Industrial Workers of the World

SchNEWS PRESENTS: SMASH HITS FROM THE EURO-VISIONARIES

http://www.schnews.org.uk/archive/news660.htm

NEW ROME-ANTICS The radical student movement in Britain can take some lessons from what is happening in Italy at the moment, specifically from events at the Roman Sapienza University campus - a hotbed for radical political mobilisation in Italy. For months students have been occupying areas of their University in response to the racist, market-driven education reforms proposed by the Berlusconi government in law 133, also called the Gelmini law, named after the Minister of Education, Mariastella Gelmini.

On Friday 12 December students and workers from Italy’s most militant trade union COBAS marched in Rome. The movement, self-titled ‘the anomalous wave’, has not seen a repeat of the mass turn-out of October when over 2 million people marched in Rome. However students at la Sapienza, Europe’s biggest University, continue to occupy a number of departments in order to push their agenda called ‘autoriforma’ - educational reform led by students and workers from the bottom-up. The movement is inspired by anarchist principles, and many slogans include fury about the recent death of Alexis Grigoropoulos at the hands of the Greek police.

On Wednesday December 10th, after a vigil at the Greek embassy in Rome, a number of copper vans got burned but no large scale clashes occurred between protesters and police.

On a critical note, it seems the students are merely pushing an educational agenda and fail to reach out to those who do not have the privilege to study - the Italian working class, the oppressed Roma gypsies and large numbers of African immigrants, all under threat in the face of an openly racist government and a growing number of fascists getting their grubby hands on power. Some lessons may be learned from the French mobilisation against the CPE in 2006

(see SchNEWS 537 http://www.schnews.org.uk/archive/news537.htm ),

where students and workers organised together and defeated Sarkozy’s law. In any case, the fresh radicalism of this movement may inspire the by-and-large capitulated British student movement. Some Italian students are expected to come to the University of Sussex to talk about their experiences in February 2009. Watch this space. *

See http://anomalia.blogsome.com/category/1

EURO TRASHED 2: TRACKS OF MY TEAR GAS

Following on from the last week’s shenanigans, the Greek rioting/demonstrating is rolling on. After nearly two weeks of continual confrontation with the police (allegedly forcing the Greek cops to go begging to the Germans and the Israelis for more tear gas canisters after theirs ran out), the protesters’ determination to keep on fighting doesn’t show any signs of flagging (despite the international media having gotten bored and gone away). The Greek media doesn’t quite have that luxury however. Radio and TV stations have been occupied by protesters, broadcasting revolutionary propaganda. Municipal Tripoli Radio, ‘Nea Tileorasi’ TV in Chania, Politeia FM of Sparta and ‘Star FM’ and Imagine 897 FM in Thessaloniki have all been occupied.

Ten people got into the studio of NET state television, turned off a broadcast of a speech by Prime Minister Karamanlis and held up banners saying ‘Stop watching, get out onto the streets!’, and ‘Free everyone who has been arrested’. Here’s a lesson from the Greek DIY guide to Anarchism for anyone thinking about inspiring a wave of anti-state protest that brings the country to a standstill and a government to its knees - if the media wont tell your side of the story, take over the TV stations and tell it yourself. Far too much going on for to write about: Wildcat strikes - doctors, teachers, airport staff; student occupations; occupying the trade union building for the official unions being useless; massive demos and oh yeah, more rioting! Plus solidarity demos and actions across the world. *

See www.occupiedlondon.org/blog

and

www.athens.indymedia.org/?lang=en

EURO TRASHED 3: RIOTSCHOOL MUSICAL

Schoolkids in France have been out in the streets against school reforms which would drastically cut teaching hours and fire 13,500 education workers. In the past week actions have flared up across the country. In Lyon five police officers were injured when school kids threw rocks and damaged cars, thirty eight were arrested. In Dijon the high speed train line was blocked by around 200 protesters. Several thousand marched in Paris and tear gas was fired by police at parts of the demo.

The government have temporarily backed down, but the kids aren’t fooled and refuse to stop protests till the government agrees to to scrap the plans completely. A student’s spokeskid said: “You keep hearing about the financial crisis, that there’s no money for young people, and on the other hand you give out billions to the banks and of course that creates discontent.” more:

http://www.schnews.org.uk/archive/news659.htm