Theory & History

By Cillian Gillespie, Socialist Party (Ireland) This weekend marks the centenary of the Easter 1916 Rising against British rule in Ireland. For many working class people in Ireland this event is regarded as a key defining event in Irish history, with its participants and leaders held in high esteem. Their […]

By Emma Quinn (Socialist Party, CWI in Ireland) Millions of people internationally are joining the fight against the oppression of women and LGBTIQ people, opening up debates as to how this discrimination and inequality can be ended once and for all. This article looks at the historic experience of the Russian Revolution and the radical progressive […]

By Paul Murphy, Socialist Party TD in Ireland The election of the Syriza government in February 2015 was greeted with enthusiastic support by working class people in Greece and across Europe, only to turn into bitter disappointment after its capitulation to the Troika in July. As inequality and austerity continue […]

How the early ALP was transformed The Australian Labor Party (ALP) may have long forgotten its socialist roots but it was brought into being in the late 19th century by groups of trade unionists and socialists. The Australian Socialist League (ASL) played a major role in the formation of the […]

40 years ago on November 11, 1975 Gough Whitlam’s Labor government was dismissed from office by the Queen’s representative the Governor General. At a stroke, the carefully nurtured image of the Crown’s ‘impartiality’ was blown away and the naked class bias of the parliamentary system was exposed. By Socialist Party […]

Attacks on living standards and workers rights in periods of economic downturn are nothing new. Over 120 years ago workers in Australia had to grapple with these very same things. By Marisa Bernardi, Socialist Party When Australia went into recession in 1890 the bosses, the banks and the government decided […]

World’s third largest Communist Party crushed in US-backed military coup The military crackdown against the Indonesian Communist Party (PKI) that began in October 1965 and continued throughout the following year, was one of the bloodiest massacres of the 20th century. Even the CIA, which conspired with Indonesia’s right-wing generals to […]

The Industrial Workers of the World (IWW), often known as the Wobblies, were a radical industrial union that originated in America. Their idea of creating ‘One Big Union’ spread to Australia in 1907 but the beginning was slow. By Paul True By May 1912 the Sydney local (branch) had only […]

In the search for a way to fight against discrimination and oppression, many young people in particular embrace identity politics. It can be an important first step towards the development of socialist consciousness – if it leads on to an understanding of the class nature of capitalist society and need […]

“Machines will take your jobs”: In a period of global financial turmoil and worsening economic prospects for Australian capitalism, this worrying message is now appearing almost daily in the media. By Chris Dite The quickening pace of job losses due to automation has led to some very different responses on […]