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Another Quick Request...
How do, gonna ask this again and mention that this may be coming to an end in the new year however I'm quite keen to keep this and the other newsletter going but it really depends on getting the content in. Now, I get that time is a precious commodity, trust me on this, trying to get an hour or so to get these put together can be a struggle sometimes. What I do see though is the reasons behind doing this. It's good to know that all fights are being fought, whether we have a personal vested interest or not. The spread of information is vital and long may it continue. So, I'm asking that to keep this going we need to make it more (and skip Justin out for now). So instead of sending Justin the details of your next meeting if you can send them to me (address below) along with a small descriptive piece on who you are, what you do etc. As it is this is just a list which means something to someone but nothing to others (remember people sign up to this list that haven't necessarily heard of you). So back to the original request, for each of you that have posts here (or have done, or will do) could you send me a decent copy of any logo/image you'd like used here. I'd like to make everything look a little more recognisable from a first glance. If any events have been missed for December send them over and I'll get another one out at the end of this month. Email to info@4peoplenotprofit.co.uk Cheers JonnyTeesside People's Assembly
Teesside People's Assembly Against Austerity Meeting First Tuesday of the month, next meetings Tuesday 3rd November and 1st December at 7.15pm in St Mary's Centre, 82-90 Corporation Road, Middlesbrough TS1 2RW.| TeessidePA on Facebook |
Teesside Solidarity Movement
TSM General Assembly Meeting. 2nd and 4th Thursday every month Next meetings 12th November, 26th November & 10th December 7 - 9pm in St Mary's Centre, 82-90 Corporation Road, Middlesbrough TS1 2RW| TSM on Facebook |
Unite the Community
Unite the Community Meeting. 1st Thursday of every month. Next meeting 5th November & 3rd December at 11.30am, at the Unite Building, Fry Street Middlesbrough.
| Unite The Community on Facebook |
Food First
Saltburn Farmers Market - Saturday November 14th & December 12th, Saltburn Station Square & Milton Street Stockton Farmers Market - Saturday November 28th & December 19th , Stockton High Street lorna.foodfirst@gmail.comGreenpeace Teesside
Monthly meeting's first Tuesday of every month. Next meeting Tuesday 3rd November & 1st December at 7.00pm at the White Horse in Darlington
Frack Free Cleveland
Frack Free Cleveland next meetings Thursday 12th November & 10th December at 7pm in Saltburn House.
info@frackfreecleveland.co.ukEast Cleveland Global Justice Now
The East Cleveland Global Justice Now meeting 19th November Downstairs in the Marine 8.15pm
Teesside Socialist Clothing Bank
Newport Hub, Union Street Middlesbrough. Open second Saturday of each month from 1pm – 3pm. Next opening Saturday 14th November
| Teesside Socialist Clothing Bank on Facebook |
4 People Not Profit
4 People Not profit film night presents Merchants of Doubt, 19th November at the Marine Saltburn, doors 7pm film 7.30pm 4 People not Profit Christmas Party Friday 11th December 7.30pm till late. Main room, The Marine pub Saltburn. In Tribute to Patrick Anselm (Instrument of Jah) and raising awareness about TTIP. Headlined by Ital Guidance Soundsystem (Dub reggae soundsystem) |
| 4 People Not Profit Facebook |
Quick Request
How do, Jonny here again, could I make a quick request for each of you that have posts here (or have done, or will do) could you send me a decent copy of any logo/image you'd like used here. I'd like to make everything look a little more recognisable from a first glance. Email to info@4peoplenotprofit.co.uk Cheers JonnyTeesside People's Assembly
Teesside People's Assembly Against Austerity Meeting Tuesday 1st September at 7.15pm in St Mary's Centre, 82-90 Corporation Road, Middlesbrough TS1 2RW.| TeessidePA on Facebook |
Teesside Solidarity Movement
TSM General Assembly Meeting. 2nd and 4th Thursday every month Next meeting 10th September 7 - 9pm in St Mary's Centre, 82-90 Corporation Road, Middlesbrough TS1 2RW| TSM on Facebook |
Unite the Community
Unite the Community Meeting. 1st Thursday of every month. Next meeting 6th August at 11.30am, at the Unite Building, Fry Street Middlesbrough.
