Welcome to issue seven of the Irish Anarchist Review, published by the Workers Solidarity
Movement. One hundred years on from the great Dublin lockout, the labour movement in
Ireland stands at a crossroads. In this issue, we look at some of the struggles of the
past that lead us to this moment in history and consider ways that we can progress the
reconstruction of working class organisation. We don?t think there is a magic formula for
success; rather we hope this magazine can be a forum for debate for activists who are
involved in the struggles that are going on in 2013.--- Locked Out: Dublin 1913---General
Strike - Protest or Process ---- Urban Politics & The Dublin Housing Action Committee
1968-71 ---- Anarchism in Brazil ---- Capital's Shadow ---- On the RAG ---- The Politics
of Voices: Notes on Gender, Race & Class ---- Avoiding Burn out ? Self Care and Support in
activism ---- Review of Volume 2 of Anarchist FAQ
In January, the general president of SIPTU, Jack O?Connor, gave an oration at Glasnevin
cemetery to commemorate the sixty sixth anniversary of Jim Larkin?s death. He used the
occasion to attack those to the left of him and to try to draw a link between the union
bureaucracy?s negotiations with the government on behalf of public sector workers and
Larkin?s role in the lockout. ?It was precisely because we believed the economy would not
grow that we advocated the Croke Park agreement. We were not prepared to lead tens of
thousands of workers into an enormous confrontation.? Linking his strategy to that of Jim
Larkin and the ITGWU of 1913, he said, ?(Larkin) no less than any leader, would not choose
to lead vulnerable men and women, and their families into a head-on collision with
overwhelmingly superior forces.? If cynicism is your cup of tea, O?Connor?s speech was the
whole pot. When Larkin?s union entered a dispute, they organised to win. The current union
bureaucracy on the other hand, entered the battlefield waving the white flag. It is clear;
we need to rebuild our movement from below.
In ?Locked Out: Dublin 1913? http://www.wsm.ie/c/1913-lockout-dublin-larkinism-myths
Donal ? Fall?in looks briefly at the politics, ideas and misconceptions around the Dublin
Lockout of 1913, and shows that the event is much more complex than it has been allowed to
be, by those who would narrow it down to a small event within the nationalist narrative of
the period. Putting the lockout in context, he considers the role of syndicalism in the
dispute and gives an account of media attacks on the union. He notes that, contrary to the
approach of the union leaderships of today, ?central to the radical political philosophy
of Larkin was the sympathetic strike, something James Connolly would describe as ?the
recognition of the working class of their essential unity.?
Jumping forward one hundred years, in
http://www.wsm.ie/c/general-strike-protest-process-solidarity ?General Strike: Protest or
Process??
Mark Hoskins looks at the workers? movement and the left in Ireland today. Taking into
consideration the demand for a general strike, he poses the question; what would a general
strike mean today, under the leadership of the current union bureaucracy or even under an
alternative left leadership? Contrasting the situation elsewhere in Europe with that of
Ireland, he notes that ?Here, in Ireland, it seems like we?re on a different planet to
Greece and Spain. Despite being subjected to five years of austerity budgets, there has
been little fight back from the unions? It seems ridiculous to argue for the
generalisation of struggle when there is virtually no struggle to generalise.? He argues
that we need to popularise the idea of industrial direct action, while building a movement
based on the principles of solidarity, democracy and autonomy to be able to engage in a
general strike worthy of the name.
When we speak of rebuilding a movement from below, it is important that we do not exclude
the voices of the marginalised. In ?The Politics of Voices: Notes on Gender, Race &
Class?, http://www.wsm.ie/c/anarchism-intersecionality-gender-race-class
Aidan Rowe looks at some of the pitfalls we face as class struggle anarchists attempting
to build a society without hierarchy. He rejects vulgar Marxist ideas ?of the
base-superstructure model (that) holds that the base determines the superstructure
absolutely and the superstructure is unable to affect the base? and the implication that
if we end class exploitation, all other forms of oppression will disappear. At the same
time he also rejects ?a stultifying and inward-looking liberal-idealist identity politics,
concerned with the identification of privilege and the self- regulation of individual
oppressive behavior, an approach that excludes organised struggle, which, while amplifying
the voices of the marginalised, consigns them to an echo chamber where they can resonate
harmlessly? and argues for ?bringing together a diversity of experiences and struggles in
a spirit of solidarity and mutual recognition?.
