London Region CND Public Meeting

Wednesday March 5^th, 8-9pm

Effects on people’s lives and community of the ongoing Fukushima nuclear catastrophe

Speaker: A volunteer from the “World Network for Saving Children from Radiation”.

Followed by questions and discussion.

At Housman’s Bookshop, 5 Caledonian Road N1 9DX (Near King’s Cross Station.)

Entrance is free, but donation to LRCND welcome.

This public meeting is preceded from 7-8pm by a London CND planning meeting at the same venue.

Little Comrades: *A Secular Sunday School*

News from Nowhere Club

http://www.raymondwilliamsfoundation.org.uk/NfNHome.html

8pm Saturday 8 March

Roger Huddle
http://rogerhuddle.blogspot.co.uk/

*Little Comrades: *
*A Secular Sunday School*
A Socialist Sunday School began in Walthamstow in 1903 and
flourished for 30 years, with up to 300 children attending regularly.

The Epicentre,
Leytonstone, E11 4LJ
http://www.raymondwilliamsfoundation.org.uk/NfNfindus.html
info@newsfromnowhereclub.org.uk
0208 555 5248
07443 480 509

The 'Ten Commandments' of the Socialist Sunday School
(Vestry House Museum, Walthamstow)

Wiltshire Radical History Day

on Saturday 29th March 2014

      10 a.m. - 4 p.m.

 

at The Cause

42 The Causeway,

Chippenham SN15 3DD 

Free entry

Bar and buffet lunch 

Speakers throughout the day include: 

Jeremy Corbyn MP

 

from Wiltshire to Westminster

 

Professor Steve Poole

from the University of the West of England on

The gallows, the gibbet and the rural poor

 

Melissa Barnett,

Curator of Chippenham Museum on

Dame Florence Hancock

 

Nigel Costley,

South West TUC Regional Secretary on

West Country Rebels

 

Rosie MacGregor on

the life of Angela Gradwell Tuckett

 

More information and to register in advance:

Contact: rosiemacgregor@icloud.com

Flyer/poster pdf

Next RaHN Public Meeting: POLITICAL POLICING

(Advance Notice)

POLITICAL POLICING AND SURVEILLANCE
How and why are the Police used to try to suppress public dissent and any challenge to the capitalist ‘status quo’ – whether throughout history or currently? What tactics have protestors and campaigners developed to successfully defend public rights and struggles for a better society?

Wednesday May 7th
7.30pm, Wood Green Social Club
3 Stuart Crescent, N22 5NJ  (off the High Rd, near Wood Green tube)

All welcome to come and share experiences, anecdotes, photos, archive material and general thoughts.

A Brief Overview of changes in Post-War youth culture and the prevailing conditions.

From draft report of RaHN discussion, 12th February 2014

1950s and 60s Culture comes from a reflection/reaction to prevailing conditions. The youth culture of the 1950s and 1960s was a product of its time; a product of Post-War Keynesianism. Kids were brought up to become contented consumers of fashion at a time of guaranteed work and wages. It was part of the deal that included social spending for the welfare state etc.

1970s The 1970s had a political edge. It was oppositional, anti-systemic and expressed an overt anti-establishment view. It was against a square way of life. It included a desire to get rich a different way to the expected way. There were underground magazines, such as International Times. These had an effect on propaganda - a space to be critical.

The Notting Hill Riots It was about how to develop the family. For whites, the man goes to work the wife is the housewife and the kids are programmed to grow and become happy consumers of fashion. The Beatniks did question this but nonetheless this held true. For non-whites, economically they can't keep up with this. The Notting Hill riots break out and the event throws up a connection of youth with urban resistance. The Clash cover depicts the riots. The Clash were formerly the 101ers and squatting in the area. Suddenly the consumer ideal explodes in your face. There is crisis.

1980s London Greenpeace initiated the Stop the City anti-capitalist mass protests in the City of London 1983-4 – as well as a range of existing protest groups, loads of young punks turned up to take part. Punks at that time were moving fast through music into politics. The 1980s is a time of reconstruction. It's about how it was managed. Under Thatcher it was confrontational. It was cultural. It was about a Conservative attitude; a backlash against the permissive society as well as against bolshie workers.

Squatting/housing Squatting has been an important outlet since the early 1970s. It is now more difficult after the passing of recent laws against squatting residential properties. It was suggested that apart from a fair few mansions owned by the absent super-rich there is not so much empty residential property to squat these days. There was brief discussion about the value of housing for ever going through the roof and the difficulty people face getting somewhere to live. People talk about immigration but what about emigration. In Dublin people are fast moving out. People are looking to move away because they can’'t get a place/job here to pay their way. However, the UK and Germany are still thought of as stronger economies those living in countries such as Greece and Spain.

