Falls and Shankill to march united in support of the Fire Fighters

Friday December 06, 2002 15:52

by Davy Carlin - West Belfast Firefighter Support Group and Socialist Workers Party

Historic march in solidarity with the Fire Fighters next Saturday in West Belfast.

On saturday 14th Dec the gates on the Springfield Road peace line shall open to allow a march through from the Shankill Road. This march though will not see a protest from people from the Falls Road or the Springfield Road but in fact will see people from those areas joining in and supporting it.

No this is not a pipedream, it is in fact a situation which will show support and solidarity for our firefighters and Fireservice. Called by the West Belfast Firefighter Support Group in conjunction with the the Belfast Trades Council and the Fire Brigades Union, trade unionists will come from up and down the Falls Road and meet at Lanark Way at 1.45pm {facing Kashmir Bar}. With union banners they will then march up the Springfield Road joined by community activists.

In a similar situation trade unionists and community activists on the Shankill Road will meet at 1.45pm at Woodvale Ave and through the peace line they shall march. Now members of the FBU with other trade unionists and local community activists from 'both sides' of the divide will march together with a banner 'FALLS AND SHANKILL COMMUNITIES TOGETHER DEFEND OUR FIRESERVICE.

The march shall then go to the local West Belfast fire station where a rally and speeches will take place. Such a march will not only offer support for the firefighters but is symbolic of the cross community support such issues can deliver and in the process attempt to bring sections of our 'communities' closer together under a common cause. This is an important issue that 'both communities' could support as one.
DAVY CARLIN - WEST BELFAST FIREFIGHTER SUPPORT GROUP

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Comments (2 of 2)

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by Ray

Mon Dec 09, 2002 10:17

Swp trying to turn Belfast solidarity protest in to an anti-sectarian demo
by Joe Soap - any but socialist Sat, Dec 7 2002, 12:17am
If the SWP try and build this as some sort of anti-sectarian rally it will diminish the reason why the march was planed and divert the attention away from the FBU.

Will Davey "SWP" ever learn to put in brain in gear before he puts finger to keyboard.
Regarding Saturday 14th Decembers planed march. the FBU support group were approached on Tuesday nights meeting by a community worker from the Shankill, he said that there was good interest and support for a proposed march from the Shankill to Springfield fire station to show solidarity with the fire service in their fight for a living wage, he asked if the trade council and the FBUSG would support the march and if they had any contacts in the other community groups in west Belfast and if would they be interested in joining the Shankill community groups planed march.
It has nothing to do with bring communities closer and nothing to do with the peace process; it is a march to support the just and rightful demands of the FBU.
If the SWP try and build this as some sort of anti-sectarian rally it will diminish the reason why the march was planed and divert the attention away from the FBU.
The best thing the socialist party’s could do for the planed march is to stay away from it.
The communities of west Belfast don’t need to be lectured about sectarianism by a bunch of sectarian socialist.

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COMMENTS
Without SWP
by You call that a paper??? Sat, Dec 7 2002, 12:41am

Now this looks like a job for SWP so everybody just follow them cause it feels so empty without SWP. Anyway nice little way for ya to get a dig in at the SWP. Sectarianism breeds sectarianism...till next time

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Class politics
by K Moran - SWSS Sat, Dec 7 2002, 9:40am

Protestant workers and catholic workers get separated along sectarian lines, it's one of the ways in which they are kept from seeing who they have a common interest with. Historically they both have come together on strikes, where the old ideas of sectarianism get washed away because its so obvious on a strike who is your real enemy: the person who is trying to force down your wages or whatever not the catholic/protestant worker beside you who is in the same boat.

The firefighters strike is a demonstarion of how class interests are more important than sectarian ones. Not highlighting how a) sectarianism divides workers up the north to their detriment because it directs anger to other workers instead of those who cause poverty on both ideas of the protestant/ cathollic divide and b)not showing how this strike demonstrates the obvious false nature of sectarian ideas, would be an opportunity wasted to building a strong united working class movement up the north. Does it make more sense now?

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Falls and Shankill to march united in support of the Fire Fighters

Comments (2 of 2)