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
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Riots, class politics and democracy: all is not as it seems
ANDREW MURRAY reviews studies on the motivations of last August's rioters and dwindling support for 'democracy' in its modern Western incarnation
Fascist goons throw objects towards police officer at the Holiday Inn Express in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, August 4, 2024
ANGUS REID explains the significance of Cuba’s egalitarian in letter and spirit Family Code and the pertinent lessons it holds for democracies anywhere in the world
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NICK WRIGHT considers how the isolation of Israel and a new film on the controversial Italian communist leader are creating new reference points for Italy’s left
CARLOS MARTINEZ says Cuba’s achievements in the face of a criminal blockade are startling, but the island’s future if the United States succeeds in crushing it looks bleak
AMNON BROWNFIELD STEIN reports that far-right MPs who mobbed the event organised by Hadash may have helped raise awareness of the brutality of the Israeli right
CLASS politics. Easy to invoke, sometimes challenging to apply.
No fewer than four separate opinion surveys in the last fortnight have brought this home.
The first, the work of the Children’s Commissioner, found that working-class youth involved in last summer’s anti-migrant riots were largely animated not by racism but by hatred of the police and frustration at lack of opportunities.
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