No Future The threat of nuclear war, though an ever present threat, used to weigh heavier in the 1960s and then the 80s when the Cold War was still in place. Now, the threat of Climate Change is an all-encompassing threat that is prominent (or repressed) in people'’s minds. This probably weighs heavier on the youth. CND has not been talked about.

In Conclusion
- In conclusion there is a natural anti-authoritarianism in youth. Energy, aggression, questioning, nothing to lose (such as a family, mortgage, a well-paid job).
- There is a need for radical news and views – like there was in punk fanzines but today in different forms. But it is noted that youth can always be attracted by dodgy ideas eg nationalism, fascism, religious fundamentalism etc.
- We can'’t always be young. Longevity in activism is important.
- For young people (and all ages) controlling free spaces is important - raves, reclaim the streets, squatting.
- Social media is a kind of space, to organise, share opinion and campaign.
- Things are less homogenous now for youth.

We didn't cover: Forest Schools/Woodcraft Folk.... Political party youth movements... Anarchist Youth Group in the 1990s (South London)

Haringey Local History Fair [2014] on Saturday

Saturday 22 February, 11am - 5pm
Look out for the RaHN stall!

Want to find out more about Haringey’'s history but don’t know where to start? We are on hand to help. Talk to Archive Staff, enjoy our all-day talks programme or browse stalls covering aspects of our local heritage. Museum café open all day.

Talks programme (each lasts 20 – 30 minutes):

11.15am For the Citizens of Tomorrow: maternity and child health in Haringey before the NHS by Christine Protz (Friends of Bruce Castle)
11.55am The Molly Spoon Archive – uncovering hidden Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender (LGBT) histories by Tim Redman (LGBT heritage curator)
12.35pm Film - Now & Then: Tottenham High Road by the Tottenham Young Heritage Ambassadors
1 - 2pm Lunch break2pm Tottenham Palace - a history join Marlene McAndrew about her new publication (Friends of Bruce Castle)
2.40pm The New River Take a look at more of the history of the New River with Rachael Macdonald
3.10pm Tea break3.30pm Wood Green Through Time – explore his new book by Albert Pinching (Hornsey Historical Soc)
4.10pm First World War Commemorative Projects in Haringey, with Deborah Hedgecock (Curator), and others
The Search Room will be open 11am - 4pm
See a special small display of archives.
Ask our staff about researching local history and family history. Please note: this is an introduction to the service and a chance to ask questions, and not a time for research.

Deborah Hedgecock
CuratorBruce Castle Museum
Haringey Culture, Libraries and Learning
Lordship Lane, London N17 8NU
Tel: 020 8808 8772
Fax: 020 8808 4118
www.haringey.gov.uk

Opposing the official commemorations of the start of World War I and opposing future wars.

12.00 - 1.00 pm, this Saturday, February 15 at the Bank of Ideas (Occupy London’s new space) 238 Grays Inn Road, WC1X 8HB Chancery Lane/King’s Cross tube
Meeting organised by ‘Remembering the Real World War I’

The next ‘Remembering the Real World War I’ meeting will be
7.30 pm, Thursday February 20, 88 Fleet St (next to St. Bride’s Church) EC4 1DH

For further meetings, articles, films etc. see http://therealww1.wordpress.com/

See the Occupy London website for other events at the Bank of Ideas http://occupylondon.org.uk/

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Bank of Ideas:

The Bank of Ideas was an organisation that squatted in a disused office complex in the City of London, England. It remained in the building from November 2011 until January 2012.^[1] The building was owned by UBS, and the squatters were members of the Occupy London protest movement. The building was described by an Occupy London spokesman as "a space for political discussion".^[2]

1.  Lizzy Davies and Peter Walker (30 January 2012). "Occupy London: evicted protesters criticise bailiffs' 'heavy-handed' tactics". The Guardian. Retrieved 30 January 2012.
2. ^ Jump up to:^a b Paul Owen and Peter Walker (18 November 2011). "Occupy London takes over empty UBS bank". The Guardian. Retrieved 21 January 2012.

Community Food Growers and related matters

Some shows coming up and a few new places on the world wide web to keep in the loop.

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Three Acres And A Cow - A History Of Land Rights And Protest In Folk Song And Story
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Friday 28th February - Grow Heathrow - food from 7pm, show from 8pm
Grow Heathrow, Vineries Close, Sipson, West Drayton, UB7 0JG

Kicking off Grow Heathrow's 4th birthday party... why not stay over for the festivities the following day?
Featuring Keely Mills, Nick Hunt, Robin Grey, Alex Etchart and Rose.

