Skip to content or view mobile version

Home | Mobile | Editorial | Mission | Privacy | About | Contact | Help | Security | Support

A network of individuals, independent and alternative media activists and organisations, offering grassroots, non-corporate, non-commercial coverage of important social and political issues.

Anti-capitalism in Britain is stagnating

AWIP | 27.08.2002 13:33

Just over a year after Genoa, and people who are usually blessed with the foresight to see beyond the current world of corporate dominance, seem strangely impotent.

Anti-capitalism in Britain is stagnating.
The formation of Globalise Resistance and the involvement of the Italian Labour party in the European Social Forum has caused some people to warn that the movement that is based on creativity, direct action, and a healthy disregard for the law is being over taken over by old fashioned left wing politics, worse, they are also allowing this to be come a self-fulfiling prophecy.
The ESF and GR are actually both completely open groups that want to encourage as broad a range of people to be involved as possible, yet those critical of these groups refuse to get involved and help shape them. If GR really is a 'front' for the SWP then those behind it are surely delighted that the mere hint of their involvement keeps those with alternative views away - leaving them free to act in whatever way they please. The truth is that GR probably is, and the ESF certainly is genuine about wanting to be an independent anti-capitalist umbrella group, but that this is impossible while their image keeps people away.
GR has dismissed it's critics and not really tried to answer them, and the critics have not tried to engage properly with GR - It's a stalemate that leaves people who want make a better world frustrated.



ANOTHER WORLD IS POSSIBLE


To get over this problem we have started a campaign called AWIP. AWIP seeks to draw together all the groups and individuals who are thinking for themselves and making informed choices to influence all the big issues facing our world.

We have no political line and endorse no particular view on how the better world can be achieved, except that it won't happen until all those people that believe in it come together.

We want to make this organisation a totally simple and transparent campaign to get people to say that 'another world is possible'. and to contrast it with people who believe 'there is no alternative' . I believe that given the choice most people would choose the former.

This is an attempt to get above the GR / anti GR wrangle and is hopefully a campaign that supporters of both camps can get involved in

we have loads of ideas about how we could build this organisation and i'm sure you have as well, so we are setting up a public meeting to discuss how to go forward. - details are still not finalised
Tell everyone you know about this idea and send an email to  awip@a16.org.uk to be involved in further discussion


cheers


be cynical, be suspicious, be cautious but be involved



















what's wrong with Globalise Resistance and what's the alternative?
GR wants to be a non-political anti-capitalist umbrella organisation giving support to other organisations and campaigns and drawing more people into the anti-cap movement, this is a good thing. However people are suspicious that this is merely a front for the distinctly socialist leanings of the main people involved. in it. GR react by saying that membership and elections for it's steering committee are totally open, which is true. But those critical of the group's origins are unwilling to get involved at all - catch 22 - until those critical of GR are prepared to get involved in it, it will remain to be seen as a 'front'. it will also remain the easiest and most attractive anti-cap group for people to join, even for those that don't want to join something seen as an SWP front do so because there was no real alternative.
until now
AWIP is a truly non-political campaign aiming to unify all strands of anti-cap views under one simple slogan borrowed from the world social forum - ANOTHER WORLD IS POSSIBLE. we follow no political line and we are not a front for anyone, the best way to make sure is to get involved with us and make sure your voice is heard
We are currently planning a public meeting to discuss these issues (date and venue to be confirmed) please send an email to  awip@a16.org.uk to be
involved in further discussion


be cynical, be suspicious, be cautious but be involved

AWIP
- e-mail: awip@a16.org.uk

Comments

Upcoming Coverage
View and post events
Upcoming Events UK
24th October, London: 2015 London Anarchist Bookfair
2nd - 8th November: Wrexham, Wales, UK & Everywhere: Week of Action Against the North Wales Prison & the Prison Industrial Complex. Cymraeg: Wythnos o Weithredu yn Erbyn Carchar Gogledd Cymru

Ongoing UK
Every Tuesday 6pm-8pm, Yorkshire: Demo/vigil at NSA/NRO Menwith Hill US Spy Base More info: CAAB.

