London Mayday 2004 - Calling All Anti-Capitalists!

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:: A MOVEMENT OF MOVEMENTS : CALLING ALL ANTI CAPITALISTS ::
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Since 1999 Mayday has re-established itself as a focus for anti-capitalists to gather and to celebrate our collective visions and mark our past struggles.

This in turn began a dialogue which still continues, into the nature of such manifestations; how we engage with each other as a movement and how we relate such visions to those around us in our ideas and practice.The next Mayday will fall on a Saturday.

At present there are no firm plans for the content of Mayday 2004’s celebrations, but there are a number of ideas and suggestions currently circulating. Before we begin however, let us dispel one assumption: it is by no means a certainty that an anti-capitalist event in London will take place on Mayday at all.

This then, is an open invitation to get involved in the process, to discuss, to share, to inspire and to plan. And remember to bring some ideas of your own!

We have called an OPEN MEETING
to kick off the process on
SUNDAY 18TH JANUARY from 2PM - 5PM
at
LONDON ACTION RESOURCE CENTRE,
62 FIELDGATE STREET, LONDON E1.

You can download a leaflet for the meeeting from the website.

London Mayday Collective
e-mail: londonmayday@yahoo.co.uk
Homepage: http://www.ourmayday.org.uk

Comments

Hide the following 13 comments

Will anyone bother ?

31.12.2003 16:11

Will anyone bother this year ??

We had another posting on this a little while ago and others said the same. Mayday is now a bit of a joke and as it falls on a Saturday we're not likely to disrupt any of the key organisations so why bother. I for one don't want to spend another 6 hours standing around, doing nothing but talking to an equaly bored copper. Perhaps it could be like DSEI, lots of talk, lots of promises and then no one turns up !!

Dave

I agree - and disagree

31.12.2003 18:02

I agree that May Day has become a joke - rather than being reclaimed as a celebration of the joy of the begining of summer and of our shared history and collective struggle against the bosses and the land owners, it has become a pointless 'mass' mobilisation in London with equally pointless and futile confrontation with the cops.

It is a protest without a cause. If we really want to reclaim our heritage, we need to be more imaginative than the usual big-day-out-in-london.

However, I strongly disagree with the idea that DSEi was a let down or comparable to may day in any way.

DSEi showed the value (for anyone paying enough attention to notice) of small autonomous actions, organised and planned by affinity groups. Disarm DSEi was a success in terms of the diverse tatics used and the effect those tatics had. If you can only see the street confrontations of the big days, the 'RTS' and similar 'mass' events during DSEi, you will have missed the big picture.

Ben

BELTANE 404

31.12.2003 18:19

BELTANE 404
MAYDAY 2004
MIDDAY

PARLIAMENT HILL
HAMPSTEAD HEATH

http://OURMAYDAY.ORG

WEST LONDON SABBATISTA

Let's have a Belting Beltaine

31.12.2003 18:36

I am sure there will be an anti-capitalist event in London, probably lots of them. The question is how various political factions attempted to capitalise out of it.

Maybe the Black-Block won't bother to turn up.

Somepeople wont miss them wither.

A party on Parliament Hill sounds good!!!

H.P.

Harry Potter
mail e-mail: harrypotter@cyber-rights.net

I love a party but...

01.01.2004 10:27

Yes Harry I like to enjoy myself on Beltane/Mayday too, but what's political about having a shindig on Haampstead Heath?

party on dude

what is wrong with capitalism?

02.01.2004 13:52

What is wrong with capitalism for a start? Also considering that the population of the UK is almost 60 million how come so few people support the alternatives of anarchism and communism. Surely if 99.9 per cent of the population agree with capitalism then it cant be all that bad.

confused

The best of what's available

02.01.2004 14:28

I think it's not a case of 60 million people supporting capitalism, rather a recognition that it is better than all the alternatives. Anarchism, a Communist system (with all the usual varitations) and even good old fashioned liberal socialism are in theory better. Regretfully they don't work and people don't want them.

The fall of the Soviet Bloc and the abandonment of Maoist / Lenninist society in China shows what people will choose when given the choice.

Dave

Armed Cops

08.01.2004 22:41

I hope the anti-captilists that turn up in their adidas gear get met with police armed to the teeth with batterns, grenades and Assault rifles.

(Take a look to the sky just before you die... its the last time you will - Metallica's James Hetfield)

Frank Wank

HAHAHAH ROTFLOL Tick Tock Tick Tock WTF?

15.01.2004 20:51

Quoting James Hetfield to attack anti-capitalists! If he could actually play some decent metal then it might be funny. And if his band wasn't but a capitalist butt-plug. But no, Metallica became crap right after Master of Puppets, and has been playing false metal ever since. Now all they play is an abysmal joke reminding one of Bon Jovi meets Soundgarden (who used to be good actually). I'd like to see what would happen if those losers actually heard some true metal - they'd probably weep. And as for hoping that the cops will hopefully turn up with guns : well if they do, then we'll come back with ours. See you on the streets - Hail Discordia! And Fuck Metallica!

MANOWAR

No Way

16.01.2004 17:38

Hetfields a legend. Metallica are great. Do you know who else is Great? Yeh thats right - Iron Maiden are great. I've heard Discordia and all i can say i is that if you look up S*it in a dictionary there's a picture of them.

Can't Remember My Name because i'm too drunk

answer to confused

18.01.2004 17:16

Briefly, there is a fundamental injustice to a system where most people have to work hard for crap wages while a few people make their money merely by virtue of already being rich.

more info on anarchism, including a critique of capitalism:

http://www.infoshop.org/faq/index.html

And in answer to your question about why people haven't turned to anarchism in huge numbers, I would suggest this is for a variety of reasons:

1. Many people are misled about what anarchism even means.
2. Even when people understand what it means, they are sceptical about whether it would work, because they have little experience of it, and haven't seen working examples of it.
3. This is partly because whenever an example occurs, it is often ignored/slandered by mainstream media, and/or violently repressed by the authorities. So most people don't ever hear about it.

These are just a few reasons... there may be many others. I would recommend you again to browse the website mentioned above.

chewy figs
Homepage: http://www.infoshop.org/faq/index.html

reply to reply to confused

15.02.2004 13:45

it's true that most people don't understand anarchy, or communism or socialsim for that matter. but surely, that is especially true of those on the may day marches. anarchy isn't about lack of law, it's about the lack of centralised government, there's still law, its just that the community decides it.
secondly, whatever the most desirible ultimate result may be, is it not more constructive to aim for the most desirable realistic possibility. the reason that anti-capatilists are in the minority is because there is no coherent political group to present the arguments. in fact, there is no relaistic left-wing party. who is seriously going to vote for a revolution of the working class? we dont even have one

jessica
mail e-mail: jessica.begon@spc.ox.ac.uk

kinda defeats the object...

01.04.2004 11:02

...having a left wing party. As they would just end up in the same situation as all of the 'Ordinary' parties do now. They would be using the system - not trying to remove it.

fredrico
mail e-mail: musteatvegan@yahoo.co.uk