Abbott’s Syria refugee announcement: Too little, too discriminatory and too hypocritical
As the refugee crisis unfolded in Europe and the photo of the lifeless body of a three year-old on a Turkish beach galvanised calls for action, an outpouring of public pressure has forced the Abbott government to take 12,000 Syrian refugees.
Redfern embassy wins on key housing demands
The Redfern Aboriginal Tent Embassy has won an inspiring victory. After more than 15 months of maintaining a protest camp at the Block in Redfern, in late August RATE forced guarantees about the inclusion of Aboriginal housing in the major redevelopment plan.
Royal Commission bias now out in the open
The farce over Dyson Heydon’s links to the Liberal Party has exposed the Trade Union Royal Commission for what it always was—a political stunt aimed against Labor and the unions.
Is the Australian economy facing recession?
Stockmarket gyrations and slowing growth figures have raised renewed questions about the health of the Australian and world economy.
China deal: the issue is exploitation, not immigration
The debate over the Liberals’ China-Australia free trade deal (ChAFTA) has taken centre stage in federal politics. The problems with the deal are real. But there is no excuse for rhetoric blaming foreign workers for unemployment or taking jobs.
Abbott’s bombs will make Syria’s crisis worse
Tony Abbott is cynically trying to use the Syrian refugee crisis as his excuse for extending Australian airstrikes into Syria.
Protests continue over Hutchison sackings
Sacked wharfies are continuing to maintain a “community assembly” and protest camp outside terminals run by Hutchison Ports Australia in Sydney and Brisbane, demanding re-instatement.
Melbourne strikes halt trains and trams
Industrial action has paralysed Melbourne’s transport system in recent weeks as disputes with Yarra Trams and Metro Trains escalate.
Turkey begins bombing IS—and the Kurds
The Turkish government has begun military operations targeting IS in Syria and Iraq, collaborating with US forces.
Opposition to austerity in Greece forces Syriza back to the polls
After capitulating to Europe’s rulers and signing a new austerity deal worse that any before, Greece’s Syriza Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras has called a snap election for 20 September.
Corbyn’s left politics sweep British Labour election
Jeremy Corbyn is poised to take the leadership of the British Labour Party, with thousands turning out to hear the veteran “hard left” MP speak at meetings up and down the country.
Privilege theory and the fight against oppresssion
Privilege theory weakens opposition to oppression, because it misdiagnoses its source and portrays those who aren’t oppressed as incapable of fighting it, writes Lucy Honan
The 1917 general strike
Geraldine Fela starts a Solidarity series on great strikes, with a look at the largest strike in Australian history, the 1917 general strike during the First World War
Racism and economic crisis: Lessons from fighting the far right in Greece
Greek socialist Petros Constantinou spoke at Keep Left 2015 on the racism accompanying the economic crisis in Greece and how the left has organised to stop the rise of the fascist Golden Dawn. We reproduce his speech here.
Gayby Baby: The kids are alright
The furore over schools screening Gayby Baby has made one thing clear. If it were up to the vast majority of us, we would shake off the idiocy of homophobia and move right along.
More blood won’t solve the Middle East crisis
Former Australian army officer David Kilcullen has become a widely cited establishment expert on counter-terrorism. A hired gun for western imperialism, Kilcullen likes to present himself as the thinking person’s warmonger.
