02.05.2001

East London fighting back

A s part of the continuing campaign against the cutbacks made by the council and its Labour-Tory coalition, council workers in Hackney staged a one-day strike this May Day. This was accompanied by a march and rally in support of the actions of council workers.

The small, 200-strong march was accompanied by the kind of police overkill that characterised their presence elsewhere in the capital: three vans and a car, and about one officer for every marcher.

Under their watchful gaze those gathered heard various speeches urging not just the continuation of Hackney workers? struggle against cuts and job losses, but also the broadening out of the fight to one against privatisation.

Tensions between the local Socialist Alliance and Socialist Party were bubbling under the surface. Speakers from the SP popped up regularly and were not shy about announcing their affiliation at the pre-march rally. The SP has insisted on sponsoring campaigns in defence of the workers? fight separate and apart from the SA - indeed as a rival to it - including the promotion of Brian Debus as an ?anti-cuts? candidate in forthcoming council by-elections.

Seemingly the justification for this is that the Socialist Alliance name will hinder the building of a ?broad campaign? against the cutbacks because of its ?restrictive? - ie, socialist - platform. However, the SP has no such reticence about promoting its own name. Obviously this has a charisma and ?broad? appeal that the Alliance ?brand? obviously lacks. Surely if workers are going to be put off by the SA leading a campaign then the high visibility of the SP is going to have similar effect.

After the march, which drew considerable attention and sympathy from Hackney workers and passers-by, comrades filed into the Hackney Empire to listen to speeches of support. The struggle of the Hackney workers is obviously having a powerful effect across the political spectrum: the Greens leafleted the meeting and there was both a Liberal Democrat and dissident Labour councillor present on the platform, alongside Cecilia Prosper of the SA and the SP?s prospective ?anti-cuts? candidate, comrade Debus, who was in the chair. Thanks to his conduct of the meeting, the Socialist Party?s prominence continued with at least three mentions from the floor, together with May Day greetings from the Committee for a Workers? International.

Star billing, however, went to Jeremy Corbyn, who restated his commitment to old Labour values, as did the Labour councillor Steven Sarten, who said he would be calling for the break-up of the Labour-Tory coalition.

It is striking testimony to the commitment and intensity with which Hackney workers have prosecuted this struggle - as witnessed by the passionate interjections from the floor - that such an array of forces have openly associated themselves with a militant working class struggle.

Darrell Goodliffe