About Us
Solidarity is a newly-formed socialist group with branches across Australia. We are committed to building social movements and the wider left, through throwing ourselves into struggles for social justice, to overturn the legacy of the Howard government and to strengthen the confidence of rank and file unionists.
The name Solidarity invokes one of the basic values of working class struggle—standing together in the fight for our rights. But it also stands for the wider solidarity we want to see uniting those fighting for change around different issues into a united fightback against the capitalist system and the ruthless drive for profits that dominates our world.
There is a strong mood for change in Australia after eleven long years of Howard conservatism. This led to the election last year of the Rudd Labor government, riding the wave of anger against WorkChoices. The new government’s first few months have seen important symbolic breaks with Howard’s legacy, such as the apology to the Stolen Generations. But Kevin Rudd has also put the demands of the big end of town ahead of action to maintain ordinary people’s living standards, in the face of rising inflation and instability in global financial markets. Solidarity is committed to encouraging public pressure and a new mass movement for a break with the priorities of neo-liberalism and war that will be necessary to force a change of course.
Solidarity was formed in February 2008 when three socialist groups—Solidarity, Socialist Action Group and the International Socialist Organisation—voted to merge into a new organisation. All three groups shared a common commitment to the politics of the International Socialist Tendency and the traditions of socialism from below. As a result our three former publications Red Alert, Socialist Worker and Solidarity have been replaced by the publication of a new monthly magazine, Solidarity and the new Solidarity website. Solidarity is a member of the International Socialist Tendency.
We urge you to join us in the struggle to end the wars, inequality and environmental destruction that threatens our world—please get in contact with us or find out more about our events and the campaigns we are involved in. United we can win a better world.
Below is the full statement announcing Solidarity’s formation from February 2008:
A Stronger Left and Stronger Socialist Organization
Forging Unity For the Struggle Ahead
On Sunday, 3 February, a conference of three socialist groups, Socialist Action Group, International Socialist Organisation, and Solidarity voted to merge their organisations into a united group to be called Solidarity.
The merger represents a significant step forward in re-unifying the key groups of the International Socialist Tendency in Australia and the emergence of a new national group committed to building the left and the social movements in Australia.
The merger brings together the members of three groups that have played an important role in the fight against the Howard government – in the fight against the cuts to Higher Education and the introduction of Voluntary Student Unionism, against One Nation, on the side of militant unionism in the MUA dispute, the fight for refugee rights, against scapegoating Muslims and against the so-called war on terror in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Together with a joint commitment to the politics of socialism from below, it has been the experience of working together particularly in anti-war work and the lead up to the APEC demonstration against George Bush and John Howard in Sydney that laid the basis for forging the unity of the three groups.
After ten long years of Howard conservatism, the Rudd Labor government came to office in November riding the wave of anger against Work Choices. The Labor government embodies many hopes for real change. But it also presents a challenge to the Left.
Bringing the Burmese and Sri Lankan asylum seekers from Nauru and the announcement that there will be an apology to the Stolen Generations in the opening days of the new Parliament are the first steps to reversing the racism of the Howard government.
But Rudd’s promises have been carefully crafted not to upset the top end of town. Labor’s changes to WorkChoices will fall short even of federal Labor policy. They will not restore the right to strike and even AWA’s will potentially be valid until 2012. A mass Indigenous rally on the opening day of Parliament will show the Rudd government that dispossession is not an historical question and that the Intervention in the Northern Territory is repeating the past wrongs. Now Rudd is talking about fighting inflation but not about maintaining the jobs and living standards of workers.
The fight for social justice cannot be waged from the sidelines. The unified Solidarity is committed to throwing itself into struggles for social justice, to overturn the legacy of the Howard years and to strengthen the confidence of rank and file unionists on the shop floor.
We look forward to working in common struggle with other activists from social movements and the wider left to further these aims.
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