Next week’s events: Marking WTO conference; Richard Murphy; William Blake & revolution; War on Want director John Hilary; Occupy Everywhere
December 9, 2011 Category: News, Press, Press releases, Statement, Upcoming Action, Working Groups 1 Comment 
- For full event listings, please visit: http://occupylsx.org/?page_id=176 (for events at St Paul’s and Finsbury Square), http://www.bankofideas.org.uk/events/ (for events at the Bank of Ideas)
- General Assemblies: 7pm every day at St Paul’s. Do check website for changes.
Monday 12 December
The Play of the Nation-State and the Play that Comes After it That isn’t Neo-Liberal
Where: OccupyLSX by St Paul’s
When: 3pm – 4pm Monday 12 December
Description: Talk given by Allen Abramson (Professor of Anthropology, UCL)
Stig Noise Sound System
Date/Time: 10pm Monday 12 December – 2am 13 Dec 2011
Location: Bank of Ideas
Details: Having been touring Europe for the past 2 months, Stig Noise have been simultaneusly detatched and witness to the Occupy movement. They have been to many occupied cities, such as Barcelona, Amsterdam and Hamburg, yet have been detatched from the movement on their home turf of Liverpool. with fresh memories of the european squat circuit, it would be an honour for us to visit one of the newest occupied spaces in britain. Expect trumpets, Mariachi noise pop and a pile of speakers. Self contained sound, no PA required!
Tuesday 13 December
Revolution and Creativity in William Blake
When: 3-4pm Tuesday 13 December
Where: OccupyLSX by St Paul’s
Description: Blake wrote ‘I must Create a System, or be enslav’d by another Mans’. This event looks at Orc, Blake’s figure of Revolution, and how creativity is inextricably bound up with personal and social change. An artist’s vision can ignite – and indeed change – the world! The talk takes the form of a conversation between the poet Jeremy Reed, author of over 40 books, and Tim Heath, the Chair of the Blake Society. We believe that Tent City University would be the ideal place for this conversation on revolution, creativity and imagination, all of them pillars behind William Blake’s art, poetry and vision. Adriana Diaz-Enciso
Occupy community groups and public services: a discussion to find a new space for community and voluntary action. (Room 1.05)
Date/Time: 2-4pm 13 Tuesday December
Location: Bank of Ideas
Details: An assembly meeting organised by the National Coalition for Independent Action (NCIA – www.independentaction.net). NCIA is a network of voluntary and community sector workers and activists concerned about threats to voluntary action from privatisation, government control, cuts and business practices in charities. All welcome to listen to some of our members talk about their experiences and to join in open discussion about how to defend our unique, ungoverned space.
Wednesday 14 December
The Prostitute State: How political lobbying screws the 99% – Donnachadh McCarthy
When: 4-5pm Wednesday 14 December
Where: OccupyLSX by St Paul’s
Description: “No-matter who we vote for we seem to get the same government. One reason for this is how the 1% buy our politics. Donnachadh McCarthy was on the national board of the Liberal Democrats for 7 years and Deputy Chair of the Liberal Democrats for 2 years. He was driven out of the party in 2004 for whistle blowing on corrupt political lobbying by Lib Dem Peers. In this talk he lays out in detail how the 1% control our political systems, including his first hand experiences at the top of one of Britain’s three main political parties, of corrupt political lobbying in almost every aspect of the party system.”
Richard Murphy on The Courageous State
Date/Time: 4pm – 5.30pm Wednesday 14th December
Location: Bank of Ideas
Details: Richard Murphy is an anti-poverty campaigner and tax expert who writes about economics, accounting, tax policy, tax havens and more. His recent book The Courageous State, argues that neoliberalism has bred weak governments led by weak politicians who believe implicitly in the supremacy of the market. It has created a cowardly state: a state that sees responsibility and then runs away from it. Worse, the weak politicians who run our cowardly state want power solely to ensure that as much tax revenue as possible is used to benefit the private sector that they idolise. But neoliberal theory is wrong – it has created the crises we’re suffering. And it has no solution to them. The Courageous State argues powerfully for a new economic model. That model is based on a very different idea of what the role of the state is. The Courageous State is driven by its desire to work on behalf of the people of this country. And that means a Courageous State is populated by politicians who believe in government and in the power of the office they hold. They believe that office exists for the sake of the public good. They know what that public good is. They think it is their job to help each and every person in their country to achieve their potential, sustainably, in a strong mixed economy. And they believe they can command the resources to fulfil this task – whether through tax or other means. A Courageous State offers hope; our existing, cowardly, state does not. Which is why building a Courageous State is essential if we want to both solve our current problems and build a sustainable future.
Richard will also be talking about unitary taxation – an approach to dealing with tax havens at Tent City University at 6pm.
Thursday 15 December
Occupy Everywhere
When: All day
Where: Various TBC
Details: On December 15, it will be two months since the start of Occupy London. We started by building communities in our capital city. Now it’s time to occupy everywhere. Occupy London is joining with occupations across the UK and Ireland, and now around the world, to call for a National Day of Non-Violent Creative Direct Action. Occupy everywhere, the workplaces, banks, universities and the streets. http://occupylsx.org/?p=1812
PROUT – alternative economic model – Kalyana McKenzie
When: 6-7pm Thursday 15 December
Where: OccupyLSX by St Paul’s
Description: PROUT – alternative economic model – Progressive Utilisation Theory. Discuss how we can have a fairer economic system for everyone, the environment, the animals and the planet.
