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S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike Assassinated (1959)

Sat Sep 26, 1959

On this day in 1959, social reformer and founder of the Sri Lankan Freedom Party S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike was assassinated by a Buddhist monk. After his death, his widow Sirima became the world's first female Prime Minister.

Solomon West Ridgeway Dias Bandaranaike (1899 - 1959), commonly referred to by his initials as S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike, was the fourth Prime Minister of the Dominion of Ceylon (now Sri Lanka), founder of the left-wing and Sinhalese nationalist Sri Lankan Freedom Party, and social reformer.

Bandaranaike's administration implemented left-wing reforms in Ceylon, increasing wages, nationalizing public transport, fighting caste-based discrimination, and making May Day a national holiday. His government also removed British air bases from the country and established relations with the People's Republic of China and the Soviet Union.

On September 25th, 1959, Bandaranaike was fatally shot by a Buddhist monk, who avoided being checked for weapons by posing as a member of the clergy. He died from his wounds the next day, and was succeeded in power by his widow Sirima Bandaranaike, who became the world's first female Prime Minister.

"Today, we are living in one of the most important periods of human history, at a period when a great world civilisation is crumbling and we are faced with the task of building a new civilisation to take its place.

I generally accept the principle of the dialectic of a thesis, and antithesis out of which there would emerge a synthesis. There again, this is not the whole truth for there may be more than one antithesis to any given thesis, and therefore, the possibility of more than one synthesis would arise: the discovery of the correct synthesis is the problem that faces us all today."

• S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike

• Date: 1959-09-26
• Learn More: en.wikipedia.org, www.swrdbandaranaike.lk.
• Tags: #Assassinations.
• Source: www.apeoplescalendar.org

Athens General Strike (2012)

Wed Sep 26, 2012

Image: People gather in front of the Greek Parliament building, unknown year [libcom.org]

On this day in 2012, 100k-200k protesters took to the streets in Athens, Greece, as workers carried out a 24-hour general strike to protest against the policy of austerity. At the time, unemployment was ~25% and minimum wage cut by 22%.

At the time, the conservative coalition in government was calling for a $15 billion cut to pensions and salaries. Official unemployment in the country was around 25% and the minimum wage had been cut by 22% that year. Those Greeks still working would labor six days a week under the new plan.

When some protesters hurled molotov cocktails at the finance ministry and parliament, police responded with tear gas. The strike was called by the country's two biggest unions, which together represented half of the workforce. The general strike was just one of several that had taken place in Greece since 2010.

• Date: 2012-09-26
• Learn More: labornotes.org, libcom.org, www.theguardian.com, en.wikipedia.org.
• Tags: #Labor, #General Strikes, #Protests.
• Source: www.apeoplescalendar.org

Gabriel Prosser Captured (1800)

Thu Sep 25, 1800

Image: **

Gabriel Prosser (1775 - 1800) was the leader of an unsuccessful slave revolt in Richmond, captured on this day in 1800. Prosser planned to kill local whites, excepting Quakers, Methodists, and the French, and establish a "Kingdom of Virginia".

Little is known of Prosser's life before the revolt. Gabriel's two brothers, Solomon and Martin, and his wife, Nanny, were all enslaved by Thomas Prosser. All of them participated in the insurrection.

At the time of the uprising, Gabriel Prosser was twenty-four years old, six feet two inches, literate, and a blacksmith by trade. He was described by a contemporary as "a fellow of courage and intellect above his rank in life."

With the help of other enslaved people, Prosser devised a plan to seize control of Richmond by killing off the white population (excepting the Methodists, Quakers, and Frenchmen) and establishing a Kingdom of Virginia with himself as monarch.

Prosser was betrayed twice - first by others enslaved by Thomas Prosser who told him about the plan, and then by slaves in Norfolk, who turned a fleeing Prosser in to the authorities for a bounty.

On September 25th, 1800, Prosser was captured. He was executed along with two of his brothers and 23 other enslaved people a few weeks later, on October 6th.

