student protests in Italy

This is amazing and yet there's not enough solidarity or even co-ordinated actions going on between different countries' movements (France, Greece, Ireland etc.).

students vs police in Rome:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BLUln2cX9O4

Volin

This is amazing and yet there's not enough solidarity or even co-ordinated actions going on between different countries' movements (France, Greece, Ireland etc.).

This is true but I'm not sure how that could be accomplished. We could all agitate for a Europe-wide day of action against the austerity budgets, but exactly how that could be co-ordinated I don't know.

Have anarchists been particulary prevalent? I always hear the odd thing from Italy but nothing to really build any actual knowledge of anarchism there

Communard

students vs police in Rome:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BLUln2cX9O4

I thought the 'Moby Dick' sign was a nice touch. 8-)

slothjabber

Volin

This is amazing and yet there's not enough solidarity or even co-ordinated actions going on between different countries' movements (France, Greece, Ireland etc.).

This is true but I'm not sure how that could be accomplished. We could all agitate for a Europe-wide day of action against the austerity budgets, but exactly how that could be co-ordinated I don't know.

Can anyone give good examples of previous international solidarity or co-ordinated actions out of curiousity?

Have anarchists been particulary prevalent? I always hear the odd thing from Italy but nothing to really build any actual knowledge of anarchism there

No, organized political groups play a little role... some left self-organized groups are in but they just follow the students.
Here in Turin anarchists/squatters are splitted and almost isolated...

Communard

No, organized political groups play a little role... some left self-organized groups are in but they just follow the students.
Here in Turin anarchists/squatters are splitted and almost isolated...

I wasn't really referring to formal organisations, but more of informal forces that have been very active in the UK.

action_now

Have anarchists been particulary prevalent?

Just out of interest, why is this the first question you ask? What importance do you ascribe to self-styled "anarchist" participation?

sabot

Communard

students vs police in Rome:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BLUln2cX9O4

I thought the 'Moby Dick' sign was a nice touch. 8-)

Making shields out of book titles, excellent...

action_now

Communard

No, organized political groups play a little role... some left self-organized groups are in but they just follow the students.
Here in Turin anarchists/squatters are splitted and almost isolated...

I wasn't really referring to formal organisations, but more of informal forces that have been very active in the UK.

what 'informal forces' do you mean?

The ICT/IBRP published an article from 'Friends Of Spartacus' publication 'Internationalist Youth Review'; they're described as young comrades involved in the resistance of university and school students as well as young workers against the cuts in Italy.

http://www.leftcom.org/en/articles/2010-11-21/defend-our-conditions-our-class-and-our-cause

This is amazing and yet there's not enough solidarity or even co-ordinated actions going on between different countries' movements (France, Greece, Ireland etc.).

I think whats missing is a means of communication between student-occupants and workers involved in anti-cuts groups - both regional and international. The internet being so omnipresent should make setting up a vehicle for communication much easier than in previous generations.

devoration1

This is amazing and yet there's not enough solidarity or even co-ordinated actions going on between different countries' movements (France, Greece, Ireland etc.).

I think whats missing is a means of communication between student-occupants and workers involved in anti-cuts groups - both regional and international. The internet being so omnipresent should make setting up a vehicle for communication much easier than in previous generations.

Any ideas on how international co-ordination could be organised? There does seem to be some interest in what's going on in different countries - for example the international coverage on uniriot and the attempt to march on the British Embassy in Athens today in solidarity with students here.

Caiman del Barrio

action_now

Have anarchists been particulary prevalent?

Just out of interest, why is this the first question you ask? What importance do you ascribe to self-styled "anarchist" participation?

Since I can easily gain access to other information concerning the student protests in Italy.
Anyway, is it strange to enquire whether the ideas you base your own actions around are playing any sort of role in a international struggle?
Anyway, what's with this 'self-styled' nonsense?

bricolage

action_now

Communard

No, organized political groups play a little role... some left self-organized groups are in but they just follow the students.
Here in Turin anarchists/squatters are splitted and almost isolated...

I wasn't really referring to formal organisations, but more of informal forces that have been very active in the UK.

what 'informal forces' do you mean?

Anarchists using informal organisational techniques to intervene in struggle- networks and affinity groups for example. And no, this does not mean that members of formal anarchist groups aren't involved in using these methods.

action_now wrote:
Anarchists using informal organisational techniques to intervene in struggle- networks and affinity groups for example. And no, this does not mean that members of formal anarchist groups aren't involved in using these methods.

I haven't heard of any of these tactics being used by anarchists in the student struggle. Interested, what examples are there of this?

slothjabber

Volin

This is amazing and yet there's not enough solidarity or even co-ordinated actions going on between different countries' movements (France, Greece, Ireland etc.).

This is true but I'm not sure how that could be accomplished. We could all agitate for a Europe-wide day of action against the austerity budgets, but exactly how that could be co-ordinated I don't know.

