Update #62

Hello everyone,
Welcome to the fightback against the Tories - here's your guide to the political week in Derby!

Branch Meetings

The SWP is a party of activists who know that we need to understand the world to be effective in our actions. Our meetings have a discussion about key issues: economic, political, historical and cultural; as well as planning for events and activities.


This week's lively discussion about the way forward after the election was hugely enjoyable - thanks to all comrades who attended. But what's next? Well, these are!

Following the practical business of changing the world at the last meeting, we have a more cultural focus as our speaker will look at the heyday of social realist 'kitchen sink' drama and the Angry Young Men. Did they want to change the world, or reluctantly surrender to post-war capitalism's long boom? Come down and find out (or tell us!) Accommodation or Revolution? Kitchen Sink Drama and the Angry Young Men, Thursday 28th May, 7 pm, West End Community Centre.

Next week, a must for anyone who wants to get involved but wants to know a bit more about us, and why we bang on about some dead bloke who doesn't even have a Tumblr, we have Why Marx? An introduction to Marxist politics. Be there or be bamboozled by the bourgeoisie! Thursday 4th June, 7 pm, West End Community Centre.

Go all out for June 20!

Tens of thousands of people have already signed up for the June 20th People's Assembly demonstration in London. The People's Assembly is a national anti-austerity movement in which the SWP takes an active part. This demonstration will be an opportunity for the 76% of us who didn't vote for the Tories to let our opposition be known, and begin to organise for a renewed fightback against the Tories and the politics of austerity.

Join the demonstration - book your place on the coach today! 

The Derby Trades Council has booked a coach leaving from bays 26-28 of the Bus Station at 8 am on Saturday June 20th.
It is free to unwaged and a donation of £5 is requested for waged.
To book your place email mozgreenshields@gmail.com or text 07889 274 723

As part of the People's Assembly campaign, the People's Assembly in Derby is holding a 'lively leafleting' session at 11 am at the statue of the Ram in Derby city centre this Saturday, 16th May. Join it if you can!

Can't make our meetings?

If you want to find out more about us, meet some of our comrades, sign up to any of our petitions, find out about campaigns we are involved in, buy our paper or get hold of some of our other literature, why not come along to the campaign stall on Saturdays?

Find us on St Peter's St from 12 pm!

Update #61

Hello everyone,
Welcome to the fightback against the Tories - here's your guide to the political week in Derby!

Branch Meetings

The SWP is a party of activists who know that we need to understand the world to be effective in our actions. Our meetings have a discussion about key issues: economic, political, historical and cultural; as well as planning for events and activities.


Last night's discussion of the horrific death toll of migrants attempting to enter the EU was informative and although the subject matter was grim there was a lot to talk about. We hope to have the text of the speech available on the blog shortly.

Next week's meeting, on Thursday 21st May, will be especially important for any political activist - or anyone who wants to take action to stop the Tories as they try to bring back fox hunting and hanging, remove legal aid, harass more people on benefits to suicide, drive more families to the point where they need food banks and scrap human rights legislation, prevent trades union members from striking (and no doubt we will see more attacks on abortion rights, the democratic choices of the Scottish people, and race-baiting anti-immigration rhetoric along the way).

We will have a guest speaker from the SWP Central Committee, our senior decision-making body, to discuss strategy for the left as this weak but exceptionally vicious Tory government takes office. Fighting racism and austerity - where next after the elections? Thursday May 21st 7 pm, West End Community Centre.

The following week we will have a more cultural focus as our speaker will look at the heyday of social realist 'kitchen sink' drama and the Angry Young Men. Did they want to change the world, or reluctantly surrender to post-war capitalism's long boom? Come down and find out (or tell us!) Accommodation or Revolution? Kitchen Sink Drama and the Angry Young Men, Thursday 28th May, 7 pm, West End Community Centre.

Derby Stand Up To UKIP

We are proud to have taken an active part in campaigning against UKIP in the run-up to the elections. Although there was an upswing in UKIP support in the parliamentary elections, this was below the national average and they gained no councillors. The SWP has a proud tradition of working alongside others to achieve a common goal, and we look forward to working with anyone who opposes the anti-working class, anti-migrant, misogynistic, homophobic and racist populism of UKIP in future campaigns.

Go all out for June 20!

Tens of thousands of people have already signed up for the June 20th People's Assembly demonstration in London. The People's Assembly is a national anti-austerity movement in which the SWP takes an active part. This demonstration will be an opportunity for the 76% of us who didn't vote for the Tories to let our opposition be known, and begin to organise for a renewed fightback against the Tories and the politics of austerity.

