of the Parisian workers who fought to establish a radical democracy in their city.
The Fire and Rehire Scandal on Greater Manchester’s Buses
In Manchester, bus drivers who were feted as ‘key workers’ only months ago have been told to accept worse conditions or face the sack – with the company even offering an effective bribe to force the deal through.
The Paris Commune at 150
150 years ago today, in the jaws of defeat in war, a revolutionary militia took over the city of Paris and began an experiment in democratic government – the Commune they built continues to inspire radicals today.
It’s Time to Back the BT Workers
After celebrating key workers during the pandemic, BT’s management is pushing through redundancies and site closures – now is the time for the public to get behind the workers and their union.
100 Years After Britain’s First Contraception Clinic, the Struggle Still Isn’t Won
100 years ago today, the first contraception clinic in Britain opened its doors – but millions of pounds of sexual health cuts under austerity means that access to birth control is still a struggle that remains to be won.
Why Boris Loves the Bomb
Britain’s existing nuclear arsenal has the capacity to kill hundreds of millions of people – but that isn’t enough for Boris Johnson, and he’s prepared to tear up the Non-Proliferation Treaty to prove it.
28. Public Health Colonialism: An Interview with Dr Eugene Richardson
As the anniversary of the WHO’s declaration of a pandemic approaches, Grace speaks to Eugene Richardson, Harvard’s Assistant Professor of Global Health, about how capitalism produces huge health inequalities – and what we can do about it.
How the Police Crackdown Bill Threatens the Fabric of Our Democracy
Tonight, MPs will vote on the Police Crackdown Bill – a piece of legislation which threatens a fundamental principle of our democracy: the right to meaningful protest against the actions of the powerful.
How Socialist Women Built Feminism for All
In the late 1800s, working-class German women challenged the common sexism in the early socialist movement to assert autonomy – proving that they didn’t need fathers, husbands, or rich women to speak for them.
The Police Crackdown Bill Is a Threat to Your Democratic Rights
Priti Patel’s Police Crackdown bill introduces draconian new limits on the freedom to protest, but it also extends stop-and-search and criminalises nomadic ways of life – it is a fundamental attack on civil liberties.
Zarah Sultana: ‘The Police Crackdown Bill Is Dystopian’
The Police Crackdown bill gets its second reading in parliament today. It is the greatest threat to the right to protest in years – and is only one part of a Tory war against our democratic rights.
The Women on the Frontline of India’s Resistance to Modi
India’s farmer protests have caught international attention in recent weeks – but from environmental and Dalit activists to those resisting Islamophobic laws, women are leading the resistance to Modi’s reactionary government.
Capitalism Has Always Been Authoritarian
Capitalism is often presented as synonymous with freedom, but when the ruling class meets resistance it responds with violence – and exposes the coercion that sustains a deeply unequal system.
Violence Against Women Isn’t Just Individual – It’s Systemic
This weekend’s police violence at Clapham Common showed that cases like Sarah Everard’s aren’t just individual tragedies – they are the product of a system which makes violence against women a daily reality.
Police Violence Does Not Protect Public Health
This weekend’s crackdown on the Clapham vigil was justified on the basis it was defending public health – but police violence doesn’t protect us from Covid-19, it undermines the whole pandemic response.
How Joe Sacco Gave a Voice to ‘History’s Losers’
Joe Sacco’s iconic graphic novel ‘Palestine’ turns 25 this year. Its depiction of life under occupation is in keeping with his life’s work – telling the stories of oppressed peoples that the powerful would prefer to forget.
Rentier Island
For decades, Britain’s governments have designed public policy to benefit property owners and landlords to the detriment of everyone else – in effect, the UK is a housing market with an economy attached.
Italy’s Political Chaos Wasn’t an Exception – It Was the New Normal
For years, Italy was cast as Europe’s basket case – plagued by political instability and economic malaise. But today its chaos looks less like an outlier and more like a model countries like Britain are destined to follow.