How about...

Greek police clash with students showing solidarity at the British Embassy

bloody brilliant :D

Video clip here.
[sorry, this is now slightly off topic]

Perhaps next Thursday we could say that we're going to march to the Greek (Holland Park), Italian (Marylebone), German (Knightsbridge), Portuguese (Knightsbridge), Austrian (Knightsbridge), French (Knightsbridge), Spanish (Knightsbridge) and any other embassy of somewhere there are anti-austerity protests, in solidarity with our international brothers and sisters?

Anyone fancy a trip to Hyde Park and its environs?

Several of those embassies are about 5 minutes walk from Victoria coach station. I can imagine the sight of a gazillion coppers blocking roads around Knightsbridge 2 weeks before Christmas will be particularly disturbing for the average Daily Mail reader too.

You could maybe add the American embassy to the list as well in relation to Puerto Rico where the UPR strike is due to resume in January.

flaneur

slothjabber

Volin

This is amazing and yet there's not enough solidarity or even co-ordinated actions going on between different countries' movements (France, Greece, Ireland etc.).

This is true but I'm not sure how that could be accomplished. We could all agitate for a Europe-wide day of action against the austerity budgets, but exactly how that could be co-ordinated I don't know.

Can anyone give good examples of previous international solidarity or co-ordinated actions out of curiousity?

There was this, but it wasn't co-ordinated and was a real mixture of stuff, some directly related t the CPE, some other student protests, was also less interesting that's already happening now. The CPE was massive, but Italy + Greece + UK + France etc. combined, along with the generalised nature of the attacks is very different.

http://libcom.org/news/article.php/france-cpe-protests-international-040406

slothjabber

Perhaps next Thursday we could say that we're going to march to the Greek (Holland Park), Italian (Marylebone), German (Knightsbridge), Portuguese (Knightsbridge), Austrian (Knightsbridge), French (Knightsbridge), Spanish (Knightsbridge) and any other embassy of somewhere there are anti-austerity protests, in solidarity with our international brothers and sisters?

Anyone fancy a trip to Hyde Park and its environs?

Several of those embassies are about 5 minutes walk from Victoria coach station. I can imagine the sight of a gazillion coppers blocking roads around Knightsbridge 2 weeks before Christmas will be particularly disturbing for the average Daily Mail reader too.

I thought marching on embassies would be a good idea when thinking how to go about international solidarity. Problem is, how does this translate into action? Unless students decide to off their own back, is it likely that the NCAFC will have a call out?

Also, cheers Mike.

here in italy the struggle is not anti-capitalist, it's not criticizing the social system as a whole, but just an awful reform.
there are anarcho/libertarian/left-communist individuals or small groups, but we're few and count almost nothing.

Communard

here in italy the struggle is not anti-capitalist, it's not criticizing the social system as a whole, but just an awful reform.

With the possible exception of Greece, I think this is pretty much the case everywhere. Tomorrow's main action will be a demo outside the London Lib Dem Conference calling for them to change their votes.

Recent student actions across the world

with links to
Canada
Chile
Philippines

Does anyone know any more about the 'International Student Movement' and the 'Global Wave of Action for Education'?

Thanks for the link about Chile Mark. What a pity the video loses sound when the interviews start. I've sent it onto contacts out there anyway to see what more info can be gleaned...

Caiman - the video just worked for me, so its maybe worth trying it again. It actually seems to be from La Serena (small city on the coast, central Chile) rather than Santiago.

A couple more links for Chile (in Spanish)
Frente de Estudiantes Libertarios
Tribuna Libertaria
FEL on youtube

flaneur

...

I thought marching on embassies would be a good idea when thinking how to go about international solidarity. Problem is, how does this translate into action? Unless students decide to off their own back, is it likely that the NCAFC will have a call out?

Whether NCAFC has a call out is obviously up to them, but in my estimation it's not very likely. However, many students have been asking about whether there's going to be one big march or a lot of independent actions (or a combination). There hasn't been much reporting of this (I mean, the demonstration in Athens outside the Britsh embassy hasn't been widely reported here) I'd say, but where it has been reported the students seem to have been mostly very positive about 'returning the favour' as it were. Perhaps we will see a move towards groups 'claiming' embassies to demonstrate outside?

If that is true then why are the students talking about making the government fall? And why have many of the demos seen the active participation not only of school/university students but also groups of unemployed and precarious workers (Naples for example)?

About solidarity and links within European struggles, read this pamphlet: http://www.uniriot.org/uniriotII/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1448:europe-calling-flier-from-uniriot-network&catid=132:euniriot&Itemid=324

This clearly states that the struggle IS indeed anticapitalist, "against neoliberalism", "against the privatisation of knowledge" and "the new enclosures". Why the students would focus on opposing the reform? It only makes sense to me, seen as they're the ones who're gonna be affected in the first place. This doesn't mean they're blind to everything else and they cannot make connections - as the websites and blogs I've been reading and translating in the last few days clearly prove.

