Latest news
Life after sexual assault
Fightback stands for liberation for women and gender minorities, including appropriate support for survivors of sexual assault. This piece on one survivor’s experience of sexual violence, and recovery, was submitted to us by Hannah Beatie. When FRIEND asked me why I was giving away all of my stuff, I replied that I needed a change. Actually, […]
Burning Country: Syrians in Revolution and War – A clear perspective shining through the muck
Book title: Burning Country: Syrians in Revolution and Civil War Authors: Robin Yassin-Kassab, Leila Al-Shami Publisher: Pluto Press Released: 2016 Review by: Ian Anderson To myself and others in ‘the West’, Syria’s internal crisis has often appeared a confusing mess with no sides worth taking. Competing bombs (Assad bombs, US bombs, Russian bombs) and competing sects (Alawi, Sunni, […]
The Workplace
Exclusive: Redundancies at Mystery Morrison’s latest company
Fightback previously reported on redundancies at council-funded Wellington company CallActive, managed by John Morrison. This week, Morrison’s new company Plus64 Connect is reportedly undergoing a new series of redundancies. This mass shedding of staff particularly relates to TrustPower contracts. Plus64Connect hasn’t folded, however with limited contracts this is still a risk. TrustPower is a NZ-owned […]
Mystery Morrison: The face of capitalist ‘local ownership’
By Ian Anderson (Fightback Whanganui-a-Tara/Wellington) Meet John Morrison, also known as ‘Mystery Morrison.’ With his moustache, strong eyebrows, and sports background, Morrison has the bona fides of a Pākehā, Kiwi bloke. He’s the sort of guy you could have a beer with, assuming you’re also the sort of person he would have a beer with […]
ANZ workers strike
ANZ workers across Aotearoa/NZ (members of FIRST Union) went on strike today, for secure hours and better wages. ANZ indebts customers and undermines staff, while CEO David Hisco makes over $2000/hr. With more attacks on unions, workers and beneficiaries on the way, collective action like this is exactly what we need. Kia kaha! See also Employment relations bill […]
International
Teresia Teaiwa on refugee rights in the Pacific: “Mana whenua leads to mana tangata”
Teresia Teaiwa is a poet and Pacific Studies academic in Aotearoa / New Zealand. Fightback previously interviewed Teresia here. Ian Anderson interviews Teresia on recent media coverage of Australia’s offshore detention centres. You have said that Australian refugee centres in Manus and Nauru are exploiting the desperation of those communities, alongside the widely-reported abuse of […]
Against campism: What makes some leftists support Putin?
By Daphne Lawless, Fightback Tāmaki Makarau At the time of writing, Russian forces are intervening in the civil wars in Ukraine and Syria; supporting the rebellions in the eastern provinces in the first case, and dropping bombs in support of the government of Bashar al-Assad in the second. While he may have been a general […]
Environment
Change Everything: “We can no longer act like each of our struggles are single causes” (video + text)
Text of a speech originally delivered by Kassie Hartendorp at Oil Free Wellington‘s Change Everything flotilla & rally, December 13th 2015. Tēnā koutou, talofa lava, malo e leilei, kia orana, bula vinaka, aloha! Tēnā koutou ki te whenua, ki te moana, ki te hunga mate, ki te tipuna. Ko Ngāti Raukawa te iwi, nō Te […]
Film Review: This Changes Everything
Submitted to Fightback by Maria Ramos. Although the seriousness of global warming and climate change has been made clear through the work of scientists and environmental advocates, it’s sometimes difficult to present this message in a way that resonates with the general public. As long as modern practices of pollution and resource extraction continue unchecked, […]
Culture
Prince and Politics in Reagan’s America
Originally published by redwedgemagazine. Jordy Cummings is a critic, labor activist and PhD candidate at York University in Toronto. In the face of profound social, political and economic tragedy, it has often been the case that popular musicians, out of a sense of solidarity, put out a song to capture the moment and inspire the movement. It […]
Book Review: The FIRE Economy (Jane Kelsey)
By Ian Anderson, Fightback (Aotearoa / New Zealand). Professor Jane Kelsey has made headlines in recent months combating the Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPPA), a secretive trade agreement that seeks to constitutionally embed neoliberalism. Her latest book, The FIRE Economy: New Zealand’s Reckoning, is a welcome explanation of the political-economic history that has led us […]
Society
No Hashtag – Why campaigning needs to look more like a movement than marketing.
Article by Ben Peterson, originally published on his personal blog leftwin. If you speak to some activists, they’ll tell you that it’s a time of change. From the union office to the rally in the street, a new way of doing things is on the rise. The hard times for the left are coming to […]
Moves to gut public and Maori broadcasting
Ian Anderson (Fightback/MANA Poneke). Paora Maxwell’s tenure as Maori TV CEO has been controversial. In August 2013, staff at Maori TV circulated a petition against Maxwell’s appointment by the Nats. More recently, Maxwell announced a restructuring process, and high-profile figures including Carol Hirschfeld left Maori TV. Now, plans to outsource TVNZ’s Maori and Pacific programming […]
Mass surveillance and sexual violence: The difference between Snowden and Assange
Last night’s ‘Moment of Truth’ event in Auckland, called together by Internet Party founder Kim Dotcom, revealed the extent of mass surveillance in Aotearoa/NZ. Our government, in complicity with a transnational regime headed by the US, collects extensive personal data through information technology. As seen in the 2007 Urewera Raids, governments will use this information […]
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