Fownhope’s Heart of Oak Society traces its roots to the age of friendly societies, when communities provided their own safety net. Its anniversary celebrations reveal a tradition still very much alive, says MARK SEDDON
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Federalism holds the key to Britain's future
Progressive federalism could reverse the power of capital over labour, help to redistribute wealth and maximise
democratic control at every level, argues John Foster
ANGUS REID explains the significance of Cuba’s egalitarian in letter and spirit Family Code and the pertinent lessons it holds for democracies anywhere in the world
Special report by PEOPLE’S WORLD
NICK WRIGHT considers how the isolation of Israel and a new film on the controversial Italian communist leader are creating new reference points for Italy’s left
CARLOS MARTINEZ says Cuba’s achievements in the face of a criminal blockade are startling, but the island’s future if the United States succeeds in crushing it looks bleak
AMNON BROWNFIELD STEIN reports that far-right MPs who mobbed the event organised by Hadash may have helped raise awareness of the brutality of the Israeli right
PROGRESSIVE federalism: it’s not a particularly catchy term and its meaning is not immediately obvious. Yet it holds the key to three critical issues facing the labour movement.
The first is how to approach the call for a further referendum on Scottish independence. The second is how to respond to the Conservative government’s plans to abrogate what remains of local democracy and fasten US-style corporate politics on Labour’s strongholds in the North and Midlands. The third, perhaps surprisingly, is what should be looked for out of the Brexit negotiations.
It is easy to dismiss the importance of constitutions. However eloquent the language, they cannot themselves resolve issues of inequality and exploitation: the US constitution bears witness to that. Any progressive advance ultimately depends on the balance of class forces, on class unity and mobilisation.
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