Fownhope’s Heart of Oak Society traces its roots to the age of friendly societies, when communities provided their own safety net. Its anniversary celebrations reveal a tradition still very much alive, says MARK SEDDON
So, then… following on from my theme of a fortnight ago regarding the parlous state of the state’s self-policing. It would appear this week that yet again justice — as with the legendarily partisan appraisal of pulchritude — is very much in the eye of the beholder.
First off we were patronisingly informed that the Home Office, in its beneficence, has decided that there is about as much chance of us getting an independent investigation into the savage assault on pickets by police (mounted or otherwise) at the Orgreave coking plant during the ’84-85 miners’ strike, as there is of finding a working pit in this country.
Orgreave was for many an epochal moment, when the full fury and savagery of the state against its own citizens was on full display.
JONATHAN TAYLOR appreciates how, for a black British musician, to walk onstage can be a rebellious act
The corporate media have been quick to point the finger over the murder of a Nicaraguan opposition figure, but where is the actual evidence, ask KELLY NELSON and ROGER D HARRIS
The Home Secretary’s recent letter suggests the Labour government may finally deliver on its nine-year manifesto commitment, writes KATE FLANNERY, but we must move quickly: as recently as 2024 Northumbria police destroyed miners’ strike documents


