Mayday March- 6 May

Photos from the march and festivities at Trades Hall.[Note – reports posted at the time to Melbourne Indymedia are no longer accessible. It was about this time that MIM ceased operation, leading to the setting up of this blog.]

There seems to have been a media blackout on the Mayday festivities in Melbourne yesterday, while news.com.au reports only ‘sparse turnout’ for the parallel event in Sydney. However that may be, there were certainly more than ‘several hundred’ on the march in Melbourne, and large numbers took advantage of the mini-fairground set up in a blocked-off stretch of Lygon Street outside Trades Hall. There was great provision for the many children – a merry-go-round, jumping castle and rock climbing – bands and the Trades Hall Choir, and a most impressive afternoon tea laid on inside by the Melbourne May Day Committee. There was naturally enough a serious side also, and many international causes were represented, notably the Philippines, Sri Lanka, and Latin America. The march was led by the pipe band of the Ringwood RSL, closely followed by a strong Indigenous protest. There were some familiar banners and some brand new ones, including one being painted just in time. There were some familiar faces, too, including Craig Johnston in good spirits serving at the barbecue …