In light of the Islamophobic rallies on the weekend, and the support socialists give to Muslims in fighting this oppression, Erima Dall looks in depth in Solidarity magazine at Marxism, Islam and religion.

She says among other things:

‘When Abbott and Western leaders attack Islam as the basis of terrorism, it is easy to see why resistance to anti-Muslim discrimination can also be taken up in religious terms. This is why defending Muslims against Abbott’s attacks is a crucial part of building the wider fight against Abbott, his anti-terror laws and the system.’

Click the link to read the whole informative article, Marxism, Islam and religion.

I wrote this – Abolish the GST and tax the rich instead – over 2 years ago. In light of calls to increase the GST rate from 10% to 15%, it remains relevant today. For non-Australian friends, the GST is our consumption tax – a Value Added Tax. I said among other things:

‘Instead of arguing over keeping a highly regressive tax or making it even worse, I have an alternative suggestion. Abolish the GST. Get rid of it. Send it to hell.

‘Replace the GST with a wealth tax and increased income tax rates on the rich and capital.’

Hit the link above to read the whole article.  While some of the figures need updating the general thrust is still right, I believe.

There are other options too, some of which I have written about elsewhere. Inspired by Jean-Luc Melenchon’s call for a tax of 100% on all income greater than 360000 euro I have also written we could tax all income in Australia greater than $250000 at 100%. That income is received by the top 1% of income earners.

And the linked article doesn’t address tax avoidance by big business. I talk about that in this very recent article in the current edition of Solidarity in an article called No end to profiteering and rorts at the top end of town.

If you want to comment on either article now hit the link to comments on this post under the heading.

The Melbourne Street Medic Collective are a group of qualified first aiders and medical professionals, who are also proud to be activists involved in progressive campaigns for refugee rights, the environment, and against racism and fascism.  We exist to provide physical and mental health support to other activists in these social movements, especially during protests and other actions, and often find ourselves bandaging a sprained ankle or helping someone get through a burst of panic when they’re in a crowd.

On Saturday 18th July, the Melbourne Street Medics were in attendance when an anti-racist demonstration, made up of students, trade unionists, pensioners, members of various community and ethnic groups and everyone in between, came together to oppose two small but hateful rallies of nationalist bigots and outright fascists.  The air of relative calm despite an extraordinary police presence became undone when police chose to deploy a very strong pepper spray indiscriminately through the crowd multiple times.  The Melbourne Street Medics, who self-fund all their own medical first aid supplies, were soon very low indeed.  Extra supplies needed to be bought immediately.  All in all roughly 100 people were treated that day, and we are asking you to donate!  This would help us not only resupply kits and offset costs for equipping new medics, but also assist us to afford training spaces to up-skill new and current medics.

To donate to help these heroes click on this link and hit the donate button on the right. Have your credit card ready to give as much as you can to these wonderful people.

Please help us to care for those who stand up for our rights.  We attend actions to provide preventative care, treat injuries and to respond to other physical and emotional needs. We help community activists to operate in the safest possible environment, from the planning stages through to debriefing after events. We also offer street medic workshops to assist activists prepare for future actions.  It is our aim to provide Victoria’s activist community with a free and high quality first aid and care service that meets professional standards of care.  We believe in empowering individuals and the wider community to fight for a better world.

How the funds will be used

Rewards

While many crowdfunding campaigns offer material rewards for backers, such as T-shirts or badges, we don’t produce merchandise so are unable to offer these as rewards.  We are, however, more than happy to arrange a speaker or workshop, and we will happily arrange to facilitate activist training for physical and mental health where possible.  We are also able to send a massive shout-out to yourself, or your organisation, collective or group, on our page for your support and solidarity!

Please donate and share!

The top news in Australia today is a surfer being attacked by a shark. In South Africa.

None of the ‘moanstream’ media (as far as I can tell) mention the Victorian police pepper spraying medics who were attending a person whom the cops had indiscriminately pepper sprayed and who was having breathing difficulties and needed to be taken to hospital.