Every Tuesday, UK & worldwide: Counter Terror Tuesdays. Call the US Embassy nearest to you to protest Obama's Terror Tuesdays. More info here

Every day, London: Vigil for Julian Assange outside Ecuadorian Embassy

Parliament Sq Protest: see topic page
Ongoing Global
Rossport, Ireland: see topic page
Israel-Palestine: Israel Indymedia | Palestine Indymedia
Oaxaca: Chiapas Indymedia
Regions
All Regions
Birmingham
Cambridge
Liverpool
London
Oxford
Sheffield
South Coast
Wales
World
Other Local IMCs
Bristol/South West
Nottingham
Scotland
Social Media
You can follow @ukindymedia on indy.im and Twitter. We are working on a Twitter policy. We do not use Facebook, and advise you not to either.
Support Us
We need help paying the bills for hosting this site, please consider supporting us financially.
Other Media Projects
Schnews
Dissident Island Radio
Corporate Watch
Media Lens
VisionOnTV
Earth First! Action Update
Earth First! Action Reports
Topics
All Topics
Afghanistan
Analysis
Animal Liberation
Anti-Nuclear
Anti-militarism
Anti-racism
Bio-technology
Climate Chaos
Culture
Ecology
Education
Energy Crisis
Fracking
Free Spaces
Gender
Globalisation
Health
History
Indymedia
Iraq
Migration
Ocean Defence
Other Press
Palestine
Policing
Public sector cuts
Repression
Social Struggles
Technology
Terror War
Workers' Movements
Zapatista
Major Reports
NATO 2014
G8 2013
Workfare
2011 Census Resistance
Occupy Everywhere
August Riots
Dale Farm
J30 Strike
Flotilla to Gaza
Mayday 2010
Tar Sands
G20 London Summit
University Occupations for Gaza
Guantanamo
Indymedia Server Seizure
COP15 Climate Summit 2009
Carmel Agrexco
G8 Japan 2008
SHAC
Stop Sequani
Stop RWB
Climate Camp 2008
Oaxaca Uprising
Rossport Solidarity
Smash EDO
SOCPA
Past Major Reports
Encrypted Page
You are viewing this page using an encrypted connection. If you bookmark this page or send its address in an email you might want to use the un-encrypted address of this page.
If you recieved a warning about an untrusted root certificate please install the CAcert root certificate, for more information see the security page.

Global IMC Network


www.indymedia.org

Projects
print
radio
satellite tv
video

Africa

Europe
antwerpen
armenia
athens
austria
barcelona
belarus
belgium
belgrade
brussels
bulgaria
calabria
croatia
cyprus
emilia-romagna
estrecho / madiaq
galiza
germany
grenoble
hungary
ireland
istanbul
italy
la plana
liege
liguria
lille
linksunten
lombardia
madrid
malta
marseille
nantes
napoli
netherlands
northern england
nottingham imc
paris/île-de-france
patras
piemonte
poland
portugal
roma
romania
russia
sardegna
scotland
sverige
switzerland
torun
toscana
ukraine
united kingdom
valencia

Latin America
argentina
bolivia
chiapas
chile
chile sur
cmi brasil
cmi sucre
colombia
ecuador
mexico
peru
puerto rico
qollasuyu
rosario
santiago
tijuana
uruguay
valparaiso
venezuela

Oceania
aotearoa
brisbane
burma
darwin
jakarta
manila
melbourne
perth
qc
sydney

South Asia
india


United States
arizona
arkansas
asheville
atlanta
Austin
binghamton
boston
buffalo
chicago
cleveland
colorado
columbus
dc
hawaii
houston
hudson mohawk
kansas city
la
madison
maine
miami
michigan
milwaukee
minneapolis/st. paul
new hampshire
new jersey
new mexico
new orleans
north carolina
north texas
nyc
oklahoma
philadelphia
pittsburgh
portland
richmond
rochester
rogue valley
saint louis
san diego
san francisco
san francisco bay area
santa barbara
santa cruz, ca
sarasota
seattle
tampa bay
united states
urbana-champaign
vermont
western mass
worcester

West Asia
Armenia
Beirut
Israel
Palestine

Topics
biotech

Process
fbi/legal updates
mailing lists
process & imc docs
tech