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A small part of the 15,000 strong demonstration CALLS FOR Over 15,000 people demonstrated through London on Saturday June 21st against James White's Abortion (Amen dment) Bill. The demonstration, which enormously dwarfed a 300-strong Festival of Light counter demonstration, marched from Victoria Embankment, ending in a mass rally at Hyde Park.

But the speakers completely missed the class issues involved when calling for opposition to White's bill. Renee Short centred her speech around an attack on men, and completely avoided the fact that this reactionary bill would affect the rights of working class families - women and men. She thus restricts the fight to women only - saying that women Labour MPs would vote against the bill -but at the same time refusing to question White's right as a Labour MP to make this anti-working class move or to amke demands on men Labour MPs.

DEFENSIVE

The speakers and organisers took a defensive stand on the whole issue. They are not, in spite of the slogans, mobilising a fight to win 'Abortion on Demand' but are only campaigning to defeat this amendment.

This ignores the fact that the present law is far from adequate -as Leo Abse (co-sponsor of White's bill) never stops pointing out, it did not concede that abortion facilities were a right to every woman - it still depends on the area you live in and the views of individual doctors whether you can obtain an abortion now - and the middle class who knot the system and can pull the right strings are heavily advantaged.

Obviously the bill must be defeated but the campaign must not stomplete lackt present there is a aspect of women's rights being wa ged by the Labour and trade union leaders. Trade union banners were put at the end of the march, showing that the NAC fails to understand the need to fight in the unions for the defence and advancement of the rights of women.

EQUAL OPPORTUNITY The demand for Abortion on Demand can only be taken up as part of the struggle of the working class as a whole to defend rights and living standards against the attacks of capitalism. Such a struggle will come face to face with the bankruptcy of the existing trade union leadership, which has never seriously fought for the rights of women, for equal opportunity, and adequate maternity leave on full pay. Nor are they prepared to fight the social contract or for the release of the Shrewsbury Iwo, or against other attacks on workers' standards of living.

The WSL leaflet on the march linked the questions of women's rights and working class leadership:

James White's reactionary bill is just one part of a series of attacks by the capitalist class and the Labour government on the health service and the living standards of the working class. By introducing this legislation White is firmly lined up with all those right wing elements from the 'Festival of Light' to the Monday Club, whose attempts to obtain more rigorous censorsh if and to intensify the oppression of family life are of a piece with trying to increase the exploitation of the working class on behalf of capitalism.

DISGRACE

It is a disgrace to the Labour movement that such a man as James White continues to represent it. Local Labour parties must take immediate steps to remove White and other MPs supporting his repressive policies, and for their replace ment by others who are prepared to maintain the rights of the working class.

There must be a campaign throughout the entire labour movement for the defeat of this legislation. Decent health standards can only be guaranteed through the efforts of the organised working class. It is essential that there should be a continual struggle against all hospital closures, and for the maintenance of those standards of health care that the working class has a right to expect.

The defence of the health service has already begun in earnest. In the East End of London, where nDUSTRY leaflets put into the plant. We have said that this vindicated our fight facilities are being cut and the Poplar Hospital is threatened with closure, a committee of trade unionists has been set up to resist. Workers Socialist League members have proposed that the committee should demand access to the books of the area health authority as a step towards workers control of the service. Housewives, tenants groups and others must be involved in this struggle. The national conference of ASTMS has also voted in favour of joint committees of trade unionists to defend and improve standards in the health service.

The right to free contraception and abortion on demand must be part of any socialist health service. The achievement of any such aims is currently being held back by the policies of the Labour government in attacking the living standards of the working class in order to salvage the profits of capitalism in the face of world economic crisis. Even the InGS