The fifty first woman this year has died at the hands of her partner but other than talkfests there is no mention of that either.

There is a pattern here. The capitalist media reports and emphasises or spins things that reinforce a capitalist world view.

To report, let alone investigate police violence against medics, or domestic violence, might undermine two key pillars of capitalist society – the police and the family. Because they are integral elements of the system, the violence inherent in them cannot be investigated and other than brief factual reports of deaths or injuries there will be silence. Worse, in the case of protesters against racism, the police violence will be painted as violence from the protesters.

On the question of the police attacking medics, on Saturday the 18th of July 2015 Melbourne Activist Legal Support (MALS) fielded a team of eight (8) trained Legal Observers at the Reclaim Australia and counter rallies that took place near the intersection of Spring and Bourke Streets in Melbourne’s Central Business District. In a statement they said, among other things:

‘A particular area of concern was an incident that occurred at the corner of Spring and Little Bourke Streets at approximately 12:43 PM. An ad-hoc medic triage station had been set up on Little Bourke Street near the corner. One patient was semi-conscious on the ground and under the care of the Street Medics and waiting for the ambulance. A physical altercation between rival protestors began directly in front of the medic station when Police rushed around the corner and immediately and without warning sprayed into the crowd of 60-80 people present. Street Medics and other volunteers who were trying to keep the medic triage area clear were severely affected by the OC foam as were most people in the area (including journalists and bystanders). The injured person receiving care was again affected by the OC spray.

‘According to Legal Observers present the OC foam was not directed towards individuals who were threatening police or engaged in violence but instead was directed over and onto the entire crowd of people present. For this reason the MALS Legal Observer Team identifies the use of OC foam in this circumstance as indiscriminate and therefore unlawful.’

I have just got back from the Canberra Anti-Racist Network rally against the racists and fascists from Reclaim Australia. It was fantastic. There were about 30 of them and 150 of us.

We spoke about how they were responding to Tony Abbott’s agenda of fear and division and his talk of Team Australia. Demonising refugees, attacking Aborigines and belittling Muslims all combine, in times of a worsening economy, to give a spark to the racists and fascists and their simplistic and very very dangerous rubbish.

We marched to their corner car-park site and chanted at them. One chant was “Muslims are welcome, racists are not.”   We even proclaimed, very ‘politely’ but rather loudly, ‘racist scum, off our streets.’

We then played tag team with them, one step ahead, as they marched, protected by the cops of the ACT Labor/Greens government, up a main road entrance to Parliament House. The cops stopped us from following them.

We walked another way to Parliament House and stood about 25 metres from the racists and fascists.

Roxley Foley, from the Aboriginal Tent Embassy, stood very near the Reclaim White Australia group with a sign which read ‘not yours to reclaim’.

Photograph: Elise Scott/AAP

We chanted the usual stuff, and told the racists and fascists, rather loudly, that hate speech was not free speech.

Looking at the small rabble, we sometimes chanted: ‘You will always lose in Canberra.’

‘Losers, losers, losers’ echoed at times too from us in the direction of this sorry solitutude of racists.

We kicked their arse. It was a great turnout. Well done to the Canberra Anti-Racism Network and to all those who attended.

But we cannot be complacent. The material conditions exist for their growth. If the economy worsens (as appears likely) they may win more audience to their ideas. We have to continue the struggle and mobilise against them every time they try to win broader support.

The racists have been complaining about our ‘violence’.

Violence? Nonsense. There was no violence from us.

We chanted at them and made the precious little flowers feel uncomfortable. Good. The lessons of history show that driving this filth off the streets can stop the Nazis and their useful idiots from growing.

Oh hang on, the ABC is reporting violence at the Canberra protest. A Reclaim White Australia supporter threw a punch at one of us after the rally.

And one of my comrades in Socialist Alliance has written that a racist tried to stab her with an Australian flag.

The cops have done nothing. I will leave it to you to think why that might be.

