Over two hundred people gathered in Salford's historic Bexley Square this afternoon for the annual May Day rally, which this year had an array of themes from anti-fracking to anti-austerity.
On the steps of the old Salford Town Hall, scene of the historic Battle of Bexley Square, Maria Brabiner from the Greater Manchester Anti Bedroom Tax Federation opened the speeches, drawing comparisons with the Thatcher era…
"I'm Salford born and bred and I'm proud to be stood here today at Bexley Square" she said "Thirty years ago, Margaret Thatcher called the miners `the enemy within' and the moment she said that the TUC should have mobilised. But they didn't and those brave miners were let down, and we're now paying the price - because under this Government the whole of the working class are the enemy – it's disgusting.
"I remember the miners collecting food outside Tesco on Salford Precinct and the locals didn't let them starve" she explained "Just as I've a lot to be thankful for to my Salford friends when I was hit by the Bedroom Tax for the second time when I was made redundant in November. Their kindness ensured I didn't starve.
"I never thought in my lifetime I'd see any worse legislation than the Poll Tax" she added "But the Bedroom Tax is the most nasty, vicious evil tax ever – it deliberately targets the vulnerable. It's already gone in Scotland. It's not a question of `Won't pay', it's `Can't pay!'. To coin a phase, `The lady's not for turning'…this lady's not for turning either in the fight against the Bedroom Tax."
Alex Davidson, Secretary of the Manchester Trades Union Council, urged people to draw on working class and trades union traditions and to draw on them to organise again for the future…
"Our rights are under attack relentlessly from a Government that is absolutely determined that the working class and the poorest in society should pay for a crisis created by the bankers and made worse by successive Governments full of politicians who only exist to serve the bankers" he said
"What the union movement is really all about is organising for a better society, organising those workers on zero hours contracts to make sure that they can get at least a decent contract and pay from their employer" he added "Organising against things like the bedroom tax, fracking the Bedroom Tax and the privatisation of our services.
"Sometimes when you look at the challenges ahead of you the obstacles can seem insurmountable…obstreperous politicians determined to obstruct any progress, a lying media which misrepresents every protest movement and union demonstration" he explained "But by coming here today we say we are prepared to organise and fight back, and that's what the union movement has to be about – to fight back and build a better society."
Rhetta Moran, Joint Secretary of Greater Manchester Unite Against Fascism, added that a start in building that better would be to rid the European Parliament of Nick Griffin, leader of the BNP…
"On 22nd May we have local and European Elections…we have UKIP, foul racists, a bosses' party if you look at what they stand for…We have the BNP fascists…that's what we've got on the ballot paper" she explained "The BNP only need 7% of the vote to slip back in for another four years. Have no illusions, the whole of Europe is looking at the North West of England – are we going to re-elect the leader of the fascists back into the European Parliament or aren't we?
"It's down to us" she said "Because it's proportional representation I urge you to vote against the BNP and against UKIP…racism is a very old tool to divide us. We are not stupid. They think we are. We have to show them that we're not stupid…"
Her sentiments were echoed later in the day when Jeremy Phillips, from Salford Trades Council asked people to "vote something, anything but BNP in the European Elections."
Meanwhile, ex miner, Paul Kelly, made a rousing speech, urging the spirit of the miners strikes of the 70s and 80s… "Let's not talk about fighting but do it…don't talk about general strikes, do it…Just start saying `No' because if we don't there will be no welfare state in the future, there will be nothing left for our children and grandchildren…that's what we were fighting for in 1984 and 1985."
Today's speakers stood on the steps of the old Salford Town Hall, the traditional May Day gathering point, perhaps for the last time as, in a kind of ironic symbolism, the publicly owned building has been sold to private developers to be converted to apartments for `young professionals'.
After the rally, hundreds took to the streets to march into Manchester, via Deansgate, to Cathedral Gardens. Some members of Salford Labour Party attended the rally, complete with Mayor Ian Stewart getting barbed comments.
At Cathedral Gardens, Martin Porter from Frack Free Greater Manchester, pointed at the Mayor as he stated "Salford City Council must debate our 3,000 name petition on fracking as their own rules say…
"We're going to send a message to IGas that we don't want them back on Barton Moss, and a message to Trafford Council that we don't want to see them at Davyhulme either…and we'll tell the Government that we don't want fracking here or anywhere" he added "Two thirds of country is at risk from fracking but first of all it will be places like Barton Moss…
Urging the country to adopt renewable energy in the fight against climate change and for green jobs he explained "If we get this right the future will be eternally grateful, if we get it wrong we may not have a future…"
Ian Stewart was also attacked from the stage by Barton Moss protector Tammy Samede, whose boyfriend, Kate McCann, is currently on remand in Birmingham Prison until October for anti-fracking activities in Salford (see here)…
"I was hoping that Mayor Ian Stewart might come and talk to us about my boyfriend who is not from the local area, and is currently on remand because he came down from Nottingham to do the Mayor's job, which is to look after local constituents and make sure their water stays clean" she explained "We've tried to engage the Mayor in conversation about this and about numerous topics including fracking and his reply to us was `You'll grow up one day'… maybe he'll grow up one day too!"
Meanwhile, on the march, there was a great big Stalin banner for some reason…and the Salford Star asked the Mayor if he was marching under that, given that he's banning us from attending this year's local election count… "I thought you were going to ask something sensible" he replied…
More on this to follow…
Photos by Steven Speed
More photos from today at Salford Star Picture Stories - click here
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