Cameron’s cure for the ‘sick society’ is more oppressive powers for the police and more cuts.
The riots that have spread across the country need to be understood against the backdrop of racism, increasing poverty, inequality and restricted access to education.
Cameron says ‘It is clear there are things that are badly wrong in our society’ but has no understanding that his cuts agenda has created the tinderbox igniting in cities across Britain.
The government cuts to Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA) and increased tuition fees that sparked mass student protests last year are resulting in the further exclusion of young working class people.
Youth unemployment is at its highest ever levels. In London youth unemployment stands at 23 percent.
A generation of young people face either no work or at best low paid work, restricted access to education, alongside cuts to benefits and services.
As John McDonnell MP and Honorary Chair, Right to Work said, we are now
“Reaping what has been sown over three decades of creating a grotesquely unequal society, with alienated young copying the ethos of looting bankers.”
When young people have their hopes and futures ripped apart by government policies it should come as no surprise that frustration explodes into riots.
We were not alone in predicting this kind of social explosion – during the election campaign Nick Clegg predicted riots if the Tories were elected.
Government and bankers’ greed created both the economic crisis and the frustrations that have led to the riots.
It is also clear that there are many unanswered questions about the police killing of Mark Duggan in Tottenham that began the riots. We now know he did not shoot at the police.
This comes after the police killings of Ian Tomlinson and Jean Charles de Menezes.
Calls for repression, water cannon, curfews and rubber bullets can only exacerbate the situation, increase volatility and further demonise and criminalise young people.
We call on everyone to support the TUC-backed protests at the Lib Dem and Tory conferences in the autumn and to step up the fight against the cuts, racism, poverty and inequality.
Signatories so far
| Names | Union/Organisation & Position |
| Paul Gilroy | Author of There Aint No Black in the Union Jack and After Empire |
| Zita Holbourne | Co Founder, Black Activists Rising Against Cuts (BARAC) |
| Paul Brandon | National Secretary, Right to Work |
| Tony Kearns | Senior Deputy General Secretary, CWU |
| Lee Jasper | Co Founder, Black Activists Rising Against Cuts (BARAC) |
| Sean Vernell | UCU NEC |
| Sam James | Joint National Chair, Right to Work |
| Glenroy Watson | Secretary, Global African Congress UK |
| Maeve Landman | UCU NEC |
| Linda Burnip | Co Founder, Disabled People Against Cuts (DPAC) |
| Ian Allinson | Unite Executive Committee |
| John McArdle | Co Founder, Black Triangle Anti Defamation Campaign in Defense of Disability Rights |
| Alex Callinicos | UCU member |
| Hanif Leylabi | NUS LGBT Committee open place (pc) |
| Jock Morris | Chair, Glasgow Campaign to Welcome Refugees |
| Simon Hester | Haringey TUC Chair |
| Dr Andrew Asibong | Senior Lecturer, Birkbeck, Uni of London |
| Asli Deninel | Day-Mer, Education Co-ordinator |
| Matt Foot | Solicitor |
| Pete Firmin | Chair, Brent TUC & Joint Secretary, Labour Representation Commmittee |
| Steve Jones | PEC, CWU |
| Jo Robinson | Chair, Waltham Forest Pensioners Convention |
| Graham Douglas | Journalist, The Prisma |
| Anthony Sedgwick | BFAWU Branch Sec |
| Geoff Dexter | PCS Midlands Regional Learning Organiser |
| Keith Crane | PCS EFRA Group Assistant Sec |
| John Geoffrey Walker | Ruskin UCU Chair (pc) |
| Camilla Royle | Islington Hands Off Our Public Services |
| Dave Carr | Unite Tutor/Organiser |
| Suzy Franklin | Plymouth Unison Comms Officer |
| Paula Allen | Trans Panthers Party for Self Defense, Interim President UK |
| Glyn Oliver | Southampton NUT Rep & Treasurer Southampton Trades Council |
| Kav Hawker | Unite member |
| Ian Murray | Sandwell NUT Gen Sec |
| Paul Graham | Civil Service Pensioners Association |
| David Fagan | UCATT member |
| Philip Cunningham | FBU member / Firefighter |
| Tony Staunton | Plymouth TUC Secretary & Unite 193 Local Government Branch Chair |
| Richard Lighten | Manchester Met Unison Communications Officer |
| Jon Gamble | Watford TUC Secretary (pc) |
| Paul Packham | Unite Rep |
| Rachel Eborall | Unison member |
| John Martin Bampfylde | Unison / Bath TUC / Bath Campaign Against the Cuts |
| Maggie Nicols | Musicians Union member |
