Birmingham Marxist Society

Fancy channelling some artistry for the upcoming Strikes and the National Day of Action?

The Branch is holding a ‘Student and Staff Placard Making Session’ on Monday 30th January, 17:00-19:00, Room N327, Gisbert Kapp, Pritchard Road.

Materials provided or bring your own 🎨🖌

🚩THE MONARCHY - MORE THAN JUST A POWERLESS FIGUREHEAD?

The monarchy is a symbol of British culture. A cherished family, a memoir to feudalism. The royals are often described as just a tourist attraction and the queen, just a lovely old lady. But is this true? Are the royals purely a tourist attraction? Or are they a secret weapon that can be deployed to protect the bourgeoisie and Capitalism? Is the queen just a lovely old lady when she’s funnelled millions of taxpayer money into Prince Andrew’s legal case? It’s time to rid the world of this parasitic relic and pave the way for socialism. The royal family alone are estimated to be worth £92 billion. We say expropriate the royal family! Expropriate the bosses and bankers! Overthrow the bourgeoisie!

If you’re interested in learning more about the Marxist view of the royal and the skeleton’s in the royal family’s closet, come along to the Tolkien Room at 7pm, 17th May! All are welcome to attend, student or worker!

🚩CAN AUTOMATION SAVE CAPITALISM?

EVENT LINK: https://www.facebook.com/events/1667320226955344

Capitalism is in its deepest crisis in history, with the cost of living rising exponentially, a widening wealth gap and crisis of overproduction, warmongers with their fingers on big red buttons and corruption in every aspect of politics, the way forward is looking treacherous for not only the proletariat but the bourgeoisie too. As a result, the rich are in a total frenzy, trying their hardest to rescue their beloved Capitalism. Whispers of revolutionary discontent are appearing all across the globe from Sri Lanka, to Kazakhstan, to Sudan, and Myanmar. But is Automation Capitalism's saving grace?

This Tuesday, come to our talk in the UoB Tolkien Room of the Guild of Students at 7pm to find out if Automation can truly pull Capitalism out of crisis. All are welcome to attend, student or worker!

To celebrate the 30th anniversary issue of the Socialist Appeal we're offering up to 25% off digital annual subscriptions to the Socialist Appeal paper and In Defence of Marxism magazine. Don’t delay and subscribe today!

Paper - NOW £15
Magazine - NOW £9
Digital combo - NOW £22.50

Visit socialist.net/subscribe to get the best Marxist news, analysis and theory in Britain.

NOTE: This offer is available from 14 to 28 April.

🚩CHINESE CAPITALISM'S RISE AND CRISIS

The contradictions of Capitalism inherently lead to crisis after crisis. The Chinese Evergrande crisis is a prime example of this. However, this is not just contained to China but will affect the whole world. Especially the working class, who will face harsher living conditions and will struggle to get by, ultimately having to foot the bill for the mistakes of the Capitalists. But this struggle has already brought about mass protests, China saw a wave of people fighting for better conditions. Conditions that can't be achieved under Capitalism, the very nature of which causes these crises. Which is why a revolutionary leadership is so important in the fight for socialism. To have a party, based on Bolshevik methods, that can lead the masses through a successful revolution.

So if you're interested in Capitalism with Chinese Characteristics, come along to our talk on Tuesday to discuss the Evergrande Crisis and see what solutions we propose. All are welcome to attend, student or worker.

🚩NEW UNIONISM’S LESSONS FOR THE CLASS STRUGGLE TODAY!

EVENT LINK: https://fb.me/e/16AyWJRXL

As the advanced workers and radical layers of youth move away from Starmer’s Labour, the focus of class struggle shifts towards the industrial plain. Trade unions in the coming period stand to become the new catalyst of revolutionary activity, we’ve already seen consistent shifts to the left in traditionally right wing unions such as Unison and Unite. However to understand the potential of today’s unions and how to best intervene on the pickets and within the unions themselves, it’s important to examine their historical context, and how they were formed through the mass revolutionary struggle of workers in the 1880s as they fought against old bureaucratic union leaders focused on collaborating with the capitalist class and suppressing any genuine attempt at workers organisation and resistance!

Join the Birmingham Marxist Society for a discussion on Unionism, it’s history and what we can take from it! All are welcome to attend, student, or worker.

🚩SCANDALS, SPLITS & SLEAZE: TORIES IN CRISIS

EVENT LINK: https://www.facebook.com/events/1366638430438275

In December 2021, the viral video of Tory Party staffers laughing about breaking lockdown rules confirmed what most ordinary people already know by now: that this elitist, out-of-touch Tory government believes that there is one rule for them, and another for the rest of us.

The Tory Party has been thrown from pillar to post throughout Brexit and the pandemic. We must understand that the crisis in the Tory Party is a reflection of the crisis of the whole regime, the crisis of the capitalist system.

Join our society meeting on Tuesday on the crisis in the Tory Party to discuss how we can fight the Tories with socialist policies. All are welcome, Student or Worker.

🚩MEETING TO PLAN UPCOMING NUS WALKOUT AND STUDENT SOLIDARITY WITH UCU STRIKES

THIS EVENING (3RD FEBRUARY), 7PM, ARTS AND LAW BUILDING

Are you fed up with the treatment of students at university? After the past year of students being charged extortionate tuition and accommodation fees for zoom classes and being stuck inside, organising to fight back against marketised education and the exploitation of students us more essential than ever.

The organisers of the Yes Campaign to support the UCU strikes last year including Birmingham Marxist Society are planning for how to organise students for the upcoming NUS walkout and student solidarity for the next round of UCU strikes.

The National Union of Students (NUS) have declared a Student Walkout across universities and colleges on 2nd March as a demonstration of their frustration at the state of education. The main demand for the walkout is complete funding of higher and further education by the government. More info here: https://marxiststudent.com/support-the-nus-walkout-students-and-workers-unite-and-strike/

Similarly, the University and College Union (UCU) have organised another round of strikes for the end of February, demanding drastic change to the conditions University staff have to put up with, such as workload, equality, casualisation of contracts, pay and pensions. No action was taken as a result of the first round of strikes in November, forcing the UCU to go on strike again. The only way that Students and Staff can achieve their goals is through solidarity with one another. More info here: https://www.ucu.org.uk/article/11977/Universities-will-see-strike-action-next-month-unless-employers-meet-pension-and-pay-demands

Students should not have to put up with this treatment! Come this evening to organise the fight back!

UoB Marxist Society is back and raring to go for Semester 2!

Throughout this semester we have talks lined up on a wide range of topics, from the monarchy, to new unionism, to automation, to the question of reform or revolution, all discussing the sound theory of Scientific Socialism.

We are affiliated with Socialist Appeal, the British section of the IMT, an organisation with sections all over the world, from Venezuela, to Pakistan, from Belgium, to Russia!

If you’re a student at UoB or from the surrounding area and want to join the international fight for socialism, come along to one of our talks or DM us on Instagram to find out how you can get involved and learn about Marxism!

- Sincerely, Comrades of Birmingham

EVENT TOMMOROW!

THE EVENT WILL NOW BE ON ZOOM:

https://bham-ac-uk.zoom.us/j/84689968418

Meeting ID: 846 8996 8418

EVENT LINK: https://www.facebook.com/events/492622302052000

Join Birmingham Marxist Society to discuss the inner workings of a planned economy and how socialism would solve Capitalism's many problems. All are welcome to attend, student or worker.