Wednesday 17 December 2014

Massive cuts to come – your chance to help stop them

Southwark Action Alert 16th December 2014

George Osborne’s Autumn Statement has revealed that public spending as a percentage of GDP is expected to fall to its lowest level since the 1930s. Eleven local strikes or protests happening this week alone show that opposition to cuts is continuing.

In January, plans to oppose cuts to council services will be developed; the ‘March for Homes’ will be publicised across the borough. If you can help, please urgently contact the organisers. Email southwarkdch@gmail.com asap to request leaflets to give to your neighbours, or to offer help with leafleting elsewhere.

***Please put in your diary the events not just happening this week but also the details of January’s housing demonstration, shown below.***

Please tweet this listing, link to our website or post on your own Facebook page. Thank you.

EVENTS LIST

Wednesday 17 December
7.30am onwards. Visit a picket line at Lambeth College. Last strike day before Christmas at Lambeth College, over attacks to their contracts. Visit a picket line at one of the sites (Brixton, Clapham or Vauxhall). Download a collection sheet here. Get more news on the strike at lambethcollegestrike.wordpress.com.
12noon. Come to the UCU/UNISON rally at the Clapham Centre. Local campaign/trade union banners and supporters all welcome. Can you invite Lambeth College strikers to speak at your union branch/campaign meeting? Send invitations to mandybrowncow@yahoo.com

Wednesday 17 December
12noon. Stop Boris demo. A leaked document revealed that Boris Johnson plans to cut 90 percent of the Greater London Authority investment in education and youth service. Demonstrate outside London City Hall, SE1 2AA, called by the Student Assembly Against Austerity.

Wednesday 17 December
6 pm. No Privatisation at National Gallery - 400 Jobs to be Privatised. Protest outside Xmas function for JP Morgan Bankers, National Gallery, Trafalgar Square. Facebook here

Thursday 18 December
12noon - 3pm. ‘Decent Jobs for All' Stall, to raise awareness about Britain’s jobs’ crisis, organised as part of the TUC week of action. Venue: 264 Walworth Road, SE17 1JE opposite the entrance to East Street Market. Photo Opportunity at 12.30 (approx). Find out more at http://decentjobsweek.org/

Thursday 18 December
3.45pm. Join supporters as reps from Keep Our NHS Public leave London to represent KONP at a peaceful surrounding of the European Summit this Friday (19th) in Brussels against European austerity and TTIP. Gather at the Eurostar ticket barrier, St Pancras Station. Bring banners if you can.

Evening. Christmas social for Lambeth ‘Keep Our NHS Public’ campaign (in place of the Dec monthly KONP meeting). Venue and more details from lambethkonp@gmail.com

Thursday 18 December
6.30pm. International migrants’ day demonstration. Given the rising levels of racist scapegoating and attacks on immigrants, there will be a protest at the Home Office. Called by a host of groups including the NUS International Students Campaign and NUS Black Students Campaign.

Thursday 18 December
7pm onwards. South London People’s Assembly organising meeting and social at Bread & Roses pub, 68 Clapham Manor St, London SW4 6DZ.

Saturday 20 December
12 noon to 1pm. Petitioning and leafleting for the March For Homes in Rye Lane, Peckham, outside Boots. See 31 January below for details of the demonstration. If you can help, contact southwarkdch@gmail.com. More information can be found at https://www.facebook.com/Southwark-Defend-Council-Housing. For the March for Homes website, click here. Unite Housing Workers, who are supporting the march, have also created a facebook event for it. Click here.

Saturday 20-21 December
11am onwards for two days. Many Happy Returns! Occupy Democracy will be returning to Parliament Square to remind Westminster and the people of Britain that none of us voted for poverty, hunger, homelessness and unemployment. Facebook event here.