As to the anarchist presence in the protests, just have a look at some of the banners in the pictures or read the communiques. I can't see why this should be the most important thing though. Italy has a long history of left-wing, radical traditionS in which anarchism has always had a place but has never been the only one. I don't personally care if the people who broke into the Colosseum or the Tower in Pisa define themselves as anarchists, libertarians, communists or else...what is important to me is that I recognise their struggle as part of my struggle and I support them for that.

Italy Calling

If that is true then why are the students talking about making the government fall?

asking for a government change has nothing to do with anticapitalist struggle.
students and phds don't like the reform and this government (rightfully)

And why have many of the demos seen the active participation not only of school/university students but also groups of unemployed and precarious workers (Naples for example)?

that organized group of unemployeds is always present in any demo in Naples.
actually, students and workers struggles are splitted... because both struggles are not criticizing the society, but they're just asking "boss, don't fire us" and "minister, don't take money from university".

This clearly states that the struggle IS indeed anticapitalist, "against neoliberalism", "against the privatisation of knowledge" and "the new enclosures". Why the students would focus on opposing the reform? It only makes sense to me, seen as they're the ones who're gonna be affected in the first place. This doesn't mean they're blind to everything else and they cannot make connections - as the websites and blogs I've been reading and translating in the last few days clearly prove.

many students can "make connections", but have you been in demos and occupied universities in these days?
i'm in Torino and 99% of the students just don't like the reform and the government, they are against privatizations, for a public state-university for everyone.
where are you?

As to the anarchist presence in the protests, just have a look at some of the banners in the pictures or read the communiques.

there are people of every center-left party against the government...
i'm a libertarian communist, but i can't transform the demos where i go in "anticapitalist struggles" just because i've got a black flag with me (lol i don't actually have a flag, thankfully :))

If they block our future, we’ll block the city! Notes on the university mobilizations in the Italian autumn of 2010

Hi Communard,
the same you say about Italy could be said about the student protests in the UK, in France, Greece, anywhere - they only want to get into uni for free, they're not anticapitalist. I like to see the bigger picture: by attacking one part of the system - the one that they feel concerns them the most - they're attacking the whole system.

Chi semina vento, raccoglie tempesta.

A bit of background on the situation in Italy:

Student protests in Europe: How does Italy compare to the UK?

Student rage doesn’t just speak English. Young protesters have taken over the streets in many other European countries including Greece and Italy, marking a new wave of demonstrations against austerity measures being introduced by governments across the continent.

While Greek students protest against government cuts to the education budget, in Italy riots exploded throughout the country as the Italian Parliament was due to discuss the university reform proposed by Education minister Mariastella Gelmini...

...and some photos from recent protests

Mark.

If they block our future, we’ll block the city! Notes on the university mobilizations in the Italian autumn of 2010

.

Right now, Italian students are facing several important deadlines: the Senate discussion of the law and the construction of a national day of mobilization against the Berlusconi government on the 14th of December. Both of these occasions will continue to be infused with the call for a general strike by the main Italian union, the CGIL.

Today - I haven't found anything else about this in Engilsh yet but it sounds like it could be big.

students riots in Rome:

http://www.repubblica.it/scuola/2010/12/14/foto/lacrimogeni_scontri_e_bombe_carta_gli_incidenti_in_italia-10186018/1/?ref=HRER3-1

http://roma.corriere.it/gallery/roma/12-2010/studenti/1/studenti-piazza-scontri_21df502c-0780-11e0-a25e-00144f02aabc.shtml#1

the government is still there.... and the students are burning down police vans:
http://roma.repubblica.it/cronaca/2010/12/14/foto/tridente_isolato_auto_in_fiamme-10193174/4/

students vs cops...
http://www.repubblica.it/scuola/2010/12/14/foto/roma_gli_scontri_con_la_polizia_3-10192900/1/
http://www.repubblica.it/scuola/2010/12/14/foto/roma_gli_scontri_con_la_polizia_2-10190569/1/

and a pig took out his gun...
http://www.repubblica.it/scuola/2010/12/14/foto/scontri_a_roma_un_finanziere_impugna_la_pistola-10197055/1/

smells like '77.

Entdinglichung

according to http://www.spiegel.de/politik/ausland/0,1518,734676,00.html (in German, sorry), > 500 school & university students were able to occupy one runway of the airport of Palermo/Sicilia for some time

There were also railway stations occupied in north italy, but the major demo/clash is in Rome, with students and "precari" from all the nation.

Just wrote an article about today's (14th December) protests:
http://italycalling.wordpress.com/2010/12/14/14122010-the-battle-of-rome/

Video - report on euronews - 'Rome erupts after Berlusconi vote'

Videos

euronews report on the Gelmini bill

student protest in Palermo

'a whole different story' - uniriot article on the Italian protests