| Jim Whyte | CPB / Retired TU Studies Tutor / EIS activist |
| Andy Stone | NUT School Rep |
| Richard Jaques | Unite Branch Secretary |
| Ben Drake | York City Unison Branch Chair (pc) |
| Sean Cumming | Unite Chair of Bar and Hospitality Branch Glasgow (pc) |
| Sean Wallis | UCL UCU Branch Sec |
| Gordon White | NUT County Secretary |
| Dave Clinch | Past President Devon NUT & Musicians Union |
| Hilary Chuter | NUT Union Rep & Treasurer / Lancaster & Morecambe Against the Cuts |
| Lynne Chamberlain | Greenwich & Bexley TUC |
| Sue Abbott | UCU member |
| David Treece | UCU member |
| Paul Shackley | Unison Steward |
| Georgia Bondy | |
| Mick Berry | |
| Carl Walters | BECTU member |
| Neil Rogall | UCU member |
| Mary Bowers | |
| Dean James | Criminal Suicide Limited, Producer Co Founder |
| Mark Griffiths | Unison member |
| Jesper Widell | SAC Builder |
| Tom Skinner | |
| Sharon Brown | Unison Steward & mother |
| Donna Guthrie | Unison member |
| Fran Cetti | |
| Dominic Houghton | Unison member |
| Diana Marquand | Unison member |
| R MacDonald | |
| Ellie Oldridge | Unison member / teaching assistant |
| Ray Buckley | |
| Gavin McCormick | |
| Maciej Bancarzewski | |
| Julie Webster | |
| Sam Sharman-Dunn | |
| Katherine Perlo | |
| June Jones | Unison retired member |
| Eco Treedweller | |
| Jim Fagan | Unison retired member |
| Sasha Simic | USDAW Shop Steward |
| Danny Tartaglia | |
| Jason Mangan | |
| Richard Atkinson | Cheshire West Against the Cuts / Unison member |
| Terri Behrman | NUT member |
| B F Behrman | |
| B. Watson | |
| George Shire | UCU member |
| Terry Conway | Socialist Resistance |
| Sabrina Fenton Paul | |
| Steve Fontaine | streetnewz.webs.com |
| Naomi Yates | |
| Ruth Moulton | UCU Retired member |
| Julie Sherry | Right to Work Steering Committee |
| Chris Knight | UCU member |
| Anya-Nicola Darr | |
| Saira Weiner | |
| Dawn Boyd | PCS member |
| Lisa Diver | |
| Joshua Chown | |
| Nina Doran | UCU member |
| Mary Phillips | |
| Billie Loebner | UCU member |
| Andrid | Unison member |
| Abdul-Nasser JG Baston | Unison member |
| Kim Bennett | FE Teacher / Tutor |
| Rhodri Kemp | Unison member |
| Geoff Williams | UCU member |
| Anne Martin | |
| Anthony Ash | |
| Gabrielle Le Roux | |
| Tim Nelson | |
| Sayma Afzaal | |
| John Clark | |
| Sophie Jongman | |
| Patrick McAlees | |
| Liz Jolly | |
| Lita Wallis | |
| Andrew Stevenson | |
| Nadia Perkins | |
| Rebecca Clare | |
| Julia Brenan | |
| Richard Collins | |
| Lorraine Huddle | NUT member |
| Francis Choules | CWU Deputy Branch Sec |
| Simon O’Hara | NUT Rep |
| Pat Campbell | Unison retired member |
| Kath Grant | |
| Paul Grist | NUT member |
| Kevin P Davis | NUT All London Retired Members Group (pc) |
| Michelle Adhemar | Unison member |
| Janine Woods | Unite member |
| Aida Birch | Unison retired member |
| Andy Coles | UCU member |
| Christine Vie | UCU Exec |
| Bel Druce | |
| Steve Campbell | Unison Shop Steward (pc) |
| Alan Perry | Writer/Painter |
| Kevin Frank | Unison Steward (pc) |
| Rhian Gower | Unison member |
| Craig Brandist | UCU member |
| Matthew Corr | Unison member |
| Elaheh Rostami-Povey | UCU Retired member |
| Paul Thonet | |
| Tom Topley | Harlow Pensioners Action Association & Unite member |
| Maureen Topley | Harlow Pensioners Action Association & Unite member |
| Kirsty | |
| Sue Talbot | Unison member |
| Simon Shaw | Welfare Officer Redbridge NUT |
| Paul Martin | PCS member |
| Christina Kostoula | |
| Dave Statham | |
| Paul Ellis | NUT member |
| Tony O’Neill | GMB member |
| Sam Chambers | GMB member |
| Dean Harris | Unison member |
| Hari | |
| Rebecca Chamberlain | |
| Ms Anna Weeks | |
| Terry Ledlie | CWU ULR/H&S Rep |
| Gayle Shaw | Unison Retired member |
| Timothy Michael | |
| Robert Brennan | Unison Housing Support Worker |
| Jean Franklin | Dorset Socialists |
| Emy Castelao | Taunton USDAW union rep |
| Shirley Franklin | Exec London Region UCU |
| Stephen Collins | Usdaw member |
| Paul Turnbull | CWU Area Rep |
| Joe Druce | |
| Fran Postlethwaite | Barnsley NUT Assistant Secretary |
| Andy Reid | PCS NEC |
| Martin Bove | Unite member |
| Andrew Osbourne | Unite Cambridge & District 0009M Saftey Officer (pc) |
| Jim Hutchinson | NUT member |
| Carol Lawton | Unite member |
| Douglas Jessop | |
| Tony Phillips | Unison LFEPA Branch Secretary (pc) |
| Lucy Mundy | Unison H&S Rep |
| Fero Firat | |
| D.C. Rossington |
Add your name to the statement here
paula madcat panther said:
can we view the signatures anywhere?