Join the demonstration - book your place on the coach today! 

The Derby Trades Council has booked a coach leaving from bays 26-28 of the Bus Station at 8 am on Saturday June 20th.
It is free to unwaged and a donation of £5 is requested for waged.
To book your place email mozgreenshields@gmail.com or text 07889 274 723

As part of the People's Assembly campaign, the People's Assembly in Derby is holding a 'lively leafleting' session at 11 am at the statue of the Ram in Derby city centre this Saturday, 16th May. Join it if you can!

Can't make our meetings?

If you want to find out more about us, meet some of our comrades, sign up to any of our petitions, find out about campaigns we are involved in, buy our paper or get hold of some of our other literature, why not come along to the campaign stall on Saturdays?

Find us on St Peter's St from 12 pm!

(NB this Saturday there will be no stall due to commitments with Derby Against UKIP. Normal stall place and time next week!)

Update #60

Hello everyone,
Welcome to this week's update on the political happenings in Derby from the Socialist Workers Party!

Branch Meetings

The SWP is a party of activists who know that we need to understand the world to be effective in our actions. Our meetings have a discussion about key issues: economic, political, historical and cultural; as well as planning for events and activities.

Due to the election there will be no meeting this Thursday (7th May 2015).

Last Thursday's discussion on the matchwomen's strike of 1888 was brilliant, and raised some areas of history where comrades felt we could do with some more education, so watch this space for future meetings on related topics!

On Thursday May 14th we will discuss the recent tragedy in the Mediterranean and put it in the context of EU-wide racist anti-migrant policies. Migrant lives matter: stop the slaughter in the Mediterranean. Come on down to the West End Community Centre and join in the debate!

The following week we will have a guest speaker from the SWP Central Committee, to discuss strategy for the left as the dust settles from the general election. Join us to hear our perspectives and discuss your own views on the way forward! Fighting racism and austerity - where next after the elections? Thursday May 21st 7 pm, West End Community Centre.

View Larger Map

Derby Stand Up To UKIP activities

Last Saturday we joined the last pre-election Derby Against UKIP activities, leafleting in the town centre where we got a very positive reception, and followed with a successful leafleting campaign around Alvaston. Comrades have also been busy leafleting Mackworth. When you cast your vote tomorrow, help put UKIP in the electoral dustbin where they belong!

Chesterfield May Day Rally

Monday is International Workers' Day, and the Chesterfield May Day rally is an excellent day out for workers and their families.

Here's the program:

And here's a video of last year's gala!

Can't make our meetings?

If you want to find out more about us, meet some of our comrades, sign up to any of our petitions, find out about campaigns we are involved in, buy our paper or get hold of some of our other literature, why not come along to the campaign stall on Saturdays?

Find us on St Peter's St from 12 pm!

(NB this Saturday there will be no stall due to commitments with Derby Against UKIP. Normal stall place and time next week!)

Update #59

Hello everyone,
Welcome to this week's update on the political happenings in Derby from the Socialist Workers Party!

Branch Meetings

The SWP is a party of activists who know that we need to understand the world to be effective in our actions. Our meetings have a discussion about key issues: economic, political, historical and cultural; as well as planning for events and activities.


Last week we had a fantastic discussion about the nature of the crisis. This week we look back at a hugely important event in working-class history: the matchwomen's strike of 1888, when some of the most exploited workers doing some of the most dangerous work in the country organised a successful fight for workers' rights. Join us - 7 pm, Thursday 30th April, West End Community Centre!

The following Thursday we will not be having a meeting due to the General Election. Future meetings will be announced soon - check this blog, sign up for our emails or follow us on Twitter to keep up to date!

View Larger Map

Derby Stand Up To UKIP activities

The Derby Against UKIP campaign's fortnightly stalls have been very successful in getting out literature to get out the truth about the populist, right-wing UKIPpers and their divisive homophobic, sexist, racist and anti-working class members and policies. Recent polls suggest that anti-UKIP campaigning is having a significant effect.


The election is not over yet, and if we want people to make the decision not to vote for this collection of malicious, pro-rich white men, anti-everyone else bunch we should continue to support the Derby Against UKIP campaign.

There will be leafleting of Alvaston on the 2nd May - please come and help out if you can!

