Sunday 5 April 2020

HOUSMANS NEWSLETTER – APRIL 2020


housmanshead 10mm wide
HOUSMANS NEWSLETTER – APRIL 2020
NEWS
1. Update from Housmans

ARTICLES OF INTEREST
2. The Pandemic, the Working Class and the Left by Andrew Burgin
3. Freedom News:
 COVID-19 UK Mutual Aid groups: a list
4. Beautiful Trouble's irreverent guide to activism in the time of pandemic. 7 things to do instead of hoarding toilet paper
5. Coronavirus: Workers demand construction sites are shut down – report from Reel News6. International Peace Bureau Petition: Invest in Healthcare Instead of Militarisation
7. Corporate Watch: Corona Capitalism: Some Of The Companies Cashing In On The Crisis

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NEWS 

1. Update from Housmans

Hello there, sincerely hope this newsletter is finding you as well as can be.

Much has been happening here behind the scenes at Housmans as we've been trying to adapt to the changing situation. Plans made one week became irrelevant the week after, but I think things are settling down now, not least because we can't do all that much!

We had planned to keep some mail order going, but in solidarity with warehouse and delivery workers we've suspended that plan for now.  You can still support Housmans by creating a wishlist on our website – there'll be more news on that in a following newsletter. We're still looking to increase the number of books on our online shop, and will be running a competition once it's a bit better stocked.

As you no doubt know by now, Housmans is closed, and all events are cancelled for the forseeable. This has had to include our 60th anniversary of Peace House campaigning conference Our Power Is Real, and also the London Radical Bookfair 2020. Both of those events will hopefully still go ahead in 2021.

The decentralised Anarchist Festival scheduled for May, which we help organise, is also being postponed. The current plan is to possibly have that alongside the Anarchist Bookfair in October 2020, though possibly it too will have to wait till May 2021 - we shall see.

In the meantime we'll be keeping in touch as best we can, especially via our social media accounts.
Sending much love from everyone involved in the bookshop.

ARTICLES OF INTEREST
In place of our usual events listings, here are some links to a selection of recommended articles relating to the current crisis from a range of comrades:

2. The Pandemic, the Working Class and the Left by Andrew Burgin

Andrew Burgin looks at the revolutionary potential of the crisis and asks What Next?, as published on the Public Reading Rooms website:
https://prruk.org/the-pandemic-the-working-class-and-the-left/
3. Freedom News: COVID-19 UK Mutual Aid groups: a list
A number of mutual aid groups have started forming across the country.  The groups aim at providing community support to those who are more at risk from the virus: be it help with running errands or cooking. Find the nearest one to you here:
https://freedomnews.org.uk/covid-19-uk-mutual-aid-groups-a-list/

4. Beautiful Trouble's irreverent guide to activism in the time of pandemic. 7 things to do instead of hoarding toilet paper

A roundup of the most creative and effective social movement responses to COVID-19, filtered through seven of the most relevant tools from the Beautiful Trouble toolbox, with links to resources compiled especially for this moment:https://wagingnonviolence.org/2020/03/beautiful-trouble-guide-activism-coronavirus/
5. Coronavirus: Workers demand construction sites are shut down – report from Reel News

Reel News have been inundated with messages from construction workers all over the UK, demanding their sites are shut down during the coronavirus crisis. Anyone who's worked on a building site knows that social distancing is impossible due to the nature of the work -and this is being exarcerbated by further unsafe and dangerous practises.

Now sites are being forced to shut down through action inside and outside sites. Here's a round up of some of the stuff that's been happening; follow @ShutThesites on Twitter and Reel News on Facebook or Twitter (@ReelNewsLondon) to keep up to date and get involved.
https://reelnews.co.uk/2020/04/02/all-reelnews-campaigns/workplace-struggles/construction-blacklisting/coronavirus-workers-demand-construction-sites-are-shut-down/
6. International Peace Bureau Petition: Invest in Healthcare Instead of Militarisation

We, the signatories, call on the world leaders meeting at the General Assembly of the United Nations, to dramatically reduce military spending in favor of healthcare and all social and environmental needs. Sign and share here:
http://www.ipb.org/news/petition-invest-in-healthcare-instead-of-militarization/
7. Corporate Watch: 'Corona Capitalism: Some Of The Companies Cashing In On The Crisis'

How are corporations and capitalism responding to the corona crisis? How have they contributed to it? How are they affected by it? And how are people supporting each other and fighting for a different future as it continues? Excellent analysis from Corporate Watch.

Understanding CoronaCapitalism:
https://corporatewatch.org/understanding-coronacapitalism/

Some of the companies cashing in Part 1:
https://corporatewatch.org/corona-capitalism-some-of-the-companies-cashing-in-on-the-crisis-from-bezos-to-big-pharma/

Some of the companies cashing in Part 2:
https://corporatewatch.org/coronacapitalism-companies-cashing-in-part-2-airline-bailouts-travelodge-blackstone-goldman-sachs-wren-kitchens/
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5 Caledonian Road,
London N1 9DX
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