• Date: 1800-09-25
• Learn More: www.blackpast.org, en.wikipedia.org.
• Source: www.apeoplescalendar.org

Mozambique War for Independence (1964)

Fri Sep 25, 1964

On this day in 1964, the Mozambican Liberation Front (FRELIMO) launched a war against their Portuguese colonizers, winning independence after a decade of fighting. Communist revolutionary Samora Machel served the country's first President.

Ideologically Marxist-Leninist, FRELIMO was able to expel the Portuguese from significant regions of the colony. The Portuguese military, largely ineffectual in combat against guerrilla tactics, responded with extreme suppression of suspected leftists and FRELIMO-sympathizers among the native citizenry.

In April of 1974, a military junta seized power in Portugal in a coup known as the "Carnation Revolution". In the following months, FRELIMO was able to negotiate a ceasefire with the new government, ending the war and officially winning their independence.

"FRELIMO TODAY SOLEMNLY PROCLAIMS THE GENERAL ARMED INSURRECTION OF THE MOZAMBICAN PEOPLE AGAINST PORTUGUESE COLONIALISM FOR THE ATTAINMENT OF THE COMPLETE INDEPENDENCE OF MOZAMBIQUE. Our fight must not cease before the total liquidation of Portuguese colonialism..."

- FRELIMO, September 25th, 1964

• Date: 1964-09-25
• Learn More: www.marxists.org, en.wikipedia.org, projects.kora.matrix.msu.edu, www.britannica.com, www.marxists.org.
• Tags: #Marxism, #Colonialism, #Independence.
• Source: www.apeoplescalendar.org

Alice S. Rossi (1922 - 2009)

Sun Sep 24, 1922

Alice S. Rossi, born on this day in 1922, was a pioneering feminist and sociologist who co-founded the "National Organization of Women" (NOW).

One of Rossi's most influential articles was "Equality Between the Sexes: An Immodest Proposal", first presented as a talk in 1963. In the piece, Professor Rossi argued that for most women motherhood had become a full-time occupation, a state of affairs that hurt not only women but also the larger society in which they lived. For the well-being of both the women and the culture, she argued, parity of the sexes is essential.

The year "Equality Between the Sexes" was published coincided with the publication of "The Feminine Mystique" by Betty Friedan, a fellow feminist author and activist. Professor Rossi's argument was considered subversive at the time, and in later interviews she recalled being called a monster, an unnatural woman, and an unfit mother.

In 1966, Rossi, along with Betty Friedan and others, founded the National Organization for Women (NOW).

"Demands for equality for women are threats to men's self-esteem and sense of sexual turf."

- Alice S. Rossi

• Date: 1922-09-24
• Learn More: en.wikipedia.org, www.nytimes.com.
• Tags: #Birthdays.
• Source: www.apeoplescalendar.org

Anti-Water Charges Strike (1994)

Sat Sep 24, 1994

On this day in 1994, in opposition to water bill increases, working class Irish activists began a campaign of resistance, refusing to pay water bills and engaging in direct action to prevent peoples' water supplies from being shut off.

To facilitate this campaign, activists formed the Federation of Dublin Anti-Water Charges Campaigns (FDAWCC).

A protest march five hundred strong took place in the city center in November, and, over the course of late 1994/early 1995. nearly every house in Fingal and South Dublin had received a leaflet from the campaign.

In response to the water bill strike, the city declared that, if people didn't pay their outstanding bills within a certain number of days, they would begin cutting off peoples' water supply. In response, the community followed and spied on water inspectors in order to prevent them from shutting off the water supply to various homes.

Legal action escalated, and some residents were called into court over unpaid water charges. Despite this, very few people were actually issued disconnections, and more than 50% of houses were not paying their water bills. Finally, on December 19th, 1996 the Minister for the Environment announced that the water charge would be done away with.

