WSL conterence offers political lead to youth

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The Economic Crisis and the Way Forward Credentials (20p) are available to WSL members and supporters from: WSL, 31, Dartmouth Park Hill, London Despite the large number of police present at Saturday's NE 'public meeting' (to which only 30 people were admitted from the public) a number of anti-fascists were assuulted by fascist thugs.

No youth today needs to be told that Britain, like the whole of the capitalist world, faces a most serious economic crisis.

Youth at school daily face the effects of massive cut backs in education spending.

Youth at work face low wages and the collaboration of union leaders with the Lib-Lab government to head off any struggle for a decent wage.

Youth on the dole face a future without a job. Each year tens of thousands of school leavers are unable to find work or are placed in "job creation" schemes which only keep them temporarily off the dole.

Coalition For youth who leave home, it is almost impossible to find decent accomodation at a reasonable price.

These are the effects of a crisis which we are not responsible for.

But the Labour leaders, in an undeclared coalition with the capitalist Liberal Party, are determined to make the working class pay.

And in this they have the full support of the bureaucrats who head the trade unions.

SUNDAY 7 MAY at 2.00 Lecture Room 2 Digbeth Civic Hall BIRMINGHAM for Youth NW5 1HR Instead of fighting for the independent interests of the working class, these trade union leaders act to tie the working class to the employers through their agents in the working classthe Labour leaders.

In the past 12 months workers in one industry after another have shown their determination to fight wage Not interested But union leaders like Jones, Scanlon and Murray, have set out to block such struggles as the firemen's strike and settle claims within the government's 10% "guidelines"

When it comes to the problems faced by working class youth, these bureaucrats just aren't interested.

Since they have no intention of fighting the Lib-Lab government they have nothing to gain from organising young workers and unemployed into the unions.

With the leaders of the labour movement themselves spearheading the attack on workers' jobs and living standards, the fascists see an opportunity to recruit youth on the basis of their racist propaganda.

By blaming the crisis on blacks the fascists try to disguise the fact that the crisis is an international crisis PHOTO: Andrew Wiard, Report of the capitalist system and pose instead the "simple" solution of sending immigrants back.

They also hope in this way to divert attention from their_real aim-to destroy all workers' organisations and leave the working class defenceless before the attacks of the employers.

But the twin evils of the economic crisis and the growth of racialism and fascism cannot be successfully fought as long as the working class is saddled with its present leaders.

The task confronting workers and especially working class youth is buildnew, revolutionary leadership in the working class, capable of leading a successful strugle for power in opposition to the reformists and Stalinists who are committed to the defence of capitalism.

Such leadership can only be built through a fight in the workers' movement for the Trotskyist Transitional Programme. This programme takes as its starting point the conditions facing the working class and its consciousness, and advances a series of demands-sliding scale of wages, work sharing on full pay, etc-on which workers can immediately fight but which all lead to the one conclusion-the need for the working class to take power and establish a socialist society.

Cheerleader No existing socialist youth movement is prepared to lead the fight to build a Trotskyist leadership.

The Labour Party Young Socialists-the largest socialist youth movement in Britainsupports the Transitional Programme in words. But in practice it acts as nothing more than left' cheerleader for the right wing coalitionist Labour leaders.

"Give us our head, put us on show and we will win the support, the allegiance and the enthusiasm of young people ... Give us the means and we will broaden Labour's support; bring in youth in their thousands"

That was Labour Party National Youth Officer Andy Bevan speaking at the recent Labour Party Young Socialists conference at which no mention was made of the coalition and no criticism was made of the Labour left' MPs who despite their talk, vote solidly in Parliament for the coalition and its anti-working class policies.

The Workers Socialist League recognises the central role that young workers will play in the construction of a new, revolutionary leadership in the workers movement.

That is why the meeting on May 7 will be more than just a meeting. It will be a major step in the fight to establish a national youth movement in political solidarity with the WSL.

We urge all young workers to attend the meeting and discusss the • need for new leadership an d the programme on which that leadership must fight"

stop immigration and crack down on immigrant workers already in Britain.

'Victory'

The ANL cannot consistently and clearly oppose the NF's vicious racialism with such elements in its midst.

Nor can the ANL sharply take up the way in which the NF anti-strike and law and order' propaganda threatens the democratic rights of the trade union movement, when ANL spokesman Peter Hain was among the first to welcome as a victory" the 2 month ban on marches imposed by Lib-Lab Home Secretary Rees.

Under this ban workers organisations have been prevented from marching anywhere in London, and huge squads of police turned out to protect an NF mass canvass in the Ilford by-election.

