The ruling classroom
Submitted by wojtek on Mar 18 2012 06:23
Whilst Ron Jones' The Third Wave has received a lot of attention and been dramatised, George Muldoon's experiments in capitalist democracy involving two groups of seventh graders in Mill Valley, California have seemingly slipped under the political radar...
"I said years and years and years ago that the public school system is like a microcosm for the United States, all of its goods and its bads and its smelly politicians and corruptness can be found in the school system with teachers, administrators and their damn passing the buck from one thing to another."
- George Muldoon, 7th grade social studies teacher.
Living Utopia (Documentary)
Submitted by working class s... on Mar 16 2012 23:12
A unique feature-length documentary (90 minutes; Spanish with English subtitles) which chronicles the origins and evolution of the Spanish anarchist movement and its important role during the Spanish Revolution (1936-1939)
Living Utopia is a unique documentary that blends the historical account of the origins and development of the Spanish anarchist movement, focussing on the 1936 war. A reflection on the philosophical underpinnings of such a movement and their practical application. As both an informative and inspiring piece of research it is considered a jewel amongst historians and rebel hearts.
The Wobblies (documentary)
Submitted by working class s... on Mar 16 2012 01:11
The 1979 documentary film The Wobblies provides an overview of the rise and fall of the IWW (Industrial Workers of the World), complete with archival footage, loads of interviews, Wobbly art and songs.
This 1979 documentary established a new, primary-research modus for historical nonfiction—no narrator, no authorial perspective, just original documents and witnesses—but its subject matter was, and still is, its most radical characteristic.
British miners strike 1984/85 film collection
Submitted by working class s... on Feb 29 2012 16:47
This is a collection of documentaries, news clips, interviews, personal accounts, and picture albums from the 1984/1985 miners strike.
The miners strike of 1984-85 will always be remembered in British working class history as the most significant turning point in the power relationship between the working class organisations of the trade unions, and the stat
Anti-Fascist Action – Fighting talk (documentary)
Submitted by working class s... on Feb 27 2012 23:59
A BBC documentary from 1993 charting the history of militant anti-fascism in the UK.
A 1993 documentary made by Anti-Fascist Action for the BBC2 Open Space documentary series.
Kronstadt - a short film
Submitted by thegonzokid on Feb 24 2012 18:30
A short film about the Kronstadt rebellion of 1921 against the Bolshevik dictatorship.
Recently I made this short film about the Kronstadt rebellion. It is not intended as a comprehensive history of the heroic and tragic events of 1921. Instead I hope it serves as a brief overview of the revolt which will be of particular interest to those researching it for the first time.
On Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti
Submitted by wojtek on Feb 23 2012 02:29
Reading literature can be a drag at times so here is some visual content and music to compliment the modest archive at libcom.org on Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti.
Just in case you don't know who Sacco and Vanzetti were, they were two anarchist Italian immigrants residing in the U.S. who, amid a climate of Red-baiting and jingoism, stood accused of a robbery and murder based on rumour, circumstantial and contradictory evidence. The pair were imprisoned, subjected to unfair trials and eventually executed on 23 August, 1927.
Common's luck - a film on Jack Common by John Mapplebeck
Submitted by Red Marriott on Feb 11 2012 13:52
Jack Common wrote brilliant novels, film scripts and essays of radical social comment, all rooted in his early 20th century working class Geordie upbringing. Later a friend of George Orwell, he led a life of literary obscurity and persistent material poverty, but left us some of the most perceptive commentary and description of working class life of his time. His novels (or, more accurately, autobiographies in novelistic form) also offer some of the best recollections of life unfolding through the eyes of a child.
"[i]John Mapplebeck's film Common's Luck begins with a letter seeking employment written by Willy Kiddar, a thinly-veiled self-portrait of the young Jack Common. Tom Pickard's readings from Kiddar's Luck form part of the narrative of the film.
Top ten music/videos of 2011
Submitted by Steven. on Jan 26 2012 19:12
Belated blog of my favourite tracks and music videos of 2011.
I wrote this at the beginning of January but forgot to post it up, so thought I might as well do it now even though it's a bit late.
I didn't bother having a separate top 10 tracks list this year as a bunch of my favourite tracks also had my favourite videos. Starting with this one:
M83 - Midnight city
Not only one of the best videos, but also my favourite song of 2011.
Enron: The smartest guys in the room (documentary)
Submitted by working class s... on Jan 15 2012 09:56
A remarkable documentary which packages the events of the scandal into a cohesive story.
Unbelievable footage of employees reveals unbridled greed, lust for risk-taking, and guiltless cheating, all while thinking they could never be caught.
This searing examination of the Enron accounting scandal reveals the psychology of greed and corporate corruption that facilitated the company's rise to power and also its fall. When Enron went bankrupt in 2001, the principals walked away millionaires - but later faced legal proceedings and jail sentences.
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