A group of SolFed supporters are launching a new local in Norwich.

Inspired by the actions taken by other SolFed locals across the country, we believe that we can encourage the same, much needed, spirit of collective direct action against oppressive and exploitative forces in Norwich.

We have been meeting fortnightly in Norwich city centre since the middle of 2014 and have already been active under the SolFed banner, most notably through protests against Workfare. We are keen to increase our organisation and action in the coming year and beyond, particularly in the form of localised, specific direct action.

Friday 13th of March saw an estimated 50,000 public service workers on strike across Northern Ireland in opposition to the Stormont House Agreement. Between 6 - 8,000 striking workers and their supporters marched in Belfast, up to 2,000 marched in Derry and hundreds more took part in rallies in other towns across the north.

Friday's strike action showed the depth of opposition to attacks on working class people that are already being implemented, and those proposed, by the Stormont executive. If we are to defeat the cuts the action needs to be built upon and broadened to include workers in areas that have already been privatised and the private sector in general. Belfast Solidarity Federation support calls to declare May 1st the next strike date.

Attached is the copy of the Leveller that we produced for the strike. 

To commemorate International Working Women's Day for today 8th March 2015, Edinburgh Solidarity Federation members supported the event of local feminist group These Hysterical Women [1] which was a public gathering and exhibition held at Bristo Square to remind everyone that gender equality has not been reached.

The exhibition of "why I am a feminist..." comments were written by those attended and hosting the event. Following the exhibit was a performance by Rhythms of Resistance Samba band and then a brief speech (extract):

As predicted, the static demo held by Pegida in Newcastle's Bigg Market was something of an embarrassment for the neo-nazis. Denied a march through town, and lacking anything like a fraction of the numbers that the hype and publicity accorded to them, the unveiling of the far-rights latest toy turned out to be broken. Dredging up all the old fascists from the past several decades for something that was supposed to be new and dynamic, was both tragic and comic, with reports of less than 300 them turning up. Outnumbered many times over - several estimates of anti-fascists are close to 2000 - just shows that for all of Pegida's effort, Newcastle was never going to be the city of the Fourth Reich.

Solidarity Protest
MEET: Spanish Consulate, 63 North Castle St, Edinburgh EH2 3LJ
FRIDAY 6 March 2015 – FROM 12:00noon

13 people facing trial just for being anarchists.

On 16/12/14 the Catalan police broke into 14 houses and social centres, destroying and stealing everything of value. 11 comrades were charged by a high court and 7 spent more than a month in prison.

On 29/01/15, the 7 imprisoned comrades were released but the state accuses all 11 (plus the 2 anarchists locked up for more than a year) of being members of a terrorist group, thus reaffirming its intention to treat everyone who questions it as a terrorist.

Addresses of the imprisoned comrades:

The Solidarity Federation is organising a workplace training day in Manchester on Saturday 7th March. The course will provide a basic introduction to workplace organising. Primarily focusing on how to organise resistance in the workplace in difficult conditions and when, under the anti-trade union laws, taking the mildest form of action can leave workers open to the sack.

The day’s course will include:

The Role of the Workplace Organiser

How to set about organising in Workplace

Taking Effective Action in Difficult Conditions

Building a Workplace Organisation

If you have problems at your workplace and want to fight back or if you want to get involved in workplace organising, the course should provide a good foundation for getting you started.

Since starting our Better Call SolFed campaign at the end of 2014, we have seen a massive amount of effort being put into door-to-door leafleting publicising Newcastle SF as a small, radical union that fights on its own terms. The response has been fantastic - we have been as equally busy answering calls asking for advice and support from workers in the North East; we also kept in regular contact with someone as far away as Liverpool!

As well as regular contacts with disgruntled workers, we have also taken on new members in Teesside and Wearside. And with this new growth, we have began extending our door-to-door leafleting beyond Tyneside (here's a photo of some our members in Teesside today). Keep an eye out for coming newspaper ads!

Film showing -

'Cuitat Morta' [Dead City]
(documentary, with english subtitles)

Sunday 7pm, 8 February 2015
The Banshee Labyrinth, 29-35 Niddry Street, Edinburgh EH1 1LG

No Charge https://www.facebook.com/events/807425185972477
see the whole film on youtube: http://youtu.be/U1xaX7tF-lU

[ see also: Fri 6 Feb 12noon - Edinburgh Solidarity Protest - Drop the Charges against the Anarchists detained for their beliefs by ‘Operación Pandora’ in Spain https://www.facebook.com/events/884685758228689 ]

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