Selma James

Universal family allowance, now known as child benefit and no longer universal, was paid for the first time 70 years ago today. It was primarily the work of Eleanor Rathbone. See my article in the Guardian celebrating the 70th anniversary of Child Benefit.

A new movement announced itself in September 2015 when Jeremy Corbyn was elected Leader of the Labour Party by a landslide. Since then, almost every established media has been busy witch-hunting, undermining and insulting that movement by targeting Corbyn and John McDonnell his shadow chancellor. These two MPs have been working together for decades, representing…

When Jeremy Corbyn announced that he was anti-austerity, overnight he began to attract thousands who then joined Labour to vote for him as leader of the party. Some who had left in disgust at Blair’s deadly wars rejoined. Membership doubled, becoming a political force. This was entirely unexpected, like an earthquake. It upset the whole…

We thought you might be interested in our statement which has been submitted to the Chakrabarti Inquiry“into antisemitism and other forms of racism including islamophobia, within the Labour party”. We would be glad for any feedback. We are also circulating the highly recommended submission from International Jewish Anti-Zionist Network UK, titled “An anti-racist movement versus…

“we do not believe that Labour is rife with antisemitism and weare outraged that antisemitism is being used to undermine the new anti-austerity,anti-racist and anti-imperialist Labour leadership. Below is evidence against thewitch-hunt, and of the racism in the UK which is hidden by it.” This is the submission from the International Jewish Anti-Zionist Network (IJAN)…

The following is a letter written to the Guardian, in response to an interview with Unite leader, Len McCluskey: Len McCluskey says that the security forces are “involved in dark practices” to discredit Jeremy Corbyn (Len McCluskey: intelligence services using ‘dark practices’ against Corbyn, 23 July, andhttps://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2016/jul/25/len-mccluskey-adds-context-to-his-comments-on-mi5). McCluskey has been in politics long enough to…

On Tuesday, Ms. Grover invited me to a women’s speak-out event at a church downtown that was organized by the social justice group Global Women’s Strike. The event’s attendees skewed older and much more local than the protest on Monday did. Here were people invested in the unglamorous work of coalition building — activists on…

On 19 January, anti-drone grandmother Mary Anne Grady Flores was convicted to 6 months in jail.  Her conviction sprang from her protest at Hancock Air National Guard Base (New York state) in 2013. Earlier this year, former drone operators blew the whistle on the US drone programme and wrote a collective letter to President Obama.…

An article on the struggle to care in the face of austerity, written by Becka Seglow Hudson of the Global Women’s Strike was responded to last week in a letter, penned by care assistant in an elderly people’s home, Kate Thompson. ”I see examples of excellent care, small acts of kindness, compassionate treatment of those we…