COALITION OF RESISTANCE CONFERENCE RESOUNDING SUCCESS SAYS RUGBY'S DELEGATE

Roy Sandison attended the COR conference as a delegate on behalf of the Rugby Against The Cuts and pronounces the conference “a resounding success”

Roy says ““I was really pleased to represent my town at this conference. This inspiring conference that attracted 1300 people on a cold wintery day from around the country showed the determination of campaigners from local anti cuts groups as well as trade unionists – both local and national and sent a clear and determined message to the CONDEM government – cut our services and jobs to pay for the bankers at your peril.”

Fuller report below and video and pictures on COR website - http://www.coalitionofresistance.org.uk/

Coalition of Resistance Founding Conference

The Coalition of Resistance’s Founding Conference on Saturday 27 November saw the birth of a mass anti-cuts movement in Britain. Some 1300 people attended. Every plenary and workshop was packed, with people sitting on floors around the speakers or standing at the back or in the aisles.

The atmosphere was electric. Unity, anger, and resolve were key notes. Discussion raged about the implications of the cuts, how we organise to resist, and what sort of world we are fighting for.

The spirit of the student revolt pervaded the conference. The students, with their dynamism, spontaneity, and militancy, have shown us all that resistance is possible. The mood in the conference reflected the revolt on the streets and in the occupations.

The range of platform speakers displayed the breadth of the Coalition. The Labour Left was represented by Tony Benn, John McDonnell, and Jeremy Corbyn. For the Greens,Caroline Lucas sent a video message and Jean Lambert spoke from the platform. Headline trade-union speakers included Bob Crow (RMT), Len McCluskey (Unite), andMark Serwotka (PCS). Then there was entertainer Billy Bragg, film-maker Ken Loach, black activist Lee Jasper, pensions campaigner Dot Gibson, radical student leaderClare Solomon, Andrew Murray from STW, Kate Hudson from CND, Chris Bamberyfrom Right to Work and many more. Videos of all the speakers are being added to the site as they become available.

Dozens of others also spoke, either from platforms or in vibrant workshop discussions. In the workshop on organising against the cuts locally, nearly 35 speakers from anti-cuts groups around the country contributed. The feedback from participants, on the day and since, has been overwhelmingly positive, with activists returning to their campuses, workplaces, and localities fired up for the fight to come.

In the final plenary, Tony Benn was elected Honorary President of the Coalition of Resistance, and 122  people volunteered to serve on the National Council. The Council will meet at least four times a year, and at its first meeting it will elect a Steering Committee to administer the Coalition on a week-by-week basis.

The first meeting of the National Council will be on Saturday 15th January. Venue details and amendments to the Conference declaration will be sent out next week and a full list of National Council members posted on the website. Conference agreed that at least 50 per cent of the National Council would be women.

What next for the Coalition of Resistance?

• Demonstrate on 9 December

  Parliament votes on the tuition fee rises on Thursday 9 December. CoR is supporting the call for walkouts and a mass demonstration to Kettle the Con-Dems in Parliament. Assemble: 12 noon, University of London Union.
  Download poster…

• Build Student Assemblies

  The ULU-based London Student Assembly, with weekly meetings of a hundred-plus students from colleges across London, has become the democratic expression of the student revolt in the capital. This is a brilliant model. We need Student Assemblies in every major town, and a National Student Assembly early in the New Year.

• Occupy against the cuts

  Students are occupying 32 colleges against the cuts. CoR is supporting the wave of student occupations, and encouraging local anti-cuts groups to stage street protests and occupations of town halls when councils meet to impose cuts. The Con-Dems have no democratic mandate for the cuts. The direct democracy of direct action is a moral right.

• Build CoR groups

  Where anti-cuts groups already exist, get them to affiliate to CoR. Where they do not exist, set them up. And we need individual membership to raise money or we cannot function. See the Pay Pal button below or visit the Coalition of Resistance site.

• Prepare for February Week of Action

  CoR is calling for a week of meetings, protests, and direct action that will unite students, workers, and campaigners in localities across Britain. More details to follow – please check the site.

• Prepare for 26 March TUC Demonstration

  The aim should be to make this one of the biggest demonstrations ever seen, and the launch-pad for moving the resistance onto a new level.