The RCN has developed an Immediate Programme for the Movement for Scottish Self-Determination. In no way is this comprehensive. Both as whole, and as individual policies, such a programme needs to be augmented by discussion and debates with others, who can bring their own experiences to bear. These would fit very well into RISE’s Seven…
Internal Democracy is not a Luxury
Ian MacCorquodale explains why internal democracy is crucial to the success of RISE This article was written to encourage thought and debate about internal democracy within RISE, while there is nothing ground-breaking within the article and undoubtedly everything said in it has been said before. I strongly believe that the type of points I have…
RISE, Scotland’s Left Alliance – Completing Scotland’s Democratic Revolution
Starting a new political organisation, aimed at uniting the Left, is always a difficult process. Furthermore, the Scottish Left has still to fully recover from the last attempt to do this – the Scottish Socialist Party. The SSP imploded in 2004, just a year after registering real promise with the election of 6 MSPs –…
Emancipation & Liberation, Issue 24, Spring 2015
If you would like to buy this issue or subscribe, contact us. Comments are open, so until articles are online, feel free to discuss the articles below. When they are online you can discuss the article in it’s comment section. RISE, Scotland’s Left Alliance – Completing Scotland’s Democratic Revolution, Allan Armstrong Internal Democracy is not…
Ebola and the real health crisis in America
Mumia abu Jamal’s Radio Essays. With the death of Mr Thomas Duncan shortly after his arrival from Liberia, West Africa, the Ebola crisis has burst into millions of news screens generating deep levels of fear and xenophobia. To be sure, Ebola is a serious health concern, for it has a seventy per cent mortality rate,…
Rana Plaza – When art meets reality
Pauline Bradley reports on art that brings to life the struggle of sweatshop workers in Bangladesh No caring person can have failed to be shocked at the news of the collapse of the Rana Plaza garment factory on 24 April 2013. This eight-story commercial building collapsed in Savar, a sub-district in the Greater Dhaka Area,…
Scotland out of NATO
Eric Chester reports on recent developments in the Scottish peace movement The Trident missiles armed with Nuclear warheads located at Faslane Naval Base have become a flashpoint for Scottish activists. One of the few specific pledges made by Alex Salmond and the SNP during the referendum campaign was a commitment that no nuclear weapons would…
The Middle East: Imperialism’s curse
Nick Steff looks at imperialism’s legacy in the Middle East in the light of current events. The Middle East has been fought over for many centuries. Its importance as the bridge between East and West and as the birth place of three of the world’s most influential religions means it has been a continual target…
CATALUNYA PREPARES FOR INDEPENDENCE
Liam O’Hare (Common Weal writer and Radical Independence campaigner) reports on the movement for Catalan independence In recent times, the winds of change have been sweeping Scotland and Catalonia. Disillusioned with big government, austerity economics and a lack of democracy, mass movements have emerged to demand radical change and self-determination. While the reasons fuelling the…
The Importance of Republicanism
Bernadette McAliskey gave the following talk at the ‘London Says Yes’ rally held on September 6th 2014 Going back in history there was the Great Debate in English democracy between Edmund Burke and Thomas Paine, which too may people forget. This debate preceded the more radical discussion on the rights of the working class. The…