The move to restrict exports of the important rare earth metals that China has a 90% monopoly on has provoked Trump to declare a 100% tariff on Chinese exports and other retaliatory measures, reports DYLAN MURPHY
Munich terror: why the workers were marching
DAVID CONWAY explains the crisis in the German childcare sector that had driven workers to the streets — a cause that is not being reported alongside the deadly ramming attack on their march
TRAGEDY: A man lays flowers
at a memorial marking the spot
where a car drove into a
workers’ demonstration — the
flag of the union Ver.di can be
seen on the right, February 16
Ben Chacko pays tribute to the author of our much-missed Frosty’s Ramblings column, a champion of the countryside and working-class culture
Giving a personal insight into the Labour Party conference, Sinn Fein MP CHRIS HAZZARD slams the lack of mention of the North of Ireland and the need to take the next steps in the journey from peace to Irish unity
The ferocity with which Labour in power has cracked down on protest within its own ranks and also on the streets is unprecedented — and championing those protests is the only way we can turn this ship around, argues ALAN SIMPSON
ANSELM ELDERGILL is a member of Your Party and he suggests how the new party should reform Britain’s constitution
Trump’s Gaza deal is a transient, self-aggrandising spectacle that barely distracts from the West’s outright complicity in the massacre in Gaza and our slide into warmongering, writes MATT KERR
ON February 13, a car tragically ploughed into a peaceful demonstration by public-sector workers in Munich. Among the 39 injured, a woman and her two-year-old daughter unfortunately lost their lives.
The demonstration, organised by the Ver.di trade union, was aimed at highlighting the growing crisis in Germany’s public sector. But as the story unfolded, British media’s focus shifted away from the issues it was protesting, towards the background of the perpetrator, an Afghan national with a valid German residence and work permit, as well as to whether the attack was an act of religious terrorism, despite no evidence linking the offender to a jihadist group.
By the end of February 13, reference to Ver.di was often forgotten by much of British media and in some news items there was no reference to how the attack was on trade union activists altogether.
More from this author
The basic human requirement of having a roof over one’s head is being undermined by West Northamptonshire Council – but local anti-cuts campaigners are rising above the divisive Farageist rhetoric to build unity and fight back, reports DAVID CONWAY
DAVID CONWAY explores how trades councils uniquely bring together diverse local groups to tackle everything from domestic abuse to green campaigns, but warns they must attract younger delegates and use social media more effectively
DAVID CONWAY discusses how going the distance is becoming increasingly inaccessible for working-class athletes who wish to compete
DAVID CONWAY writes how recognising trade unions for non-playing staff could help the club rediscover success both on and off the football pitch
