July 2005Issue 380



Stop the War: The story of Britain's biggest mass movement

Someone, in this story of the remarkable mobilization of outrage that brought two million protesters out onto the streets of London, points out that it failed. It did not stop the war. But the observer continues, the ‘15 February movement’ achieved ‘enough to shape the course of politics on the issue of Iraq, Britain’s relation to the US and how Britain is governed’.

It’s certainly true that during the recent British general election just one fifth of the electorate could bring itself to vote for Tony Blair’s once popular Labour Party. Only the outdated peculiarities of the country’s first-past-the-post electoral system made it possible for Blair to form a majority government.

Richly illustrated, Stop the War vividly captures a defining moment in a continuing struggle for democracy. The posters that shouted out ‘Not in my name’ are as relevant today as ever. And the protest badges that neatly twisted the leader’s name to ‘Bliar’ have become increasingly easy to justify.

It’s just a shame that its field of vision was not wider in capturing the international scale of the mass protests that occurred around the world on 15 February 2003. But with contributions from schoolchildren to intelligence officers, seasoned campaigners to ‘virgin marchers’, Stop the War does present an inspiring diversity of people-power. It captures the buzz and creativity of the movement, and the political art it has spawned. And authors Andrew Murray and Lindsey German provide a narrative that carries you along with ease.

Product information
by Andrew Murray and Lindsey German foreword by Tony Benn
Publisher
Bookmarks Publications
Star rating
***
Product number
ISBN 1 905192 00 2




also by...
THIS AUTHOR

Anatomy of a scam
John Githongo, Kenya’s exiled anti- corruption chief, speaks to Vanessa Baird.

Corruption's big funder – or how to ‘lose’ $100 billion without really trying

Action against corruption

Can the rot be stopped?
High rhetoric, low deeds. Vanessa Baird examines the murky world of corruption.

Language Tools
Powered by Ultralingua

Join over 10,000 people just like you. Get e-mail updates about new content, issue alerts, contests, and more!

other articles
FROM THIS ISSUE

Combatting caste
Mari Marcel Thekaekara on the enduring evils of an ancient system of oppression and the struggles for dignity.

The choice
When Manami Mori fell in love, her family saw only dishonour.

Tied to the job
Caste still has to shake off its shackles in Africa.

Action and worth reading
Action contacts and resources for further reading

Caste out
Nikki van der Gaag reveals how some practices persist even in the West.

recently
IN THIS COLUMN

The Guantánamo Files
The Stories of the 774 Detainees in America’s Illegal Prison

Nobody’s Home
Ugresic’s new collection of essays

Another production is possible
by Boaventura de Sousa Santos (ed)

Girls of Riyadh
by Rajaa Alsanea

The Shock Doctrine
The Shock Doctrine by Naomi Klein

Hold Everything Dear – Dispatches on Survival and Resistance
Hold Everything Dear – Dispatches on Survival and Resistance by John Berger






Voices from the margins:

Multimedia: video, podcasts, and more.