Saturday 27 December, Monday 29 December, Saturday 03 January
9-11am. Join the festive pickets!! Support PCS members on strike for 3 days over Xmas. 400 Jobs to be privatised. Facebook here

ADVANCE NOTICE

Tuesday 5 January
Leafleting for the ‘March For Homes’ begins on Southwark estates. Email southwarkdch@gmail.com asap to request leaflets to give to your neighbours or to offer help with leafleting elsewhere.
7pm. March For Homes organising meeting at UNITE L&E, 33 Moreland St, EC1V 8BB. Called by Defend Council Housing campaign. Contact: southwarkdch@gmail.com. More information can be found at https://www.facebook.com/Southwark-Defend-Council-Housing. For the March for Homes website, click here. Unite Housing Workers, who are supporting the march, have also created a facebook event for it. Click here.

Saturday 17 January
(Date and venue tbc). Steering Group meeting for proposed People’s Convention for the NHS. The idea for the People’s Convention for the NHS grew from the People’s March for the NHS which marched from Jarrow to London in August and September. See http://www.peoplesvotefornhs.org.uk/

Monday 19 January
7pm. London KONP Coordinating Meeting at Camden Town Hall
This meeting will discuss organising for 10 March meeting. There will be a pre-meeting at 6pm will discuss North Central London ‘Out Of Hours’ campaign

Saturday 31 January 2015
12noon. London-wide MARCH FOR HOMES. Assemble St Mary’s Churchyard, Newington Butts, SE1 6SQ (Elephant and Castle tube/rail). Called by Defend Council Housing and the People’s Assembly and supported by many other campaigns and trade union branches. If you can help, contact southwarkdch@gmail.com. More information can be found at https://www.facebook.com/Southwark-Defend-Council-Housing.

Monday 26 January
Lobby of Southwark Council Housing Committee meeting. Time and venue to be confirmed.

Wednesday 25 February
Lobby of Southwark Council Budget-setting meeting. Time and venue to be confirmed.

Tuesday 10 March
London-wide public meeting to defend the NHS and in promoting demands for the NHS during the election campaign. Venue: Hammersmith Town Hall. Hosted by Save Hammersmith and Charing Cross campaign, supported by keep Our NHS Public.

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Twitter @southwarkSOS
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Are you part of a community group or campaign? We’d like to hear from you. Tell us what you’re doing and we can advertise your anti-cuts campaign activities. Email us at southwarksos@gmail.com.


Thursday 4 December 2014

Southwark Action Alert 3rd December 2014

Leafleting starts in earnest this week to publicise Southwark’s March for Homes that takes place next month. The aim is to bring as many campaigns as possible together on one demonstration, putting the housing crisis at the centre of the political debate and giving confidence to all those fighting for housing justice. Details of how to help are shown below.

It may be near Christmas but organising meetings are still taking place each week to discuss and plan resistance to cuts and austerity. Full details below.

***Please put in your diary the events not just happening this week but the dates for big events next month, shown below.***

Please tweet this listing, link to our website or post on your own Facebook page. Thank you.

EVENTS LIST

Thursday 4 December
 7am onwards. Support the strike at Lambeth College. Following the 83% Yes for strike action over new contracts, Lambeth College UCU will be taking the first day of strike action. Visit a picket line at one of the sites (Brixton, Clapham or Vauxhall) Download a collection sheet here.

Saturday 6 December
12 noon – 1.30pm. ‘March For Homes’ Stall & leafleting outside Boots, Rye Lane, Peckham. See 31 January below for details of the demonstration. If you can help, contact southwarkdch@gmail.com. More information can be found at https://www.facebook.com/Southwark-Defend-Council-Housing.

Monday 8 November
9.45am. Petitioning and leafleting against benefit cuts and sanctions. For details of the venue and offers of help, contact southwarkbenefitjustice@gmail.com

Tuesday 9 December
Firefighters 24 hour strike as part of the ongoing pension dispute. Background info here. Please send messages of support initially to southwarktuc@gmail.com and southwarksos@gmail.com for delivery to one of the Southwark fire stations.