Its heavy representation of non socialist forces renders the ANL incapable of presenting a socialist programme in defence of jobs, wages and the social services.

It cannot even call for the breaking of the Lib-Lab deal since leading Liberal Lord Avebury and others are sponsors!

Defence squads

And its emphasis on mere propaganda and publicity against the fascists means that the ANL does not advocate the most obvious form of defence against the very real attacks by the National Front and other fascist groupings on immigrant communities and the labour movement.

For those ANL supporters who insist that the fascists must be fought 'here and now' , we reply that the way to do this is to organise workers defence squads to deal with fascist attacks.

Union bureaucrats, bishops and politicians will not stop NF thugs beating up black youth and workers. Nor will the police who rush to defend the NF from counter-demonstrators.

But serious preparation in the trade unions, workers' political parties, tenants associations and youth organisations can stop them.

Well-meaning

We call for defence squads to be set up, based on factories, workplaces and working class estates.

If the AN or any other organisation would fight for such a policy, then the Workers Socialist League would fight alongside it on this issue.

But all the signs are that the Anti-Nazi League, for all its outward appearance-ls a movement restricted by its composition and its avoidance of politics io a well-meaning but quite inadequate badge selling and poster-pasting jamboree.

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SOCIALIST PRESS, The narrow victory of right wing Labourite Donald Dewar in the Garscadden by-election is not so much an endorsement of Labour's treacherous policies as a clear rejection of Toryism and its nationalist counterpart.

This fight must now carried much further by Scottish workers-into the struggle to remove both "right" and "leftwing" supporters of the Lib-Lab coalition and construct a principled leadership to defend workers' independent interests.

The candidacies of the Communist Party, Scottish Labour Party and Socialist Workers Party in Garscadden really contributed (ops nothing to this struggle either in terms of political clarity or alternative programme.

A similar situation seems certain to prevail in the forthcoming Lambeth by election, where five 'left wing' alternatives to Labour are each adding their own brand of confusion and opportunism to the situation.

Little gained

Workers Revolutionary Party, Socialist Unity, SWP, Socialist Party of Great Britain and "South London People's Front" candidates will jostle eachother on the doorsteps and main streets of Lambeth.

While there is no objection in principle to standing revolutionWe reprint below the Labour manifesto from ary candidates to be gained stage.

Local council elections are taking place throughout the country on May local Ray there seems little from it at this Political struggles The WSL stands by its policy of calling for a vote for the Labour candidate, coupled with a political struggle in the Labour and trade union movement to break the Lib-Lab coalition and remove its defenders.

Experience has shown that it will be in the process of this kind of practical fight, and not in simply casting a protest vote against Lib-Lab betrayals, that workers will become convincad of the necessity to break from reformism and construct a revol. utionary leadership in the workers movement. Massey and John Plant in the Kensington ward. for the Newham Council in East London.

We think this indicates the kind of policies on which the necessary fight back can PHOTO: Andrew Wiard, Dewar IOTO: Andrew Wiard, Report begin.

The candidates see their campaign as part of an effort to defeat the Lib-Lab coalition, and also as a continuation of the fight, in which they have both played a key role, against their Tory MP, Reg Prentice.

Next week we hope to publish an interview with one of the candidates explaining these policies more fully.

We are standing for the Newham Council as an extension of our fight in the local labour movement against our Tory MP Reginald Prentice. Prentice has now shown himself in his true colours, but he has left many friends in the Labour Party. The fight against them must continue.

We believe that there is a need for MPs and Councillors who do not collaborate with the enemies of the trade union and labour movement.

The present Lib-Lab coalition arrangement must be broken at once.

This collaboration has now led to the horrifying Select Committee Report on Immigration, attacking the immigrant community. The mobilisation of the moremeni against the racialсаль стел. ies and the coll ever necessary.

The fight for real socialist polices to mobilise the working • class against wage will fight for policies.

*Opposition to all cuts housing, education and heal services whether initiatı locally or nationally.

*Committees of worke and housewives should be s up to determine the need f expanded programmes public services. These col mittees should ensure th inflation is not allowed erode the public services.

*Support for the campai against the closure Plaistow Hospital. Save Newham hospitals.

*A crash programme public building, in coop ation with the buildi unions, to provide coun housing and to replace out date school buildings. Expal the Council's direct nor department to meet t *Opposition to the Ta GLC plans to build housi for sale in Docklands shi thousands of families a waiting for council housing.

*Freeze all Council rents *Opposition to racialism. Refuse the use Council buildings to t National Front and oth fascists. Build a labo motercat defence orga ISADIOE ID SOF TASCi "A Jessie expensi romen and to improve education facilities for Newha children.