Alliance for Workers' Liberty
Alliance for Workers' Liberty | |
---|---|
Far-left | |
National affiliation | Socialist Green Unity Coalition (2005-2010) |
International affiliation | See text |
Colours | Red |
Website | |
http://www.workersliberty.org/ | |
The Alliance for Workers' Liberty (AWL), also known as Workers' Liberty, is a Trotskyist group in Britain and Australia, which has been identified with the theorist Sean Matgamna throughout its history.[1][2] It publishes the newspaper Solidarity.
History
Workers' Fight
The AWL traces its origins to the document What we are and what we must become, written by the tendency's founder
Trotskyist Tendency
The Trotskyist Tendency clashed with the leadership of the International Socialists over many issues; for example, UK membership of the European Communities, on which the IS leadership itself was divided, and the use of the "Troops Out" slogan regarding Northern Ireland.
In December 1971, the leadership of the International Socialists called a special conference to "defuse" the TT. The TT described the "defusion" as an "expulsion" given that they did not wish to leave.[citation needed]
International-Communist League
Outside the IS, increased in size, the group resumed publication of Workers' Fight, now as a printed paper, not as was previously the case as a duplicated journal, began publication of a theoretical journal entitled Permanent Revolution and made efforts to publish a small number of workplace-oriented publications in specific industries.
At the end of 1975, it fused with the smaller
Workers Socialist League
In 1981, the I-CL fused with
Socialist Organiser Alliance
The Socialist Organiser Alliance grew from the broad-left Socialist Campaign for a Labour Victory. By 1983 the paper had become identified with Matgamna's supporters, leading to a split with Labour left politicians (such as Ken Livingstone) over the GLC's policy of increasing rates to offset cuts in central government grants to local councils.
The group organised its student work through the National Organisation of Labour Students (NOLS), forming Socialist Students in NOLS (SSiN) to campaign within the National Union of Students.
Throughout the 1980s the group had reassessed its politics and reappraised the
Alliance for Workers' Liberty
Part of a Politics series |
Third camp |
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The newspaper Socialist Organiser was proscribed by the Labour Party conference in 1990. In response to the ban, the Socialist Organiser Alliance dissolved. In 1992, supporters of Socialist Organiser launched a new organisation known as the Alliance for Workers' Liberty. The AWL was involved in left unity initiatives such as the
In the late 1980s, it established and led a number of left opposition campaigns in the NUS, including Left Unity and the Campaign for Free Education and its supporters won seats in the structures of the NUS. Kat Fletcher, President of NUS from 2004 to 2006, was a member of the AWL and the Campaign for Free Education. It played leading roles in the NUS Women's and LGBT Campaigns, championing its policies on liberation and international solidarity within them, securing their representation within the NUS and working with groups such as OutRage! and Al-Fatiha. AWL was central to the Education Not for Sale network, and in 2010 helped found the National Campaign Against Fees and Cuts.
AWL has been more critical of
In 2009, AWL members were central to sparking and supporting the sit-down strike of Vestas wind turbine factory workers on the Isle of Wight.[8]
In 2018, a former member alleged that in 2005, when he was a 16 year old member of the group, he had been sexually assaulted twice by an older, and by then also former, member.[9] The group responded, acknowledging the allegations and initiating an investigation,[10] but a motion was passed at the London Young Labour conference in February 2018 to exclude AWL members/supporters from LYL spaces until the allegations were investigated.[11][12]
Activities
The AWL has supported the newspaper
The AWL helped to set up and was active in campaigns such as No Sweat, Feminist Fightback, Workers' Climate Action, the National Campaign Against Fees and Cuts, and local community campaigns such as the Save Lewisham Hospital campaign and the One Choice, One Dream alliance in Southampton.
In trade union work, AWL members focus on developing workplace and industrial bulletins, and rank-and-file networks such as the Education Solidarity Network in the National Education Union.[18] It produces workplace and industrial bulletins including Tubeworker (for London Underground workers) and Off The Rails (for mainline railway workers).