Tuesday 9 & Wednesday 10 December
8am onwards. Picket lines at Lambeth College. Lambeth College UCU are due to be taking further strike action over attacks to their contracts. Visit a picket line at one of the sites (Brixton, Clapham or Vauxhall) Download a collection sheet here.

Thursday 11 December
12noon - 2pm. Leafleting about The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) and the privatisation of pathology services by Viapath meet outside St Thomas' Hospital on Lambeth Bridge. Organised by Lambeth KONP. Email:  lambethkonp@gmail.com and facebook.com/LambethKONP

Saturday 13 December
12 noon – 1.30pm. ‘March For Homes’ Stall & leafleting outside Boots, Rye Lane, Peckham. See 31 January below for details of the demonstration. If you can help, contact southwarkdch@gmail.com. More information can be found at https://www.facebook.com/Southwark-Defend-Council-Housing.

Thursday 18 December
7pm onwards. South London People’s Assembly organising meeting and social at Bread & Roses pub, 68 Clapham Manor St, London SW4 6DZ.

Thursday 18 December
7pm onwards. Christmas social for Lambeth ‘Keep Our NHS Public’ campaign (in place of the Dec monthly KONP meeting). Venue and more details from lambethkonp@gmail.com

Saturday 20-21 December
11am onwards for two days. Many Happy Returns! Occupy Democracy will be returning to Parliament Square to remind Westminster and the people of Britain that none of us voted for poverty, hunger, homelessness and unemployment. Facebook event here.


ADVANCE NOTICE

Tuesday 5 January
7pm. March For Homes organising meeting at UNITE L&E, 33 Moreland St, EC1V 8BB. Called by Defend Council Housing campaign. Contact: southwarkdch@gmail.com

Saturday 31 January 2015
12noon. London-wide MARCH FOR HOMES. Assemble St Mary’s Churchyard, Newington Butts, SE1 6SQ (Elephant and Castle tube/rail). Called by Defend Council Housing and the People’s Assembly and supported by many other campaigns and trade union branches. If you can help, contact southwarkdch@gmail.com. More information can be found at https://www.facebook.com/Southwark-Defend-Council-Housing.

OTHER LOCAL CAMPAIGNS not listed above:

Keep Our NHS Public. There is no Southwark KONP group so Southwark activists please make contact with the Lambeth group to find out about local activity. The group have a new Facebook page at www.facebook.com/LambethKONP. Lambeth KONP meet monthly in Phoenix Pub, 348 Clapham Road, Stockwell, SW9 9AR (between Clapham North and Stockwell stations).

London Unemployed Strategies (LUS) is a new campaign to give a voice to unemployed people to counteract the abuses and attacks made upon them by the government, the mass media and others. Southwark training sessions will take place in November/December. For more information and to get involved, contact Nick on: 020 7467 1283 or 07530 001653, or email nickplus007@gmail.com. Facebook page here.

SolidariTEA, a weekly drop-in between 2pm and 4pm for those affected by work capability, benefits & housing problems etc. Mutual support & planning direct action, at 97 Dawes House, Orb St, Walworth, London, SE17 1RD. For information, email to solidariteasouthwark@gmail.com or phone 07966180429 on Mondays pm.

Southwark Defend Council Housing campaign meet in the Parish Office at St John’s Church, Larcom Street, SE17 1NQ. Map. They are building for a London-wide demonstration in January (see above). More information at https://www.facebook.com/Southwark-Defend-Council-Housing.

South London Unite the Resistance. For news updates and action alerts on trade union and anti-austerity events in south London, join the email list by writing to southlondonunitetheresistance@gmail.com or phone 07956579466.

Southwark Pensioners Action Group
Meets bi-monthly. Campaign information at http://www.spag.btck.co.uk/

Southwark Disabled People Against Cuts meet at Southwark Independent Living Centre, 10 Bradenham Close, SE17 2QB. Details from southwarkdpac@mail.com