Power and protest: Movements for change in Australian society

by Verity Burgmann

Book by Burgmann, Verity

302 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 1993

Reviews

[Jess · Rating 3 out of 5]

‘Here and now in the struggle against exploitation and oppression, solidarity with each other’s struggles today provides the basis for tomorrow’s unity on the barricades’

This is a quote from a gay socialist manifesto written by Australian socialists in the early 70s. Back then this wasn’t just a nice sentiment, in the 60s and 70s this concept was alive. Workers struck against the Vietnam war, for equal pay, for black rights, for gay rights and for the environment.

Unfortunately, the dominant politics of the social movements of the 70s were explicitly opposed to a class understanding of oppression and consequently didn’t seek to involve the working class in their fight. The main divide in society was seen by feminists as women vs men, by black liberationists as black vs white, by the greenies as the enlightened vs the ignorant. Burgmann argues this is a mistake that weakened the respective movements.

However, this didn’t mean the working class didn’t participate. The most substantive gains won for oppressed groups in this period were achieved by the working class- equal pay for women and aboriginal people, stopping uranium mining, etc.

This is definitely the most left wing book I’ve read about this period of history (outside of explicitly socialist publications). But it has a very pessimistic tone. Burgmann believes the role of the far left is to push the labor movement (the ALP and union bureaucrats) to the left and in doing so help more moderate sections of the movement gain a hearing from the ruling class and win concessions. Although this can be a real dynamic, the real role of the far left is to move beyond this and win a liberated society. Burgmann stresses the adaptability of capitalism to social struggles as though capitalism is insurmountable. Although she criticises the labor party it seems like she thinks a left government with ‘extra parliamentary pressure’ is the best you can hope for.

That’s lame as hell man.

The crucial factor that is missing from this book is that the far left, specifically socialist organisation needs to lead these struggles. Socialists offer a political perspective that connects all struggles to a class understanding of society and offers a clear way forward. A clear case of the success of this is the BLF. Just because in the 70s in Australia the influence of socialist groups over the labor movement and politics as a whole was marginal, doesn’t mean it will always be that way. Socialists need to be organised before struggle breaks out.


Also

This was my first time reading about the green and peace movements in Australia and they are so cool and awesome, way bigger than I thought.

The ALP going from a policy of no uranium mining in 1977, to a one mine policy in 1982 to a three mine policy in 1984 is such a hilarious example of their cretinism.
Something crazy is reading about the first time greens got into parliament in Tasmania in 1989, holding the balance of power with Labor at the state level. They sign an accord with Labor, Labor reneges on every single promise and the greens have a sook. They continue to pursue that stupid ass policy today, all the while moderating and moderating their own politics. Something else funny about the greens is that they have their origins in the movement against damming the Franklin river, basically the only part of the environmental movement that didn’t involve union support. (Lame)