uniteWORKS Comment
NEWS in pictures JACK JONES CENTENARY
GARSTON COMMEMORATES BIRTH
Len McCluskey General Secretary
Fearless Unite women
take on ‘rabble’ The death of Margaret Thatcher brought back memories never too far from the surface.
Of the ‘price worth paying’ of millions unemployed. Of the shocking levels of child poverty. Of the hateful misuse of the state to destroy not just the jobs, but the reputation and values of working people.
Our first – and only so far – woman leader certainly left her legacy.
From the vantage point of my home town of Liverpool, it is an ugly one. State-created mass joblessness that sucked the hopes from people. Despair rubbing shoulders with anger. Where the work moved out, the drugs moved in.
Liverpool was not alone. She was indiscriminate: the length and breadth of the UK, our manufacturing and mining communities were destroyed.
Still today, these communities carry the scars. But as the most divisive leader of our time is buried, Thatcher’s Children, with zeal, believe that they are finishing off what she started.
In the past month alone, workers’ rights have been taken apart and 100 years of rural protections swept away, disgracefully without even a vote in Parliament. News leaked that charging for our ‘free’ NHS cannot be ruled out, and the social security system has been grotesquely recast to punish the poor but with little or no saving to the nation.
Our country is once again in a fight to save its communities, to defend our values. This time, we have our own women making their mark, and this time, it is for the common good.
This edition spotlights this union’s Wonder Women. These are the women, mums and workers fighting every day to make life better for their kids, friends and neighbours.
These are women we can celebrate. They take on power and stand up for what is right. Around that mainly-male, very rich Cabinet table, knees ought to be knocking because these women are angry about unfairness and they will not be frightened. They, along with millions of women just like them, will be the ones who will show this rabble the door.
Unite women – we salute you.
uniteWORKS Published bi-monthly by Unite the union, 128 Theobalds Road, London, WC1X 8TN. Phone 0207 611 2500. Editor – Amanda Campbell Magazine enquiries and letters to the editor, by post, phone, or email
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Jack died in April 2009. Unite general secretary, Len McCluskey said, “It’s an inspiration to see children from local schools, residents, employers and workers coming together to celebrate Jack’s life and all that he stood for. He was a great man who touched so many lives and it’s a privilege to be taking part in such an event.”
On the eve of TGWU leader Jack Jones’ centenary, community artwork commemorating his life was unveiled in the street where he was born – York Street, Garston, Liverpool, on March 29, 1913. His career embraced local politics, fighting in the Spanish Civil War, the leadership of Britain’s biggest trade union and campaigning for pensioners’ rights.
The community artworks by local artists Alan Murray and Nicola Taggart include a mural commemorating key events in his life. The event also included local people’s reflections and contributions from school children.
Mark Harvey
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