The racist who wrote the sobbing cry baby report below is also wrong about their numbers. They had thirty at maximum, even with a flown in speaker from Adelaide and the late arrival of a couple of skinhead fascists who tried to spark a fight with us.

He also doesn’t mention the split between the racists and the fascists as another reason for their small numbers, the same number who turned up at their last rally, despite the fact they had two months to organise. Our numbers grew five fold.  A great day.

Spot the different treatment anyone?

This is the statement by The Melbourne Street Medics Collective in response to the police pepper spraying them while treating a person with breathing difficulties.

Anti-racist and anti-fascist rallies are being organized across the country for Saturday 18th and Sunday 19th of July:

Saturday:

Melbourne – 18 July 10am at Parliament House
https://www.facebook.com/events/1600263403576857

Adelaide – 18 July 10am Parliament House
https://www.facebook.com/events/809797515778164/

Sunday:

Sydney – 19 July 10am at Martin Place
https://www.facebook.com/events/346452865546642/

Canberra – 19 July 11am at King Edward Terrace
https://www.facebook.com/events/817520005010391/

Brisbane – 19 July 10am at Emma Miller Place
https://www.facebook.com/events/682532705206336/

Perth – 19 July 12pm at Solidarity Park
https://www.facebook.com/events/893952217313262/

Newcastle – 19 July 10am at Customs House
https://www.facebook.com/events/367968573406429/

My article on the real leaners, using information about tax avoidance and poverty, will be published in the next edition of Solidarity Magazine. Out soon. Subscribe.

Reclaim Australia supporter shouting at a woman in Richmond Photo: Penny Stephens

National Party MP George Christensen will speak at one of the Nazi infected Reclaim (White) Australia movement rallies this weekend, in his case at the Mackay rally in his electorate.

Christensen, Chair of the House of Representatives Social Policy and Legal Affairs Committee, has written that he wants to ‘support people who seek to defend our Australian way of life, our culture and our freedoms from the threat of radical Islam.’ He is part of the broad brush of Australian politicians who demonise Muslims.  He is just more open about it.

Christensen is the same parliamentarian who supported far right and racist Dutch MP Geert Wilders when he toured Australia drumming up hate against Muslims. He is part of a group of Liberal and National Party members who promote racism and xenophobia against Muslims, often using the smokescreen of terrorism to justify their actions.

For example Liberal Party Senator Cory Bernardi has set up a Senate Inquiry into Food Certification. Its target is halal certification and allows the fascists and racists and nutters to make all sorts of claims, including that Halal certification fees ‘fund terrorism’.

The inquiry extends to among other things kosher schemes.  This targeting of Jews as well has raised no concerns among mainstream conservative politicians, presumably because they think it is good cover for their real target, Muslims and everything they do, including halal certification. Yet in all the diatribes against Muslims if we substitute the word Jewish for Muslim the real racist nature of the accusations become clear.

It would be tempting to dismiss people like Christensen and those attending the rallies as nutters. However, the likes of Christensen and Bernardi are elected parliamentarians with a particular agenda – to create a fake us and them division by targeting Muslims and uniting the rest of us behind Tony Abbott’s ‘Team Australia’. They give succor to the racists and fascists.

This racism is driven by the government. Tony Abbott’s Team Australia, his anti-Muslim fear mongering couched in anti-terror rhetoric, (‘Daesh are coming for us’), his calls on Muslim leaders to proclaim Islam as a religion of peace ‘more often, and mean it’, the attempts to withdraw citizenship from those whom Reclaim and Christensen call traitors, are all part of a government agenda of racist demonisation to divert us away from the real division – the class divide and the war Abbott and his crew are waging against workers and the poor.

For this reason the appearance of Christensen at a Nazi infected rally is acceptable to Abbott. His silence is enlightening. His Foreign Minister, Julie Bishop, has refused to condemn Christensen’s attendance. She has also confirmed that ‘none of the 400 extremists under government surveillance are right-wing, anti-Islam campaigners.’

