Dear Occupy Supporter,

2013 saw Occupy London working for social, economic and environmental justice locally, nationally and internationally. 2014 looks to be even busier.

There’s a lot to take issue with, from unjust cuts to public services and welfare, to an unsustainable dash to frack our countryside, and unprecedented revelations about global surveillance.

Paul Mason, journalist and author of “Why It’s Kicking Off Everywhere”, suggests that this is the year the whole world will kick back against inequality and injustice.


We’d like to use this newsletter to catch you up on what Occupy London is doing, and to ask for help in fighting the austerity being inflicted on ordinary people – the 99% – while
services such as the NHS, and democracy itself, suffer.

Please check out the Events page on our website, and consider joining Occupy for an educational event, direct action, protest or meeting.

On January 19th, 11.30am-6pm there’ll be a ‘Future of Occupy’ meeting in Bethnal Green. We’ll be discussing Occupy values and objectives, amongst other things, and everyone is very welcome to join us and contribute.

Every kind of support is welcome: from liking our facebook posts, to talking to friends and neighbours about the issues in these newsletters that affect you… to putting your body in the road to blockade an Arms’ Fair, doing research into the effects of the Bedroom Tax, or joining an Occupy working group.

In these newsletters we’ll aim to highlight articles/blogs that give a different perspective from that of the mainstream media. Our subjects this time are:

• Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP): The new EU/US Trade Agreement has not been subject to any serious scrutiny by the mainstream media. Occupy, and other activist groups, are trying to stop this agreement. Find out why, and how, with our StopTTIP group (next meeting, 20th Jan).

• London Underground: Plans are afoot to close the ticket offices and replace our popular Oyster Cards with something that won’t work nearly as well. Find out more about the campaign to keep the tube as a public service with Mike Gold’s blog about Boris and the Tube, or by joining the Hands Off London Transport (HOLT) rally on January 16th.

• Unconditional Basic Income: An interview with David Graeber (radical anthropologist at London School of Economics and Buffy fan) and Barbara Jacobson (independent benefits advisor, European Citizens’ Initiative), in which we explore a growing international movement to end the dual oppression of benefit traps and wage slavery by the introduction of a basic income for all.
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That’s it for now; much more can be found at www.occupylondon.org.uk and please sign up for our newsletter, which can be found top right hand side of the front page.

Here’s to creating a fairer, more sustainable, more democratic 2014 and beyond,

Occupy London