If you're interested in finding out more, email sutuderby@gmail.com

Silk Mill Rally

We had a great day, despite some dodgy weather, on Saturday - see photos and read our report here:

http://derbyswp.blogspot.com/2015/04/silk-mill-march-and-rally-2015.html

Can't make our meetings?

If you want to find out more about us, meet some of our comrades, sign up to any of our petitions, find out about campaigns we are involved in, buy our paper or get hold of some of our other literature, why not come along to the campaign stall on Saturdays?

Find us on St Peter's St from 12 pm!

Silk Mill March and Rally 2015

Yesterday was the annual march and rally in the city centre to commemorate the 1834 Silk Mill lockout, a bitter industrial struggle which marks both one of the first strikes of the industrial age and the beginnings of what would become the trades union movement. It is recorded on a plaque at the Silk Mill museum, where every year the wreath is laid, and in a mural on the side of the Silk Mill pub. The Trades Council has recently published a book on working class history in Derby, in which the struggle is featured, and there was a film on at the QUAD in the afternoon all about the lockout.

 It's a big day for the left in the city, and trades unionists, political parties and activists were all out for the day. There were some good placards,

and a good crowd turned out ahead of the march

and we had a fairly prominent stall!

It wouldn't be a march without Socialist Worker placards, no matter what changes the weather went through in the space of a few minutes (bright sunshine, torrential downpour, sullen clemency, if you were wondering).

After the wreath-laying and march we had some speeches from trades unions including the FBU, Joginder Bains of the Indian Workers' Association, the TUC, the People's Assembly and Labour politicians including Derby North MP Chris Williamson and Council Leader Ranjit Banwait.

And after a bit of political theatre from the anti-TTIP campaign, the band led us in cheerful if fairly ragged renditions of wonderful workers' hymn to the struggle The Internationale, and boring old Labour dirge The Red Flag (views as to the merits of the Internationale and the Red Flag reflect the personal opinions of the author, and are not necessarily those of the SWP as a whole. Although clearly they should be. ;) ). All in all, a good day out for every worker and their family, and a good opportunity to raise the cause of anti-austerity, anti-TTIP politics!

Update #58

Hello everyone,
Welcome to this week's update on the political happenings in Derby from the Socialist Workers Party!

Branch Meetings

The SWP is a party of activists who know that we need to understand the world to be effective in our actions. Our meetings have a discussion about key issues: economic, political, historical and cultural; as well as planning for events and activities.

We have now uploaded the text of our recent meeting on socialists and elections - link to the post.

We've had some great meetings over the last few weeks, and this Thursday's should be another good one: Marxist theory of crisis - the nature of the current long depression - what caused the crash, why can't capitalism recover and what can we expect in the near future? 23rd April, 7 pm, West End Community Centre.

The following week we look back at one of the most famous strikes in the working class movement - the matchwomen's strike of 1888. Thursday 30th April, 7 pm, West End Community Centre.

View Larger Map

Derby Stand Up To UKIP activities

The Derby Against UKIP campaign's fortnightly stalls have been very successful in getting out literature to get out the truth about the populist, right-wing UKIPpers and their divisive homophobic, sexist, racist and anti-working class members and policies. Recent polls suggest that anti-UKIP campaigning is having a significant effect.


The election is not over yet, and if we want people to make the decision not to vote for this collection of malicious, pro-rich white men, anti-everyone else bunch we should continue to support the Derby Against UKIP campaign.

There will be leafleting of Alvaston on the 2nd May - please come and help out if you can!

If you're interested in finding out more, email sutuderby@gmail.com

Silk Mill Rally

The annual Silk Mill march and rally, which commemorates the struggles of Derby's workers in one of the first industrial strikes the world has ever seen, is approaching. This will be on Saturday April 25th. It is a great opportunity to celebrate working class resistance and organisation, so join the march, organised by the Derby Trades Union Council and with the support of all the trades unions in the city!

Can't make our meetings?

Saturday's campaign stall was very lively, as it coincided with the Anti-TTIP day of action. Comrades from the SWP joined in with the anti-TTIP campaigners as well as holding our regular stall.

If you want to find out more about us, meet some of our comrades, sign up to any of our petitions, find out about campaigns we are involved in, buy our paper or get hold of some of our other literature, why not come along to the campaign stall on Saturdays?

Find us on St Peter's St from 12 pm!

TUSC Election Broadcast

Here is the party political broadcast from TUSC - The Trades Union and Socialist Coalition that was aired on Friday evening. Fantastic job.