It is part of the range of divisiveness from ‘respectable’ racism against refugees to the full blown Nazis. They are part of a continuum, a continuum Abbott wants to bring together for his own purposes of sowing division and fear. Hence his acceptance of Christensen attending this racist rally.

It is no accident that racist groups and their extremism are on the rise under the constant barrage of demonisation of refugees, Aborigines and Torres Strait Islanders and Muslims, from both Labor and the Liberals.  It is also no accident too that these rallies are becoming infected with Nazis. Some racists have recognised this. There are splits in the Reclaim White Australia movement and some have withdrawn from the racist and Nazi rallies. But not Christensen.

Some are campaigning for Abbott, the man who has banned his ministers from Q&A on ABC TV, to ban Christensen from attending the Nazis’ rally. Apart from the fact this would only make a hero of Christensen in his own eyes and that of the racists, the MP would also defy Abbott.

Top down bans from the puppet masters of racist reaction like Abbott are not the answer. Protests that challenge the hate mongers are the way to defend our Muslim bothers and sisters from the attacks of the racists and Nazis are the way forward.

Just as the Reclaim White Australia racists and fascists plan to rally this Saturday and Sunday across the country, so  we are building counter-protests to welcome and defend Muslims.  I urge all anti-racists and anti-fascists to attend and spread a message of love against the purveyors of hate, and in doing that help to drive the fascists and their useful idiots back into their cesspits.

Rallies are being organized across the country for Saturday 18th and Sunday 19th of July:

Saturday:

Melbourne – 18 July 10am at Parliament House
https://www.facebook.com/events/1600263403576857

Adelaide – 18 July 10am Parliament House
https://www.facebook.com/events/809797515778164/

Sunday:

Sydney – 19 July 10am at Martin Place
https://www.facebook.com/events/346452865546642/

Canberra – 19 July 11am at King Edward Terrace
https://www.facebook.com/events/817520005010391/

Brisbane – 19 July 10am at Emma Miller Place
https://www.facebook.com/events/682532705206336/

Perth – 19 July 12pm at Solidarity Park
https://www.facebook.com/events/893952217313262/

Newcastle – 19 July 10am at Customs House
https://www.facebook.com/events/367968573406429/

The Fairfax bosses’ paper the Australian Financial Review and the Murdoch flagship of reaction The Australian are combining to hold a National Reform Summit in Sydney on 26 August.

According to the Fin (linked above):

‘About 80 leaders from major groups, including The Australian Council of Trade Unions, the Business Council of Australia, Australian Industry Group, the Australian Council of Social Service, National Seniors Australia and COTA Australia, will meet in Sydney.’

The last time the ACTU involved itself in a ‘reform’ summit we workers ended up being screwed by the Hawke Labor Government’s Accord, a social con trick which over time cut strikes, held wages down and saw the share of national income going to capital begin its historic explosion.

The Fin again:

‘ACTU secretary Dave Oliver said he wanted a return to the “constructive” relations between unions, business and government that existed under under previous Labor governments.’

Alarm bells should already be ringing. As I have pointed out above, those ‘constructive’ relations were class collaboration on a massive scale that benefited the bosses, not workers. Be afraid, be very afraid.

What is on the agenda? Fiscal ‘responsibility’, sustainable retirement policy, tax reform, and productivity and workforce participation.

All well and good, but the direction the discussions will take is anti-worker. For example tax reform in the era of falling profit rates globally is essentially about cutting taxes on capital and, if they could get away with it, increasing and broadening the GST to tax workers and the poor more.

Any discussion about productivity and workforce participation will be about the rewards of massive labour productivity increases going to capital.

It is the bourgeois reform impasse and the search by capital for ways to break out of it which is driving this summit.

The reform impasse arises because the essential social democratic desires of the working class, born of the necessity to sell our labour power to survive, conflicts with the needs of capital to extract even more surplus value from us in the form of profits and the like, a profit which we create but which the bosses purloin as our unpaid labour.

Let’s hope that the impasse continues and ruling class inertia and fear protect the working class.