• Date: 1994-09-24
• Learn More: libcom.org, en.wikipedia.org.
• Source: www.apeoplescalendar.org

Grito de Lares (1868)

Wed Sep 23, 1868

Image: An artistic depiction of the Grito de Lares by Leonardo Rivera

On this day in 1868, the first major revolt against Spanish rule in Puerto Rico, known as the "Grito de Lares" (Cry of Lares), began when several hundred rebels looted stores, seized City Hall, and imprisoned Spanish-born merchants.

The revolutionary uprising had been planned months in advance by a group known as the "Revolutionary Committee of Puerto Rico", led by Dr. Ramón Emeterio Betances and Segundo Ruiz Belvis. The Committee issued several widely circulated "Proclamas", statements attacking the exploitation of the Puerto Ricans by the Spanish and calling for an anti-colonial insurrection.

On September 23rd, 1868, the Grito de Lares began when several hundred rebels arrived at the town of Lares, looting stores, seizing City Hall, imprisoning Spanish-born merchants, and flying the revolutionary flag of Lares at the town's church. The Republic of Puerto Rico was proclaimed and revolutionaries offered freedom to any enslaved people who joined them.

The insurrection ended the next day when the Puerto Rican militia, significantly better armed than the rebels, put down the rebellion by force. Although all revolutionaries were initially sentenced to death by a military court, political pressure led the Spanish President to declare a general amnesty and free all prisoners, although the leaders of the uprising were still exiled.

• Date: 1868-09-23
• Learn More: www.marxists.org, en.wikipedia.org, www.loc.gov.
• Source: www.apeoplescalendar.org

George Jackson (1941 - 1971)

Tue Sep 23, 1941

George Jackson, born on this day in 1941, was the revolutionary author of "Soledad Brother: The Prison Letters of George Jackson" and co-founder of the Marxist-Leninist Black Guerilla Family.

In 1970, Jackson was charged, along with two other Soledad Brothers, with the murder of prison guard John Vincent Mills in the aftermath of a prison fight. The same year, he published "Soledad Brother: The Prison Letters of George Jackson", a combination of autobiography and manifesto addressed to a black American audience. The book became a bestseller and earned Jackson personal fame.

Jackson was killed during an attempted prison escape on August 21st, 1971. Quoting communist revolutionary Ho Chi Minh, Jackson freed twenty-six prisoners and took hostages at gunpoint. Jackson and five other men were killed.

Fay Stender, George Jackson's former lawyer, was shot and paralyzed for her alleged betrayal of Jackson by Black Guerilla Family member Edward Glenn Brooks. Brooks entered her home, tied up her family, and forced Stender to say "I, Fay Stender, admit I betrayed George Jackson and the prison movement when they needed me most" before shooting her several times. Left paralyzed and in chronic pain, Stender testified against Brooks and committed suicide a year later.

"Settle your quarrels, come together, understand the reality of our situation, understand that fascism is already here, that people are already dying who could be saved, that generations more will live poor butchered half-lives if you fail to act. Do what must be done, discover your humanity and your love in revolution."

- George Jackson

• Date: 1941-09-23
• Learn More: en.wikipedia.org, www.sfgate.com, files.libcom.org, redyouthnwa.files.wordpress.com.
• Tags: #Marxism, #Birthdays.
• Source: www.apeoplescalendar.org

Police Storm Council Houses (1960)

Thu Sep 22, 1960

Image: A crowd defends Kennistoun House 1960

On this day in 1960, bailiffs supported by about 800 police attacked both Silverdale and Kennistoun House in St Prancas, London in an effort to evict organized tenants who had been on a rent strike since January 4th.

The evening prior to the attack, a demonstration of about 500 tenants took place outside the St Pancras Town Hall, where a housing committee was being held, despite the police having banned demonstrations there. Police arrested eleven people, and there were reports of young children being charged at by mounted officers.

