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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Union muscle needs honing
NIGEL FLANAGAN argues that to built on the modest success of the recent wave of strikes it is indispensable to arrest the continuing decline of membership
STRENGTH IN NUMBERS: NEU picket line at Regent High School in north west London in July 2023, General Secretary Elect of the NEU, Daniel Kebede (third from right)
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
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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
THE huge surge of national and many local strikes has relit the union pilot light. For the first time since the miners’ strike of 1984/85 the union movement has risen back into the consciousness of many workplaces and sectors, prompting debate about what happens next.
There was no knock-out victory, no emphatic change in the balance of power, rather a pause as many compromise settlements were accepted.
Thus, the RCN, CWU, UCU and others have accepted a return to their various corners, like boxers waiting for the points verdicts.
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