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On the world wide web
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Please do follow, like and virtually say hello

http://www.threeacresandacow.co.uk/
http://www.facebook.com/threeacresandacow
https://twitter.com/threeacresacow

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Elsewhere this month
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University of Reading - People & Planet - Wednesday 12th February - 7pm - text 07930 410280 for venue info

University of Birmingham - People & Planet - Thursday 13th February - 7pm food for 8pm start.
Oasis Lounge in the multi-faith chaplaincy on Edgbaston Park Road, Edgbaston, Birmingham.

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Telling the history of land and food in Britain is always a multi-stranded narrative. On one side we have the history of enclosure, privatisation and the dispossession of land based communities; on the other we have the vibrant histories of struggle and resistance that emerged when people rose up and confronted the loss of their lands, cultures and ways of life.

These multiple histories go largely undocumented in the literature of the times, often expressed simply as a hanging here and an uprising there, yet in the music and stories of the people they take on a different life.

‘Three Acres And A Cow’ connects The Norman Conquest and Peasants’ Revolt with the 80?s road protests and Occupy via the enclosures and Highland Clearances, bringing a compelling narrative to the radical people’s history of Britain through folk songs, stories and poems.

Part TED talk, part history lecture, part folk club sing-a-long, part poetry slam, part storytelling session… Come and share in these tales as they have been shared for generations.

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“Robin Grey has a lovely fresh approach to the folk genre. A honeyed yet clear voice and his lyrics are arresting. A real treasure.” The Londonist

“Robin Grey will not need to do too much to prove himself an incendiary artist in the world of folk music. There is literature in his words and his calmly exquisite mannerisms seem to bring you back to a simpler time and place.” Fensepost

“Bluesy and folky, really bloody good.” Song by Toad

Explore the life and work of Mary Wollstonecraft...

Great London Thinkers Series

Join AnjaSteinbauer for an open discussion at the Bishopsgate Institute

Saturday 8^th February 2.30 p.m.

This event is organised in partnership with Philosophy for All.

Free admission, no advance booking required.

Please note places are limited and allocated on a first-come, first-served basis.

Further information:  http://www.bishopsgate.org.uk/searchevents_result.aspx

<< Mary Wollstonecraft (1759 –1797) was undeniably one of the most outstanding figures of her time. Claiming that “the being cannot be termed rational or virtuous, who obeys any authority, but that of reason”, she embodies in many ways the ideals of the Enlightenment. Courageous, fiercely intelligent and articulate, she effectively challenged the ideas of many of the famous minds around her, including Edmund Burke. Defender of the French Revolution, pioneer for the rights of women and mother to Mary Shelley, her influence on our culture can hardly be overestimated. >>

Re-Staging Revolutions: exhibition 10th Feb.-30th April

Alternative Theatre in Lambeth and Camden 1968-88

 

An exhibition featuring community, experimental, Black, Asian, lesbian, gay, women’s, disabled, political, Theatre-in-Education, agit-prop, physical, visual,  performance art, vernacular drama, new writing, satirical and many other theatre companies; championing a generation of artists whose work has influenced and shaped present day British theatre.

The exhibition brings together a range of material from the period, including beautiful silk-screened posters for Welfare State International, a rare poster from Vagina Rex and the Gas Oven at the Arts Lab in 1969, and a printed ‘make-it-yourself’ model of Inter-Action’s Fun Art Bus.

There are also a wealth of objects from the poignant to the bizarre: the matchstick violin smuggled by Stirabout theatre company out of one of the prisons where they performed, nautical props and the ‘pissing jug’ ceremoniously presented to The Phantom Captain when they performed in Tilburg, Holland.  All these along with original theatre designs for Monstrous Regiment’s Scum, original drawings from Action Space, creators of inflatable cushions and play spaces, now copied all over as bouncy castles, rare playscript editions from small presses, records from Sadista Sisters and Siren and cyclostyled low tech hand-outs that vividly evoke the times, along with a wealth of badges from campaigns from ‘Support the Miners’  to ‘VAT is a Pain in the Arts’ along with those celebrating individual companies from Spare Tyre to Joint Stock.

10th February- 30th April

Camden Local Studies and Archives Centre,
Holborn Library,
32-38 Theobalds Rd,
London WC1X 8PA

Talk on IWW, February 15th

The Industrial Workers of the World in Britain (1913-1920):

 

war resisters, the two Georges, a quacking duck, a bounty of booksellers, a police spy and much more!

Talk on the early history of the IWW in Britain by Nick Heath.

A fascinating account of the vibrant rebel worker culture that emerged in Britain in the years before and during World War One.

Saturday February 15th from 4pm at

 88 Fleet Street, London EC4 (nearest tube Blackfriars)

Food and refreshments. Unfortunately no disabled access.

.
Convened by London General Members Branch of the IWW