The attack on September 22nd began early the next day, at five in the morning. At Kennistoun House, the pickets put up a two-hour defense against the bailiffs and the police, pouring oil on them as they tried to get up the stairs, to the entrance to Don Cook's (one of the organizers) flat on the top floor, however they were not successful in stopping his or fellow organizer Arthur Rowe's evictions that day.

• Date: 1960-09-22
• Learn More: libcom.org, www.worldsocialism.org.
• Tags: #Tenant.
• Source: www.apeoplescalendar.org

"Winter of Discontent" Begins (1978)

Fri Sep 22, 1978

Image: A crowd of strikers in the Winter of Discontent

On this day in 1978, one of the first strikes of the British "Winter of Discontent" began when 15,000 Ford workers, mostly from the Transport and General Workers Union (TGWU), began an unofficial strike.

The Winter of Discontent took place during 1978-79 in the United Kingdom, characterized by widespread strikes from both private and public sector trade unions. Some of these industrial disputes caused great public inconvenience, exacerbated by the coldest winter in 16 years in which severe storms isolated many remote areas of the country.

On September 22nd, 1978, one of the first strikes of the "Winter of Discontent" began when 15,000 Ford workers, mostly from the Transport and General Workers Union (TGWU), began an unofficial strike.

The number of participants later grew to 57,000. As the months progressed, workers from multiple industries went on strike, including lorry drivers, garbage collectors, and gravediggers. It was the largest UK labor stoppage since 1926.

The Winter was a disaster for the incumbent Labour Party. The magazine Socialist Worker quoted one council worker as saying "We had to strike because Labour betrayed us".

The Labour Party was swept out of power in the 1979 election, leading to the premiership of Margaret Thatcher.

• Date: 1978-09-22
• Learn More: socialistworker.co.uk, en.wikipedia.org, libcom.org.
• Tags: #Labor.
• Source: www.apeoplescalendar.org

Teresa Rebull (1919 - 2015)

Sun Sep 21, 1919

Teresa Soler i Pi, better known by her stage name, "Teresa Rebull", was a Marxist, feminist, and singer-songwriter born on this day in 1919.

She joined the Partido Obrero de Unificación Marxista (POUM) in 1936 and worked as a volunteer nurse in the premises of her party during the Spanish Civil War.

After Francisco Franco came into power, Rebull fled to France, where she continued her work with POUM and had a career as a musician.

• Date: 1919-09-21
• Learn More: libcom.org, translate.google.com.
• Tags: #Marxism, #Birthdays.
• Source: www.apeoplescalendar.org

Lev Chernyi Assassinated (1921)

Wed Sep 21, 1921

Lev Chernyi was a Russian individualist anarchist theorist, poet, and leading figure of anti-Bolshevik rebellions who was executed without trial on this day in 1921. He had been detained after anarchists bombed Bolshevik headquarters in 1919.

Chernyi advocated a Nietzschean overthrow of the values of bourgeois Russian society and rejected the voluntary communes of anarcho-communist Peter Kropotkin as a threat to the freedom of the individual.

After he published anarchist literature, Chernyi was imprisoned in Siberia under the Russian Czarist regime for revolutionary activities. In 1917, Chernyi was released from prison by the Imperial Russian regime and became a leading anarchist figure in Russia.

Chernyi strongly denounced the Bolshevik government and joined the underground anarchist resistance movements against it. On September 25th, 1919, the "Underground Anarchists" bombed the headquarters of the Moscow Committee of the Communist Party during a plenary meeting, causing 67 casualties.

Following this bombing, a wave of repression against the anarchist movement took place. Chernyi was among those detained, charged with counterfeiting, although, according to anarchist historian Paul Avrich, there is no evidence he personally played a role in the bombing.

On September 21st, 1921, the Cheka executed Lev Chernyi without trial.

• Date: 1921-09-21
• Learn More: en.wikipedia.org, web.archive.org, theanarchistlibrary.org, theanarchistlibrary.org.
• Tags: #Communism, #Assassinations, #Anarchism, #Terrorism.
• Source: www.apeoplescalendar.org