| Unite The Community on Facebook |
Food First
Saltburn Food Festival - Sunday August 2nd, Saltburn Station Square & Milton Street Stockton Farmers Market Saturday September 26th, Stockton high street lorna.foodfirst@gmail.comGreenpeace Teesside
Monthly meeting's first Tuesday of every month. Next meeting Tuesday 4th August at 7.00pm at the Glittering Star in Darlington
Teesside Anarchist Network
Anarchist network meetings weekly 7pm - 9pm in Middlesbrough, Check facebook page for details or call 07804799562
| Teesside Anarchist Network on Facebook |
4 People Not Profit
4 People not Profit Festival on the 5th September 12 - 8 in the Valley Gardens in Saltburn, main stage, dance stage and acoustic stage. As well as representative stalls of all the activist and community groups in the Community Network 4 People Not profit film night presents Burma VJ, 17th September at the Marine Saltburn, doors 7pm film 7.30pm| 4 People Not Profit Facebook |
Teesside Socialist Clothing Bank
Newport Hub, Union Street Middlesbrough. Open second Saturday of each month from 1pm – 3pm. Next opening Saturday 8th August.
| Teesside Socialist Clothing Bank on Facebook |
The Return of the 4 People Not Profit Festival
After a 6 year hiatus the 4 People Not Profit festival returns to Saltburn for another free family all day event. The event will be held on the 5th September from 12pm - 8pm in Saltburn woods valley garden area. With the main stage and dance stage on the commonly called donkey field and an acoustic stage held at the woodland centre.
The event is to celebrate the vast array of activist and community groups in the Teesside area which we have brought together to form the 4 People Not Profit Community Network. With the aim being to promote the great work these groups do and encourage more people to get involved in community activism.
Represented will be stalls from Greenpeace Teesside, Justice First, Frack Free Cleveland, Saltburn Beachwatch, Friends of the Earth, Teesside People's Assembly, TSM and Food First amongst others.The main stage hosted by 4 People Not Profit will include a selection of the best bands we have had to play at our gigs over the years including Village Green, Lost State of Dance and General Sherman. The dance stage will be hosted by Teesside's Kings of Leftfield parties, the Old Saw Mill Garden Party crew with a very special stage with a selection of breaks, drum n bass, electro swing and house dj's playing throughout the day. And running the acoustic stage at the Woodland Centre will be the fantastic Saltburn Folk Club with a range of superb acoustic acts including Stormcrow, Doc Noir, Sara Dennis & Steve Dagleish.
As well as all the great music their will be various activities, a children's area and food stalls. And if that was not enough the Marine pub will be hosting an after party from 8pm - 12am with more DJ's to keep you dancing into the night
'Keep the Act'
Being human is universal and therefore providing rights based on universality without individual governments' criteria of what it is to be human is essential for concepts such as democracy and freedom to be realised.
The Human Rights Act (1998) promotes and actively supports the view of the universality of the human it is therefore essential to remain in British law. The current government is committed to abolishing the Human Rights Act. Thereby eradicating humanitarian progress, reducing the power of the people in favour of extending the power of government and placing people at greater risk of discrimination and abuse by the powerful.
Champions of Human Rights, such as Amnesty International aim to promote respect for the human – human being a universal term regardless of age, sex, ethnicity and other possible social barriers. The human, should not be subject to prerequisites, for example, human rights only for the subjective 'good'. As human beings, it can sometimes be difficult to provide an equal measure of empathy, love and respect to all due to personal moral guidelines of 'right' and 'wrong'. This is why 'human' needs to be accepted as a universal concept, to protect against various societies social constructs of prejudices and discrimination.
All recognised governmental bodies have the ability to determine the civil rights of their citizens. This allows for the diversity of religious and moral guidelines to be respected and determined by the powers within that particular society, hopefully with the needs of that particular society reflected. This freedom is important and highlights the key difference between civil and human rights.
The Human Rights Act is the most remarkable step the British government has taken to acknowledge that 'human' is a universal condition. The Human Rights Act enshrines into British law the European Convention of Human Rights, developed from the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. This enables Human Rights cases to be herd in UK courts. The Act in theory (to be put into practice requires equality of access to the justice system) provides legal equality to all humans within the European states that have ratified the Convention.
The Act not only serves as a mechanism to seek redress, it plays an essential preventative role. For example, the Act is considered by public bodies within institutions such as Health and Education when making policy decisions about the service provided. The Human Rights Act offers vast protection and redress to all humans, from the young to the elderly. For example, by supporting children who face exploitation, people who are abused through domestic violence and the rights of dementia patients.
The Human Rights Act is also the most valuable piece of legislation that aims to protect the people from abuses of state power, including central government and all public bodies. It is the first time since the Magna Carta that the British law recognised the need for the people to be protected from the tyranny of the minority. The Act, therefore increased the accountability of the government and public bodies to the people, effective from 2000. In contrast to the United States of America which created their constitution on the basis of the agreement to create a codified Bill of Rights, which was enshrined into law in 1791.
There are numerous petitions calling for the government to 'Keep the Act', if you would like to find out more and participate in the Amnesty International campaign please visit the website below: http://savetheact.uk/Laura Eyeington
Speaking out against benefit sanctions
In March I was outside Middlesbrough Job Centre, speaking out about the benefit sanctions regime. It was part of a national day of campaigning called #no2sanctions. I thought I'd share with you why I was speaking out.
