Sharpening our politics against the Tories

Submitted by Matthew on 3 June, 2015 - 7:38 Author: Monty Shield and Vicki Morris

On Saturday 30 May, around a thousand people marched from Waterloo station to Westminster Bridge against the planned £12 billion cuts to public welfare services

Protesters, organised by UK Uncut, hung a banner from Westminster Bridge overlooking Parliament, reading “austerity is a lie”; it was collectively painted by activists while on the bridge. The banner could be seen along way down the bank of the Thames!

Another protest, against scrapping the Human Rights Act, began at the same time. Additionally, numbers dropped quickly to only a few hundred. In contrast, the police had an especially large presence throughout!

On the bridge, the police formed an effective kettle. However, the banner remained in place for around twenty-five minutes despite the kettle.

Another anti-cuts demonstration took place in London on 27 May, the day of the state opening of Parliament. Around two thousand people marched from Trafalgar Square, down to Whitehall before returning to the square and continuing along Oxford Street. A large amount of police attempted to directly block the progress of the protesters.

On this occasion they were more overtly violent and made several arrests. However, the protest was largely a success: it engaged a lot of new activists and caused significant disruption to a central area of London, attracting much attention.

On both demonstrations, chanting mostly consisted of “Tory scum/out” rather than slogans with greater political clarity, such as “Students, workers and the sick did not cause the deficit”.

After discussion with other activists, a suggestion has emerged that local activist groups could produce a leaflet for actions which they attend. The leaflet could contain an overview of the political message of the protest and list some suggestions for chants which tie in well with the political content of the action.

On the UK Uncut demo, thousands saw the protest as they strolled along Westminster Bridge and thousands more saw the protesters on Oxford Street and Trafalgar Square during the demonstration on 27 May.

If there had been activists handing out leaflets to the wider public then many more people could have become engaged in the protests and their messages.

Nottingham against cuts

As part of the UK Uncut day of action on 30 May about 300 people marched throught the city to Victoria Park on the edge of the St Ann’s estate for a picnic and networking.

The march was organised at quite short notice at a democratic planning meeting, with input from the Nottingham and Mansfield TUC president Liam Conway.

The march attracted a diverse crowd with lots of students, and there was a friendly spirit. There were no police in sight which helped the atmosphere!

The UK Uncut “brand” could continue for a while in Nottingham. We need discussion about reviving anti-cuts groups in the city. It is vital that the trade unions are involved in this activity.

In Nottingham we have also had a People’s Assembly meeting on 19 May, attended by about 400 people. They heard Owen Jones speak, and also Christine Blower, NUT general secretary, who has failed to take the fight to the Tories despite the willingness of her own members.

There is an appetite for a fight against the new government, but it will not be mobilised through big rallies with top tables groaning with “dignitaries”.

It will take patient and democratic debates about the way forward, involving hundreds of people, and hands-on activities to train new generations in politics and grassroots trade unionism.

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