Even speaking of the tasks that face us can be mentally challenging. When as activists we
devote lots of time and energy to struggle we can get burned out. This can lead to people
dropping out of politics altogether, yet it is a problem we rarely face up to. Amber
O?Sullivan tackles this issue in ?Avoiding Burn out ? Self Care and Support in activism?
http://www.wsm.ie/c/anarchism-burn-out-self-care-support-activism and asks ?How can we
protest differently? How can we organise ourselves so group cohesion, fun, positivity and
self/collective care can be part of our practice??
With the escalating neo-liberalisation of urban space, the right to the city has
re-emerged as a demand among activists. Tom Murray looks back at the struggle of working
class people in Dublin in the late 1960?s and early 1970?s for decent, affordable housing
http://www.wsm.ie/c/squatting-politics-dublin-housing-action-committeeagainst the
onslaught of property speculation. He describes how ?The Dublin Housing Action Committee,
combined building voluntary networks of the homeless with holding prominent, public
demonstrations aimed at publicising demands for social housing.? Drawing some lessons for
the struggle today, he concludes that ?If such a politics were to take organisational
form, the Dublin Housing Action Committee would approximate a good working model of direct
action and co-operative practice that communities, left political parties and non-aligned
activists could aspire to.
Over all the forms of oppression and exploitation we face today, debt is cast like a
shadow. In ?Capital?s Shadow?,
http://www.wsm.ie/c/capital-left-analysis-debt-graeber-marxism Paul Bowman analyses left
wing theorisations of debt and concludes that there is a lack in their understanding of
?the real nature of money? and poses the need for a ?new research project that analyses
not only value, but value at risk over time, and through that the role of credit, risk and
the world market in the current global regime of accumulation.?
In a wide ranging interview on anarchism in Brazil
http://www.wsm.ie/c/brazilian-anarchism-interview-world-cup-especifismoPaul Bowman talked
to Felipe Corr?a (FC) a Brazilian anarchist who is member of Organiza??o Anarquista
Socialismo Libert?rio [Libertarian Socialist Anarchist Organization] (OASL) about
anarchist orgainising in Brasil, just how global the crisis really is and the forthcoming
World Cup.
RAG is a diverse group of anarcha-feminist women in Dublin. They produce a magazine, The
Rag, organise film screenings and fundraisers, host public discussions, conduct workshops
and zine distro. 'On the RAG'
http://www.wsm.ie/c/rag-interview-revolutionary-anarcha-feminist-group-mar2013 is a
conversation between Clare Butler and Angela Coraccio of the Revolutionary Anarcha-
Feminist Group (RAG) and Leticia Ortega of RAG and the Workers Solidarity Movement (WSM).
We hope the ideas expressed here can help open up a debate on the kind of movement that is
fit for the twenty first century. We would like those who read the magazine to develop on
them and perhaps respond with ideas of their own.
Words: Mark Hoskins
Editorial Committee
Paul Bowman, Farah Azadi, Mark Hoskins, Brian Fagan, Dermot Sreenan, Leticia Ortega.
Thanks to all members of the WSM for contributions, discussion & feedback.
Big thanks to Brian Fagan for layout.
Cover Artwork: Libcom.org
about the wsm/
The Workers Solidarity Movement was founded in Dub- lin, Ireland in 1984 following
discussions by a number of local anarchist groups on the need for a national anarchist
organisation. At that time with unemployment and inequality on the rise, there seemed
every reason to argue for anarchism and for a revolutionary change in Irish society. This
has not changed.
Like most socialists we share a fundamental belief that capitalism is the problem. We
believe that as a system it must be ended, that the wealth of society should be commonly
owned and that its resources should be used to serve the needs of humanity as a whole and
not those of a small greedy minority. But, just as importantly, we see this struggle
against capitalism as also being a struggle for freedom. We believe that socialism and
freedom must go together, that we cannot have one without the other.
Anarchism has always stood for individual freedom. But it also stands for democracy. We
believe in democratising the workplace and in workers taking control of all industry. We
believe that this is the only real alternative to capitalism with its ongoing reliance on
hierarchy and oppression and its depletion of the world?s resources.
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