Category General

news & events, january 2014

Camp Anarchy

The third annual Camp Anarchy is scheduled for the Labor Day weekend, March 8-10. The Camp is held at ‘Camp Eureka’ in outer (outer) Melbourne: 100 Tarrango Road, Yarra Junction (Mel. Ref: 288 K10). It’s about an hour’s drive from the city. See the Camp Anarchy website for more information.

Sydney Anarchist Bookfair

The first Sydney Anarchist Bookfair is taking place on Saturday 22nd March 2014 at Gumbramorra Hall/Addison Road Community Center in Marrickville, Sydney. For further information see the Bookfair Facebook page.

Social Centres

A new social centre is opening in Melbourne.

h.o.p.

-H.O.P Community Centre- is a new space in an old fruit shop at 659 Plenty Road, Reservoir. It’s having a launch party on February 1. -Contact- h.o.pcommunitycentre[@]gmail.com for further details. [Facebook]

MAC infoshop opening this Saturday!

Super exciting! Melbourne’s only anarchist infoshop will be launching this Saturday evening from 7pm until late!

See the MAC blog for more details. There’s also the Facebook event.

Melbourne Anarchist Bookfair review round up

The Melbourne Anarchist Bookfair has come and gone. There were many improvements on last year’s inaugural event; more space for workshops and talks, more talks. Below are links to some of the reviews, some of which have generated much discussion.

The main controversies, if the pub talk was anything to go by, were the inclusion of the Communist League and Polyester Books as stall holders.

Kieran’s Review: Thoughts on the Melbourne Anarchist Bookfair

A couple of particularly good replies to this review were in the comments of Kieran’s website. From Lia. From Rebecca.

A Marxist goes to an Anarchist Bookfair.

IWW Melbourne GMB: A Melbourne Wob reviews the 2nd annual Melbourne Anarchist Bookfair.

Plan to Win’s recommendations for “good anarchist and activist books”.

The Facebook event also has a lot of discussion.

The next major event for the discussion of anarchist ideas looks to be the Anarchist Summer School up in Queensland in 2013.

 

Black Light #1

We have added Black Light #1, a publication of the Melbourne Anarchist Club, to our Anarchist Texts page. Check out the eye-popping cover after the break.

Statements from Felicity Ryder and Mario López Hernández

There has been much in the Mexican press about an Australian anarchist apparently sought in connection with bombings/attempted bombings. The statement below from Felicity Ryder appeared on Liberacion Total, and there’s no reason to believe it is not genuine.

Statement from
Felicity Ryder

Comrades, friends,
I would have liked to have written earlier, but for various circumstances I haven´t had the chance to yet. I want to send a warm greeting and say thanks to everyone who has worried about me and my situation, to those who have shown solidarity with Mario and I. In these difficult moments it means a lot to have people standing in solidarity from near or from far, even without ever having met me. I sent a revolutionary hug to all of you.

I want to clarify that despite all of the lies of the Mexico City police forces and the mass media, I was never arrested and they never had me detained in any of their prisons. I have tried to understand why they would have said that and spread such false information throughout Mexico as well as Australia, but at the end of the day, as a free person I don´t think like a police officer, and I won´t be able to understand. If it was to try in vain to break or manipulate Mario, to manipulate my family, or to try to appear half competent in doing their jobs, I don´t know.

What I do know is that I am proud of being an Anarchist, and proud to be an enemy of authority and the State.

To my brother Mario, I send him a giant hug and much strength and health. I know that he will always maintain his convictions strong, as well as his desire to achieve Total Liberation. I will always be by your side, compañero. Remember, always face to face with the enemy!

I also send a warm greeting to the fugitive comrades Diego Rios and Gabriela Curilem in Chile. A warm hug to the comrades from the CCF and Revolutionary Struggle in Greece, to the anarchist comrades in prison in Italy, to Braulio Duran, Luciano Pitronello, Gabriel Pombo da Silva, and to all of the anarchist prisoners and fugitives all over the world.

Que viva la Anarquia!

Felicity.

Mario López Hernández was injured when an explosive device he was carrying went off prematurely. According to statements by the Mexican police via media reports and Mario’s statement below, Felicity Ryder’s passport was found in his backpack at the scene. We have reprinted his statement, denying Felicity’s involvement, in full, after the break.

Directory updated

We’ve made a big update to our directory, with more current information on goings on anarchy in Queensland, deleted some dead/inactive/resting groups and more.

Black Rose Books on hiatus, Loophole lynched by landlord

Sydney’s Black Rose Books has closed down after six years at Enmore Road in Newtown. In a post on their website, the collective announced:

After 6 years at 22 Enmore Rd in Newtown, Black Rose Books has once again been moved into storage awaiting it’s next reincarnation. We expect this web address will disappear sometime later this year.

Refer to Jura Books for Anarchist Literature
Peoples’ Kitchen is starting up again on Wednesdays at Dustmonster

Thanks to all those who have been involved over the past 6 years (and the past 30 years!!). There is no collective to be contacted anymore so please direct any questions to Jura books.

Love & Rage

And there you have it.

In other news, Loophole in Melbourne looks set to lose its venue. The fate of Barricade Books, housed at Loophole since they left the Melbourne Anarchist Club, is unknown. The “non-denominational, intergenerational, non-hierarchical, not-for-profit, wheelchair accessible” venue must be vacated by June 11, 2012.

This leaves Jura Books and the Melbourne Anarchist Club as the only permanent anarchist spaces in Australia. Correct us if we’re wrong in the comments.

 

 

Sources: Black Rose and Loophole

Boss of Yourself

ASF-IWA Brisbane to protest Domino’s Pizza wage cuts

ASF-IWA Brisbane branch will tomorrow defend its members. A 20% pay cut has been inflicted on its drivers by the bosses in cahoots with Fair Work Australia.

Join with the Anarcho-Syndicalist Federation and show solidarity to our members and other Domino’s Pizza workers who have lost 19% of their wage on Monday 14th of May, 4pm outside their offices at Level 8, 240 Sandgate Rd, Albion in Brisbane, Queensland.

The majority of unionised workers who work for Domino’s franchisees fall under Australia’s worst excuse for a union, the SDA. The SDA’s national leader Joe de Bruyn is known for using his position in pushing a pro-Catholic, anti-sex agenda over the interests of its workers, leading to former Prime Minister Gough Whitlam to famously quip that “Joe de Bruyn is a Dutchman who hates dykes”.

What Mr De Bruyn is good at, by all reports, is establishing a cosy relationship with the captains of the retail industry. Hopefully he can find a way to use these powers to the benefit of the workers. Other retail workers might be better off joining a fighting union, like the ASF-IWA, than depending on the whims and machinations of a rightwing union like the SDA.

Source: ASF-IWA.

Organise! (Adelaide) on hiatus

Organise!, a small anarcho-communist orientated group in Adelaide, have announced they are on indefinite hiatus due to members moving away (and who can blame anyone for moving away from Adelaide?) and lack of energy to keep it going. Members continue to be active in existing campaigns and coalitions, and have expressed some interest in joining the IWW.

It seems as though Adelaide is now bereft of an explicitly anarchist group. If you’re from Adelaide and interested in anarchism, you might consider posting to the Libcom Oceania forums to talk to other Australian/NZ anarchists. Also, check out our directory of anarchist groups in-and-nearby Australia.