Anarchism has historically gained the most support and influence in Spain, especially in the seventy or so years before Francisco Franco's victory in the Spanish Civil War of 1936-1939. Here is the history of the Spanish anarchist movement from the words of those who where involved.
Lessons from the Spanish Civil War. Anarchism is the only hope that the working class have to improve their life and stop the exploitation. We, the Anarchists, follow this Bakinin statement: "The power pervert the man!" During the Spanish Civil War I witnessed how well organized the Anarchist Unions (Sindicados) were in Catalunya and Aragon. It's not a myth anymore. I am in close contact with the Spanish "companeros" and I see how the working class is protected against the exploitation. We need to restore the workers pride and dignity, they should join us, the Anarchists, because the capitalists will never give them a chance to improve their lives; on the contrary, they use the cheaper workers overseas. We the Anarchists are the only hope of the proletariat and day by day we are growing and become important in our class struggle. George Sossenko is an 88-year old veteran of the Spanish Civil War. At the age of 16, he left his home in France to fight against Franco's fascists with the anarchists of the Durruti column. A dedicated, life-long anarchist, George is still an active organizer as he traveels and gives lectures on this important period in revolutionary history. Filmed at the New York City Anarchist Bookfair in May 2008 by David Buccola
This organic grocery store in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada is a thriving business with no bosses at all! Find out what they like about being a worker co-op and how the joys and sacrifices make every day worthwhile.
Thanks to Heather H for this.
U. Utah Philips is the entire reason I a member of the North American anarcho-syndicalist union the Industrial Workers of the World. He is a great influence in my life and an inspiration.
Amy Goodman interviews Utah Phillips for Democracy Now! in 2004. Utah explains how he got the name "U. Utah", the history of war resistance, and the Wobblies.
The S.U.F. is Swedish Anarcho-syndicalist Youth Federation, (in Swedish, Syndikalistiska Ungdomsförbundet) is a youth-based group in Sweden that supports anarcho-syndicalism.
Inspiration also came from the anarcho-syndicalist union Central Organisation of the Workers of Sweden (or the S.A.C.). From just three groups in 1993 it grew rapidly and today it is a nation-wide federation made up of around 25 local groups throughout the entire country, and several committees active within the federation. They publish a magazine called Direkt Aktion and a monthly internal paper called Storm.
Here is a video of the S.U.F. from Mayday 2009.
Here's another interview, with Bruce, an IWW delegate to the curbside workers union.
Bruce describes duties as IWW delegate to curbside, and makes some brief comments on the labor movement in general.
Here is an interview with a member of the IWW from the San Fransisco branch, taken at the SanFran Anarchist Bookfair.
You ain't been doin' nothin' 'till you been called a red!
This is an old anti-IWW cartoon from the 1920s.
The Freie Arbeiterinnen- und Arbeiter-Union (Free Worker's Union;abbreviated FAU) is an anarcho-syndicalist labor union initiative in Germany. It is the German section of the International Workers Association (IWA-AIT).
The FAU was then founded in 1977 and has grown consistently all through the 1990s. Now, the FAU consists of just under 40 groups, organized locally and by branch of trade. The federal organization exists in order to coordinate campaigns and actions and for communication purposes. There are 250 to 300 members organized in the various groups.
Here is a video from FAU Berlin during Mayday 2009.
Sorry that this is a day late. I have a super busy day yesterday, with work and school dominating my time.
Baristas at the Mall of America Starbucks joined the Starbucks Workers Union in July 2008. Starbucks fired Barista Erik Forman in an effort to quash the union drive. Through a campaign of direct action, legal pressure, and media advocacy, we won Erik's job back. On August 31st, the IWW held a rally to celebrate the union victory. After the rally, union supporters accompanied Erik Forman to his first shift back at the Mall of America. I've met Fellow Worker Erik Forman, he's a super nice guy.
Things did not go as planned.
This documentary-drama tells the story of Ethel MacDonald, a remarkable young woman whose name hit the world headlines during the Spanish Civil War. She was hailed as the Scarlet Pimpernel of the workers revolution but has since become something of a forgotten legend.
Ethel MacDonald (24 February 1909—1 December 1960) was a Glasgow-based Scottish anarchist and activist and, in 1937, during the Spanish Civil War, a propagandist on Barcelona Anarchist radio.