11 August 2011 at 5:26pmBLACK TRIANGLE ANTI-DEFAMATION CAMPAIGN IN DEFENCE OF DISABILITY RIGHTS said:
In the name of grassrooots disabled activists resisting an ongoing pogrom against disabled people, we say with one united voice to the ConDem junta and ‘Labour’ neoliberals: “NO PASARÁN AQUI!”
11 August 2011 at 7:28pmNO JUSTICE = NO PEACE!!!
Pete said:
The signatures to the statement will be posted soon
11 August 2011 at 8:30pmJohn Clark said:
Get the bankers by any means possible. What, extreme? Not half as much as what they are doing to disabled people at the moment.
11 August 2011 at 9:39pmRedirect slash and burn policies against the millionaires and billionaires!
Diana Marquand said:
Cameron should learn from the Welsh Assembly – no cuts in education, a plan to support co-operative entgerprises in Wales and a real sustainability agenda which prioritises soocial cohesion
It is alienation that causes these riots – alienation from an elitist capitalist society which prioritises profit over social well being
12 August 2011 at 8:56amRichard Ej said:
solidarity greeting – look forward to working with you – please feel free to post details of news & campaigns on our group page on facebook. https://www.facebook.com/pages/Respect-For-the-Unemployed-Benefit-Claimants/128136787240200
Richard
12 August 2011 at 12:09pmJohn Cooper said:
“Keep calm and carry on” – the five most dispiriting words in the English language
12 August 2011 at 7:23pmMary Tracy said:
While I agree wholeheartedly with the statement, I would much rather support a TUC-backed GENERAL STRIKE.
12 August 2011 at 10:13pmMartin Bove said:
Margaret Thatcher and her Tory Government and the people who voted for her have created this society with it’s greed is good philosophy and individualism! The attack on The Trade Union movement leading to poorer working conditions and social deprivation as a result! Sadly The New Labour Government has continued Tory policy with Neo-Liberalism. Which has now paved the way for this Coalition with its ruthless austerity cuts!
15 August 2011 at 10:36pmAnn Newton said:
I agree that the viscious cuts and inequality in society is not helpful to the thousands that have striven to change mentallity and attitudes over several decades. It feels that the repressive nature of Goverment has erased all the progress made by society in the past.
17 August 2011 at 8:02pmSam Brackenbury said:
They go on about thugs, looters, and the breakdown of society, meanwhile, politicians lie, We spend 38.5 million a week on Trident… Elderly people starve, Atos Origin cause people to commit suicide….Disabled people are labeled “Scroungers”.
But Bankers can spend their bonuses on cocaine, and rip off the country and they get rewarded for it, But if you happen to rob a bottle of water you get six months??????????????
These fools in goverment do not care! Truth is they NEVER HAVE!!
19 August 2011 at 2:45amclare jordan said:
we must give our children and young adults a future.
19 August 2011 at 6:04pmMartin Bove said:
Margaret Thatcher and her Tory Government have created this society with it’s greed is good philosophy and individualism! The attack on The Trade Union movement leading to poorer working conditions and social deprivation as a result! Sadly The New Labour Government has continued Tory policy with Neo-Liberalism. Which has now paved the way for this Coalition with its ruthless austerity cuts!
20 August 2011 at 10:38pm