Solidarity Federation

On Saturday 12th May the Solidarity Federation with help from members of Brighton Benefits Campaign held a third picket outside Holland and Barrett’s main North Street store.

In the lead up to the National Conference on Workfare due to be held in Brighton on 26 May, Brighton SolFed have organised two weekends of pickets against workfare beneficiary Holland & Barrett in Brighton and Hove on the 12th and 19th of May.

We intend to make it clear to Holland & Barrett that as long as they continue to use free labour to cut their staff costs their brand is tainted and the pickets will continue to turn away customers from their stores.

May 1st was, of course, Mayday, International Workers’ Day, held in memory of the six anarchists executed after the Haymarket riot, a protest in Chicago way back in 1886 over the 8 hour working day.  Despite it falling on a normal working day this year, both London SF branches called an anti-Workfare roving picket through central London, as well as attending an electricians’ picket and, least interestingly, the official, Trade Union Congress (TUC) march.

On Saturday 28 April, Liverpool Antifascists picketed Quiggins Attique, owned by National Front mayoral candidate Peter Tierney.

Anti-fascists held a banner aloft over the shop front between 10am and 12.30pm, whilst giving out leaflets and speaking to passers by. Tierney, previously a member of the British National Party before defecting to the National Front, has a prior conviction for attacking a trade unionist with a camera tripod. He was also involved in another fracas in December 2010 which saw his brother charged with assault for punching an anti-fascist.