Boycott a Bank
Date/Time: Thursday 15th December 2011, 11:00 AM – 12:00 PM
Location: Bank of Ideas
Details: The Occupy movement has many ‘moral’ supporters – who are unlikely to ‘Occupy’ but could be persuaded to get behind a tangible campaign which registers their support and requires some commitment – and impacts upon the institutions that invoked people’s anger in the first place. Tjhis discussion will look at a boycott of one (to begin with) high street bank, working with the various Occupy movements to select a bank and encourage people to move whatever product they have with that bank elsewhere. Ideally we’d select a suggested ‘ethical’ home bank for everybody to move their money to. People with mortgages with our selected bank for boycott can wait until the end of their period to move their account – but post their intention to move (whatever offer is made). In terms of the people who work at the bank we select for boycott (opposition media and interests would obviously use the point that many people would lose their jobs as a result) – we would have to insist that the bank we re-housed our money in were ready to accept applications for all those people – they would have the new money after all. Where would we start? Up for discussion – many of the banks deserve our disinterest. (The logical extension becomes a boycott of a retailer who has been evading their taxes – we pick one, get people behind the boycott and force a rethink).
Friday 16 December
John Hilary – Free Trade and resistance
When: 5.50 – 7pm Friday 16 December
Where: OccupyLSX by St Paul’s
Description: A talk by the executive director of War on Want
World Trade Organisation panel discussion
Date/Time: 5.30 – 8.30pm Friday 16 December 2011
Location: Bank of Ideas
Details: Big panel debate with activists and academics about the WTO, arranged by Tent City University. From the General Agreement to Talk and Talk to Monty Python’s dead parrot – should the World Trade Organisation be scrapped? The eighth ministerial of the World Trade Organisation takes place in Geneva from the 15th-18th December. The Doha round of negotiations was supposed to be a round to make sure global trade worked in everybody’s interests. With no sign of a deal on the table, the co-chair of the High-Level Expert Group on Trade earlier this year likened the negotiations to Monty Python’s dead parrot (the pet shop owner insists it is ‘just sleeping’). Yet WTO Director General Pascal Lamy continues to insist that the WTO is ‘an institution that delivers’, helping to avoid protectionism and a slide into an even worse global recession. Occupy London, the Trade Justice Movement, War On Want, the Fairtrade Foundation and Traidcraft invite you to discuss what role, if any, there is for the WTO in the 21st century. John Hilary of War On Want will make the case for scrapping the WTO and looking to new, genuinely democratic multilateral trade institutions. Rebecca Varghese-Buccholz of Traidcraft (tbc) will argue that it is time developed countries nipped cotton subsidies in the bud. Aurelie Walker of the Fairtrade Foundation will look at how multilateral trade impacts on small producers.
Martin Wolf of the Financial Times will contribute, as will Professor Adrian Wood from the University of Oxford Ruth Bergan of the Trade Justice Movement will chair.
Saturday 17 December
Word Trade and Trade Justice – WTO conference
When: 10am – 7pm Saturday 17 December
Where: OccupyLSX by St Paul’s
Description: Its the day of the World Trade Organisation’s conference. This day will focus on how trade recreates injustice and increases poverty and what can be done about it.
The misery of job insecurity – a catalyst for resistance? With Alex Wood
Date/Time: 2-3pm Saturday 17 December 2011
Location: Bank of Ideas
Details: The economic crises has caused mass suffering, but politicians and the media focus only on the undeniably terrible effects of unemployment without considering those who do not lose their job but nevertheless must deal with ever increasing social and economic insecurity. In terms of deterioration of psychological wellbeing, having an insecure job may actually be worse than being unemployed, increasing the chance of depression and overall poor health fourfold. Furthermore, as the government looks to a private sector driven recovery it is important to note that the unemployed moving into insecure employment see markedly little improvement in psychological wellbeing. The economic crises has intensified the trend towards increasing job insecurity with 6 million people now thinking they are likely or very likely to lose their job. When we combine this with real unemployment of nearly 7 million people it suggests that 13 million people are directly in need of secure jobs. Previous periods high insecurity have been catalysts for counter movements. Could this be the case again? Presented by Alex Wood member of the Cambridge University Individual in the Labour Market Research Group, currently undertaking ESRC funded research into job insecurity.
Sunday 18 December
Green Day
When: 10am – 5pm Sunday 18 December
Where: OccupyLSX by St Paul’s
Description: This is being organised by the OccupyLSX Energy Equity and Environment group. We have a range of speakers planned including Polly Higgins on Ecocide, Tamsin Omond of Climate Rush, and Donnacadh MCarthy on living green and avoiding the corporate one per cent. We also have approached speakers from New Economics Foundation/ New Green Deal and have confirmed workshops on Biofuels, Fracking Tar Sand and Solar Energy
An exploration into Alienation – Improvisation Workshop
Date/Time: 2-4pm Sunday 18 December 2011
Location: Bank of Ideas
Details: An Exploration into Alienation: Is a set of four Dance Improvisation based workshops exploring the many-fold ways in which we the 99% feel alienated by the 1% around the world and the possible impact this has on our sense of identity and Belonging. Exploring a different focus for the theme of alienation each week. Observe. Create. Share. Please note this process will inform the development of a short auto-ethnographic dance film the artist is developing on Alienation. Naomi Green, Dance Artist/Bodyworker
Hey, also this Sunday at the Bank of Ideas, 1-3pm Public Space, Democracy, and Protest with Doreen Massey, Nina Power, Teresa Hoskyns.
This session explores the role of physical public space in alternative forms of democracy to neo-liberalism. We discuss different democratic practices and the forms of public space they produce and the erosion of democratic rights through the privatisation of public space. Teresa Hoskyns will speak about democratic practices and public space. Doreen Massey will speak about experiences she has had in Latin America. Nina Power will speak about the increasingly repressive policing that we face in our protests and defending the right to protest.