The
people's
flag
H, PALA IT IS NOT often that you come across a documentary series that Is both informative and moving T can promise anyone who rakes the titte to watch this strong, suggestive lustory of rwentieth century British working class politics a real treal.
Including interviews with rank and lle militants, the series does not pull its punches. Indeed it atrompts to suggest that the history nt the British working class includes not unly the struggle against the ruling class but also against the leaderships of the working class organisations; that the clays collaborationist policies ul the labour and trade union leaderships opened the way for the Torics and thar capitalisin as an coonomic system has a logie of its own and thar those who attempt to manage it always end up having to abide by it laws.
Such conclusions are nothing new to socialists, of course, but the important thing about this series is that there is sufficient archive material included to substantiate and give depth to such a perspective.
The first programme deat with the great betrayal of 1914 and the momentous events during and immediately after the Russian revolution: Others have examined the rise of fascism, the sectarian politics of third period' salinism and the elects that having the Soviet Union as a close ally had on the policies persued by the Communist Party. If you have missed these don't despair! You can always ban
Lift
ON THE
DAILY WORKER by Wiliam Rust 2e
Top: women munitions workers - sufficient archive material is included in the series to give real depth to its perspectives contact Channel Fri for copies of rhe video tapes or borrow them from someone wise cough to have ignored the strictures regarding illegal copying
To come we have the politics of consensus during the post-war boom, the breathing space that led to the cstahlishment of the welfare state, Icading us into the
Tipp
Workers at Imperial Typewriters demonstrote fourth episode (who runs the country?) and the clashes that accompanied the end of the capitalist hoom Finally, we arrive in the present: mass unemployment, the miners strike. Thatcher's second term.
The programnes stress thar socialist politics should he about changing capiralism, not attemptung to run it more efficiently or cover over the
REVIEWS
DEMAN
IMPERIAL WORKERS cracks. Whether you agree with every pomt it makes or not, it is certainly worth making an effort to sec and coul well be utilised as a starting point for discussion and education about the history of the British working class
The People's Flag, Channel
Four, Mondays. 11.00pm
37 from October 26 for five weeks
phorographic collection to recapture four largely forgotten episodes of
UNCOVERING WOMEN'S ROLE IN
UNION STRUGGLES