Grid of posts 2×3

  • Auckland’s no-choice elections: blue-greens and conservative leftists

    By Daphne Lawless The election of former Labour Party leader Phil Goff as mayor of Auckland on October 9, by a margin of 75,000 votes over his nearest challenger, will at best have provoked “half a cheer” from people who want a sustainable, equal, democratic and liveable future for Auckland. The mayoral election was probably Read more

  • Who are Syria’s White Helmets, and why are they so controversial?

    Article by Scott Lucas, Professor of International Politics, University of Birmingham. Reprinted from The Conversation. A young man, wearing a white helmet and a distinctive yellow-and-blue badge on his arm, digs for four hours in the rubble of a building destroyed by a Russian-regime airstrike in Idlib Province in northwest Syria. Finally, he sees what Read more

  • One Nation legitimises fascist ideas – The time to stop Hansonism is now!

    This article by Debbie Brennan was originally published by the Freedom Socialist Party (Australia). Debbie represents Radical Women in CARF and is a community member of the National Union of Workers. Contact Freedom Socialist Party of Aotearoa at freedom.socialist.aotearoa@gmail.com or Freedom Socialist Party of Australia at freedom.socialist.party@ozemail.com.au. “I’m back — but not alone.” Pauline Hanson, leader of the extreme-right Read more

  • The housing crisis and the scapegoating of “foreigners”

    By Ian Anderson, student (expanded from a short piece published in Salient Magazine, itself originally adapted from an MA thesis on ‘publics’ and ‘nonpublics’ in Aotearoa/New Zealand). The housing crisis is a key site of struggle over inequality in Aotearoa/New Zealand. As many increasingly note, an increasing proportion of people do not own the homes they Read more

  • Life after sexual assault

    Fightback stands for liberation for women and gender minorities, including appropriate support for survivors of sexual assault. This piece on one survivor’s experience of sexual violence, and recovery, was submitted to us by Hannah Beatie. When FRIEND asked me why I was giving away all of my stuff, I replied that I needed a change. Actually, Read more

  • Burning Country: Syrians in Revolution and War – A clear perspective shining through the muck

    Book title: Burning Country: Syrians in Revolution and Civil War Authors: Robin Yassin-Kassab, Leila Al-Shami Publisher: Pluto Press Released: 2016 Review by: Ani White To myself and others in ‘the West’, Syria’s internal crisis has often appeared a confusing mess with no sides worth taking. Competing bombs (Assad bombs, US bombs, Russian bombs) and competing sects (Alawi, Sunni, Read more