When workers at Starbucks Coffee in New York decided to unionize with the Industrial Workers of the World, baristas in other cities took notice. From Chicago, to the Twin Cities, and now, here in Canada, Baristas in a Quebec city Starbucks have joined with I.W.W. Starbucks Workers Union to fight for better conditions in there work place.
In this episode of Labor Beat, food service workers at Chicago's Logan Square location of Starbucks are interviewed about the high-volume conditions at their store and what they decided to do about it. Labor Beat is a public access TV show in Chicago.
To order DVDs of this or any past Labor Beat title, visit www.laborbeat.org.
Andrew Nellis is an anarcho-syndicalist activist from Ontario. He is one of the lead organizers for the Ottawa Panhandlers Union. Denis Rancourt was a professor of Physics at the University of Ottawa, known for his radical pedagogy. This is a very good interview for Denis Rancourt's radio show The Five O'clock Train. Listen and enjoy!
Andrew Nellis Interviewed by Denis Rancourt for The Five O'clock Train.
This 1979 award-winning film airs a provocative look at the forgotten American history of this most radical of unions, screening the unforgettable and still-fiery voices of Wobbly members--lumberjacks, migratory workers, and silk weavers--in their 70s, 80s, and 90s. Eerily echoing current times, THE WOBBLIES boldly investigates a nation torn by naked corporate greed and the red-hot rift between the industrial masters and the rabble-rousing workers in the field and factory. Replete with gorgeous archival footage, the film pays tribute to American workers who took the ideals of equality and free speech seriously enough to die for them. Directed by Stewart Bird and Deborah Shaffer, THE WOBBLIES is a rare and challenging invitation to rethink both past and present through the eyes of an organization largely omitted from memory.
The Grand Rapids Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) held a May Day press conference outside the East Grand Rapids branch of Starbucks. The Press Conference was part of an ongoing campaign to get Starbucks to recognize the union's legal right to organize their workers. The Grand Rapids chapter of the IWW is part of a legal case along with another union in New York that has been challenging Starbucks' anti-union practices.
The Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) IU 460/640 marches on HWH Trading, a new shop where workers have joined the union. At HWH some workers work as much as 110-117 hours per week with no overtime pay.
The Take is a Canadian documentary film released in 2004 by the wife and husband team of Naomi Klein and Avi Lewis. It tells the story of workers in Buenos Aires, Argentina who reclaim control of a closed Forja auto plant where they once worked and turn it into a worker cooperative, or as could be argued, a working model of anarcho-syndicalism.
The plant closed as a result of the economic policies of the Carlos Menem government under the watchful eye of the International Monetary Fund.
While in bankruptcy protection, the company appeared to be selling off property and inventory to pay creditors – a move which further reduced the chances of the facility returning to production. In an effort to establish their own control, the workers occupied the factory and began a long battle to win the right to operate it themselves, as a cooperative.
Lisa Barlott-Cardenas from the Industrial Workers of the World speaks at the Boom for Whom? Affordable Housing Rally on August 18, 2007 at the Alberta Legislature.
here are two videos from the recent contract negotiations between IWW curbside recycle workers at Ecology Center / Berkeley Curbside Recycling and there management. Without the pressure on the shop floor, our Fellow Workers would have not gotten anything.
In the end, faced with a possible strike, the EC backed down and agreed to the $1.00 raise across the board, along with the other improvements. This is still a long way away from what is really needed, and the EC continues with the same game that any employer plays - that "the money isn't there" - while refusing to document this. Nevertheless, IWW members should be proud that ours is not a union that accepts management's word for what is "affordable" and what isn't. While this raise (along with the 401k improvement) is not as much as the workers deserve, I do think it's probably more than lots of other unions contracts are winning nowadays. This is because we start from the position of the workers' needs, not those of the bosses.
This is a short video out of New York, taken at the Coney Island Mermaid Parade in 2007. The Mermaid Parade takes place every year by the sea in Coney Island, Brooklyn, New York City, usually in mid-to-late June.
This is the kind of things I would like all Wobs to get involved in. The IWW is historically a lively, singing union. Instead of tiered old protest marches or walking the picket that seem more like funeral processions then anything that could effectively challenge authority, wobs should bring some life back into the radical movement. Strikes become street party, joyous events where we are taking back a peice of our life and fighting back!
Enjoy!