The group has international links with Workers' Liberty Australia and
The group advocated a "no" vote in the 2014 Scottish independence referendum.[22] AWL members were also prominent in the Free Shahrokh Zamani and Reza Shahabi campaign, a solidarity campaign demanding the release of jailed Iranian trade unionists.[23]
It supported Jeremy Corbyn in the 2015 Labour leadership campaign, and subsequently applied to the Electoral Commission to be de-registered as a political party, enabling its supporters to join the Labour Party.[24][25] It campaigned against Brexit in the 2016 United Kingdom European Union membership referendum, and called on activists to campaign for Labour in the 2017 general election,[26] and again in 2019.[27]
In March 2022, Labour's National Executive Committee proscribed the AWL.[28]
Notable former members
- Journalist James Bloodworth[29][30]
- Screenwriter Clive Bradley, who remains an active sympathiser of the group
- Newsnight Scotland presenter Gordon Brewer[31]
- Rob Dawber, screenwriter of Ken Loach's The Navigators, who was still a member when he died
- Former National Union of Students president Kat Fletcher
- Political theorist Alan Johnson[30]
- Former Labour
- Author and journalist Charlotte Raven[33]
- Public and Commercial Services Union General Secretary Mark Serwotka[34]
- The Guardian journalist Rajeev Syal
- Social theorist Martyn Hudson[30]
- Kate Ferguson Political Editor Sun On Sunday
References
- ^ Wintour, Patrick (24 October 2015). "Unite challenges expulsion of alleged Trotskyists from Labour party". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 24 October 2015. Retrieved 24 October 2015.
- ^ "Workers' Liberty Australia". Workers Liberty. Retrieved 5 December 2019.
- ^ "What We Are And What We Must Become - A Critique of the Politics and Perspectives of the Militant Tendency". workersliberty.org.
- ^ "Islamism | Workers' Liberty". www.workersliberty.org.
- ^ ""Troops out": defeated amendment on Iraq (4.1) | Workers' Liberty". www.workersliberty.org.
- ^ "Troops, militias and slogans | Workers' Liberty". www.workersliberty.org.
- ^ "Workers' Liberty".
- ^ "Vestas | Workers' Liberty". www.workersliberty.org.
- ^ Response to a Statement, AWL, 11 January 2018
- ^ Workers' Liberty (4 April 2018). "Report of the AWL Working Group" (PDF). Workers' Liberty.
- ^ "Left takes control of London Young Labour". Socialist Appeal. 8 February 2018.
- ^ Daniel Round, London Young Labour AGM: Everything changes, everything remains the same, Clarion Magazine, February 10, 2018
- ^ "Workers' Liberty #55 - Forum. April 1999". workersliberty.org.
- ^ "Workers' Liberty magazine | Workers' Liberty". www.workersliberty.org.
- ^ "Workers' Liberty volume 2, from September 2001 | Workers' Liberty". www.workersliberty.org.
- ^ "Workers' Liberty volume 3, from September 2005 | Workers' Liberty". www.workersliberty.org.
- ^ "Workers' Liberty pamphlets | Workers' Liberty". www.workersliberty.org.
- ^ "Local Associations National Action Campaign". Archived from the original on 6 August 2013. Retrieved 6 September 2013.
- ^ "کارگر میلیتانت". کارگر میلیتانت.
- ^ "sınıf mücadelesinde Marksist Tutum - Emperyalist Savaşa ve Kapitalist Sömürüye Karşı Sosyalist Mücadele Bayrağını Yükselt!". marksist.com.
- ^ "Why Marxist Revival?". Archived from the original on 22 September 2013. Retrieved 6 September 2013.
- ^ "Scottish referendum: vote no to independence". 3 September 2012. Retrieved 18 September 2014.
- ^ "Free Shahrokh Zamani and Reza Shahabi!". Archived from the original on 19 January 2015. Retrieved 19 January 2015.
- Sunday Times, 27 September 2015, p. 1.
- ^ "View registration - The Electoral Commission". search.electoralcommission.org.uk.
- ^ "Fight for a Labour victory! | Workers' Liberty". www.workersliberty.org.
- ^ "Back Labour, fight for Remain! | Workers' Liberty". www.workersliberty.org. Retrieved 5 November 2019.
- ^ Rodgers, Sienna (28 March 2022). "Exclusive: AWL among three more groups to be proscribed by Labour NEC". LabourList.
- ^ Capitalism leaves Haiti to rot, Solidarity, 9 February 2011
- ^ a b c "Timely riposte". Morning Star. 10 July 2016. Retrieved 10 January 2020.
- ^ "Simon Pia". scotsman.com.
- ^ Many interruptions, one struggle - Interview with Jill Mountford Solidarity, 2 March 2016
- ^ INTERVIEWS JOANNE MALLABAR (3 October 1998). "HOW WE MET: DEREK DRAPER AND CHARLOTTE RAVEN". The Independent. Archived from the original on 23 March 2010.
- ^ "Key players in the union movement". BBC News. 5 September 2007.
External links
- Alliance for Workers' Liberty website
- Catalogue of the Alliance for Workers' Liberty papers held at LSE Archives
- Catalogue of the Socialist Organiser Alliance archives in Alan Clinton's papers, held at the Modern Records Centre, University of Warwick
- Catalogue of the AWL archives, held at the Modern Records Centre, University of Warwick