On the first anniversary of Peoples Dispatch, we take a look at the struggles we have covered, the battlefronts where a new world is being created through the conviction and resolve of millions of people.
The Venezuelan Resistance
Imperialist powers have been attacking the Bolivarian Revolution in Venezuela since its inception 20 years ago. However, this onslaught entered a new chapter with far-right leader Juan Guaidó’s coup attempt. The Venezuelan people responded by mobilizing in the streets in defense of the Bolivarian Revolution and Nicolás Maduro, and were supported by peoples’ movements across the world.
#FreeLula
The case of Lula da Silva is emblematic of new methods devised by imperialism to discredit those who stand for the people. Lula may be in jail and Bolsanaro may have won but the call to Free Lula continues to reverberate across the world. In recent times, as the case against Lula crumbles, Brazilian people’s movements have intensified struggles for his release.
The Great Palestinian Stand
The Great Return March that began in March 2018 is one of the most momentous acts of resistance of our time. Ordinary Palestinians have week after week stood up to the might of Israel, demanding an end to occupation and the right to return. Israel has perpetrated every atrocity possible but their bombs and tanks have failed to even make a dent in the resolve of the Palestinians.
The Sudanese Revolution
The uprising in Sudan was one of the brightest moments of the year, as the sheer power of the people overthrew Omar al-Bashir’s 30-year reign. The future of the country hangs in the balance, as the people battle the might of the military. What is certain, however, is that Sudan will never be the same again.
Justice for Berta
Peoples Dispatch joined the call to stand in solidarity with the family of Berta Cáceres and COPINH, to demand justice and raise awareness about the case. We stand with them in their struggle against the systematic impunity enjoyed by those that kill activists and human rights defenders in order to advance their projects of capitalist exploitation.
An assault on humanity
Imperialist interventions and neoliberal policies are wrecking the global south but when people flee the resultant conflicts, they are met with walls and armies. Unable to deal with growing economic inequality and unemployment at home, the countries of the global north have chosen to vilify those who seek shelter, denying their humanity. That is when they’re not funding camps to detain migrants in appalling conditions.
The dogs of war
Imperialism may have suffered a decisive setback in Syria but the region is still not free from war and conflict. The Saudi-led war on Yemen continues to rage on and has claimed the lives of tens of thousands of civilians and engendered an unparalleled humanitarian crisis. The US, meanwhile, has brought the world dangerously close to a disastrous war as it systematically corners and isolates Iran.
The Fight for Freedom
While many countries in the global south suffer from the impact of neo-colonialism, there are still several countries where the struggle against colonialism itself continues. From the Indigenous and First Nation people in North America or Turtle Island to the enduring resistance in Western Sahara, Rodrigues, Palestine, and Puerto Rico, the spirit of the people fighting colonialism remains steadfast.
When struggles coalesce
The third Pan-Africanism Today conference that was held in Ghana in September was a key moment in buildings the bonds of solidarity in the continent. The slogan, “Unifying the struggles of the masses against capitalism and imperialism,” was the rallying cry for leftist organizations, trade unions and people’s movements in their militant and decisive struggles against imperialism and capitalism and towards the creation of a socialist Africa.
Healthcare for all, now!
The Fourth People’s Health Assembly, which concluded on November 19 in Bangladesh, demanded healthcare for all, now. Apart from the issue of neoliberal economic structures that hinder access to healthcare, it emphasized the need for revitalization of primary healthcare for achieving universal health care.
A firm no to RCEP
Free Trade Agreements are the latest frontier in the battle against the economic hegemony of a few countries over the majority. Peoples movements and policy experts from around the world gathered in Bangkok to deliberate ways to counter the impact of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership.
The Left Assembles
500 participants from 87 countries and 181 people’s movements and organizations participated in the International Peoples’ Assembly in Solidarity with the Bolivarian Revolution and Against Imperialism from February 24-27 in the Venezuelan capital, Caracas. The historic gathering and the work of the ‘Che Guevara’ Internationalist Youth Brigade that preceded it marked a grand moment of international solidarity.
The Socialist Revolutionary Workers Party is born
“Equality, work and land” is the slogan of a new radical political party in South Africa that seeks to revolutionize the country’s politics. The Socialist Revolutionary Workers Party that was launched in April has presented a fresh vision for a country reeling under historic levels of inequality.
Those who stand for the people
Julian Assange and Ola Bini are a challenge to our collective conscience. Do we stand by as those who combat the might of the modern state are persecuted through absurd legal processes? Or do we follow their path and work to empower the citizen, especially in the digital realm?
Because dissent is a human right
The brutal and violent persecution of social leaders and human rights defenders in Colombia, the Philippines, and India has continued without respite. In spite of this, the brave movements and leaders continue with their struggles for a better world, demanding that the state guarantee their rights to life and dignity.
Resistance is shared too
The world’s largest taxi company does not own a car. That’s modern capitalism for you. In the face of new forms of exploitation aka the gig economy, the working class has devised new forms of resistance too in battles that will be of great significance in the years to come.
Without feminism, there is no socialism
Feminist movements across the world have been at the center of some of the most radical and important organizing and theorizing in recent times. Far from focusing merely on rights for cis-heterosexual white upper class women, today we see a focus on feminism that takes up a central role in the class struggle. Today, feminism fights for all marginalized identities, for transgender people, gender diverse people, Indigenous people, disabled people, Afro-descendant and Black people, resisting the advance of the neoliberal capitalist extractivist model from the territories and from the neighborhoods.
