An historic political trial is entering its final stages. At the time of writing, the judge is starting his summing up at the end of the 5 and a half month trial of the Stoke Newington 8. These 8 comrades are accused of being members of the Angry Brigade and of therefore being involved in a conspiracy to engage in bomb attacks. They are pleading not guilty and have fought the bourgeois system of class justice every inch of the way.
Before the trial the mass media had a field day with scare stories against the Angry Brigade, creating an atmosphere in which Stirling University was interrupted by a demonstration organised by the student's union. The university authorities decided to respond by victimising 24 students, and thereby opened up a battle that has extended right across Scotland. On Monday. when the students appeared before a disciplinary board, a demonstration of some 4,000 people - twice the number of students at the university itself, marched through Stirling in solidarity with the students.
The marchers were in a very militant mood, shouting "Cottrell Out!" (the name of the University vice-Chancellor), Thatcher Out!" 'Revolution in!". 'No Victimisation!' and *No Kangaroo Court! As the demonstration (From page 1) institutions creates the image of its workpassed a building site, construction workers put up a solidarity banner. Speeches were made by representatives of the Scottish Miners* Union, the Scottish TUC, Stirling Trades Council, Upper Clyde Shipbuilders, the Stirling Labour Party, a sociology lecturer from the university and Digby Jacks, President of the National Union of Students Prior to the demonstration, the ASTMS trades council delegate was sacked from his job at the university. A couple of weeks before, the Trades Council had issued a press statement in support of the students.
At the time of writing it would appear that most of the charges against the 24 hospital workers should be supported by other sections of the labour movement precisely because they are in the front line of the fight of every worker, the fight against the pay freeze. Interview with LASH Secretary How was the London Alliance of Stewards of Health Workers (L.A.S.H.) formed?
The idea came from our branch here in St. Georges during a TUC educational course we were attending. But it was the Bristol hospital workers strike which stimulated wide support for LASH, throughout the London hospitals. At first the hospital authorities appeared friendly, allowing us to meet in hospital premises, etc. But their attitude quickly changed wnen uncy saw unat we were serous about organising the fight for better conditions. - What is the relationship between LASH and the Unions?
Union leaders are doing as little as possible. A week ago, the London Division of the National Union of Public Employees (the largest union in the industry) met. To combat LASH, Alan Fisher, the General Secretary. camealong. He tried to argue that we had to go through every negotiating channel before taking any action. The mood of the meeting was very militant. Fisher was continually heckled and our motion for an emergency conference of Stewards and Branch Secretaries to discuss the dispute was carried unanimously. One indication of the intentions of the NUPE leadership will be whether the conference is fixed to take place before or after the end of the 90 day freeze.
What are the problems facing hospital workers in taking industrial action? It is not possible for us to organise a work to rule. Ancillary workers have such miserably low pay, that they would not at present accept a work to rule which simply cuts their pay packets. In strike action so far we have always arranged for essential services to be maintained by union members - they do the work without drawing pay (something which the capitalist press never mentions). But what must be remembered is that what sabotages the curing of the great bulk of patients - those who are not on the emergency list - is not a few days of strikes, but the two year wait while the consultants give first place to the rich patients who pay for private attention. It is this private practice and the state's refusal to finance the health service adequately, not the low paid ancillary workers who are the Black militants in Chapeltown, Leeds' largest black ghetto, have decided to occupy the Studley Grange children's centre on Friday, 24 November. The centre was initially organised in 1965 by a group of West Indian parents but was rapidly taken over by the liberal white establishment, who preserved a token black representation consisting of two Uncle Toms.
The centre gathered support and its income today stands at 7,000 per annum, most of it from government and trust funds. However the whites in charge have refused to allow the black community of Chapeltown to exercise any control over the centre. Hence the OCCusaLIOn Black militants appealed for support at a public meeting last Wednesday night organised jointly by Leeds IMG and the Afro-West Indian Brotherhood, the revolt has made the university authorities retreat, at least temporanly.
The quick transformation of the struggle at Stirling university into a mobilisation of the labour movement against the attack on students shows very clearly the rapid development of the class struggle at the present time. It is precisely through such magnificent actions as these that the working class can begin to take the leadership of society out of the hands of a capitalist class so enfeebled that it cannot take a protest against the Queen in its stride.
Solidarity action is continuing and must be spread to ensure that victimisation does not continue in other forms. enemies of a decent medical service. When the ancillary workers at Kings' Colle ege and Queen Mary's Roehampton, went on twenty-four hour token strikes, they faced the attempt to use "volunteer" labour, brought in to break the strike. The strikers replied by withdrawing all workers dealing with essential services and by declaring that they would simply extend the strike until it had carried on a full twenty-four hours without blackleg labour. This will be our policy in the future.
Of course one of our biggest problems will be to get our case across as widely as possible to counter the vicious attacks that will come against hospital workers. During the stoppage at Kings* College hospital, kids from Westminster public school were brought in to break the strike and our pickets had to seek police protection against the strike breakers. One of the main kinds of help which socialists can provide for the hospital workers when they go into struggle will be to help publicise our case as widely as possible. The first people we must reach with our publicity must be the patients themselves and their visitors. - What are LASH's plans for future action? We have called a national conference of union members not only from the hospitals, but from other sections of the working class. This will be held on December 2nd/3rd at the Fountain Pub, Praed Street, Paddington. At that conference we will propose all out strike action against the pay freeze. The start and duration of the action will be decided at the conference. At our previous conterence we had growing support from out of London and we hope for an even better turn out in December.
-What kind of solidarity action are you hoping for from other sections of workers? In fact, we are not calling for solidarity;
we are fighting the-freeze, that is what our struggle is about and therefore we are asking other workers not to solidarise with the struggle but to join it. If we bring down the freeze we will in fact bring down the Tory government whose whole future depends on the success of the freeze. This is a full, frontal assault on the working class. The union leaders are in fact selling out the people who employ them. So workers must rely on their own strength and organise to smash the freeze.
LASH can be contacted through:
Mark Palmer, LASH Secretary, 122 Sinclair Road, London W 14 OML Red Mole Reporter Leeds. The IMG comrades pledged support for the action.
IRONY The irony in the situation is that the white man who has been warden of the centre for the last two years is a Mr Joff Browning, a leading member of the Leeds SLL. Despite repeated requests from blacks he has refused to resign his post.
Browning's attitude is an absolute disgrace and shows the ultimate logic of the reactionary line of the SLL on the black question. His attitude is even more surprising in view of the fact that a prominent leader of the SLL, Cliff Slaughter, is resident in Leeds. The SLL should disown Browning publicly - any other course would only further discredit the revolutionary movement in the eyes of the local black community. We will publish details of the occupation in our next
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Stoke Newington Eight: from defence to attack