ANSELM ELDERGILL looks at the legality of the wars in the Middle East and the means used to fight them. It is said that truth is the first casualty of war, so what is the truth with regard to the legality of America’s and Israel’s wars in Iran, Palestine and Lebanon?
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The Battle of Saltley Gate: ‘too strong to hold back’
CHRIS KITCHEN, general secretary of the National Union of Mineworkers, marks the anniversary of a remarkable victory for working-class solidarity when a 'human sea' defied the state
Pickets and police at Saltley Gate
PHIL KATZ explains how ‘Cultures in Resistance’ is forging a new cultural manifesto
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THE MINERS’ STRIKE of 1972 was the first time miners had staged a national stoppage since 1926. Its outcome has been labelled “the miners’ greatest victory.”
In 1971 the NUM submitted a pay claim of between £5 and £9 per week (dependent on grade) and the National Coal Board replied with an offer of £1.60 — which reflected the Tory government’s strategy of wage restraint. A national ballot of the miners voted for strike action which started on January 9, 1972.
It was to become an important landmark in working-class history. A key event of the dispute and the one which led to its victorious outcome was the Battle of Saltley Gate which occurred 50 years ago today.
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