I used to run an organisation that worked with some of our communities most vulnerable people. We supported people to find a way out of poverty, sexual exploitation or addiction. I have always tried to be a voice for our service users. I first spoke out about benefits reform quite a few years ago. I was concerned because the new policy being developed looked like it was going to create a system that punishes those who can't work, making life much harder for them. I questioned how this would help people into employment.
As the reforms developed, we saw correlating increases in poverty, depression, destitution and prostitution. We were told of families going without food, elderly people having to choose between heating or eating, a woman using a neighbours bath to wash as she had no gas for hot water, people turning to begging and in some cases, prostitution to just get by. We have always had poverty in Teesside but this was something else.
One of the specific problems was the amount of people who were being sanctioned. A sanction is where the job centre stops your benefits if you have failed to meet their requirements of "seeking employment". People were reporting being sanctioned for really simple things like being ten minutes late, being ill and unable to attend their job seeker appointment and not getting through to anyone on the phone. People were giving up and dropping out of the system. This is what would bring them to our door. With nowhere else to turn, they began turning to charities and churches to find food, warmth and support.
I couldn't believe this was the world we were living in. I grew angry at what I was seeing. Shows like 'Benefits street' and 'Benefits Britain' didn't help. They added to the public feeling that there was somehow a "deserving poor" Let's just say this up front. No-one deserves to be poor, and they definitely don't deserve to go without food, heating or electricity ; particularly when they live in one of the world's wealthiest nations. It is just not right. People are now catching on to how cruel our system has become and have begun speaking out. Churches, charities, political parties and trade unions have all being making a noise about what is happening in our communities and with our welfare system. Citizens advice produced the 'Punishing the poor' report which highlighted how people being sanctioned were driven to suicide attempts, scavenging out of skips and begging. The Church produced a similar report calling on decision makers to urgently review the current sanctions system, stating one million benefit claimants had been sanctioned in 2014.
Many of us gathered to say enough is enough. We were saying "No to Sanctions" whilst calling on the government to urgently review it's welfare processes. We want people supported into employment, what we don't want is them being punished when they can't work. Follow the debate using #no2sanctions today!/
Jessie Joe Jacobs
Some quick questions
How do Jonny here, I'm the one who codes and sends this mailer out and I'd like to ask you all a question if I may...
As it is I can't really make the meetings so can't bring any points up, however as I'm the one who actually preps this I thought this would probably be an ideal way to do this. So what I have is a bit of info and a couple of requests.
Firstly, this list. I send theses out via mailchimp (logo at the bottom) as it's a free and reliable way to do so, stops any unfortunate incidents like we had with cc'd over bcc'd emails and spammy messages from hacked accounts, no names. To make sure our list is ok in an email marketing sense we have to have a good ratio of clicks throughs, opens and minimal bounces. Now the minimal bounces is easy as this isn't a scraped list (everyone has at some point signed up) but what we want is a better list ranking in regards to clicks and opens etc. Now the easiest way for clicks would be to give you a sentence of each article with a read more link, this doesn't sit right with me as the whole reason for the mailer in my eyes is to give the info direct to you so you can see it straight away on any device. You may disagree and not mind going to the site for the full story, so I've set up a poll to find out your thoughts.
I would also like to suggest that anyone writing an article for this newsletter also include a link to either the cause they are writing for, their own personal blog, wherever they like really and again that we take the time to go through and look. I know that there is a lot going on and I'm guessing we're all in the same boat with many emails from the likes of change.org, sumofus.org etc but I feel that we should use each others platforms more and really push the local issues (says the geordie in the teesside mailer). If that means you'd like to write an article direct for this site then please let Justin (or myself) know. I think we should be aiming for at least one post a week.
Edit: just read that there's a August 20th deadline for the next issue!
Just before I go one last quick question that may have already come up in the meetings that I may be simply unaware of. A while back we asked for volunteers for a photographer for the nights we (4 People Not Profit) put on. Muted response was got. Thing is we all volunteer, bands get petrol money, a few beers etc, it's the way it works. I know we've had a few nights done by different people but in the end it's normally Justin's shakey cam hand that does the business. Anybody know anyone who'd do them? Maybe a couple for the up coming festival, I'd really like to see some great shots as I reckon it'll be a great day with a terrific turnout.
Well that's enough from me I think, cheers.Jonny
Teesside People's Assembly
Teesside People's Assembly Against Austerity Meeting Wednesday 8th July at 7.15pm in St Mary's Centre, 82-90 Corporation Road, Middlesbrough TS1 2RW. Protest against Osborne's emergency budget - July 8th Stockton 12 - 1 Central garden and fountain high street & July 8th Middlesbrough 5 -6 Spectra -txt TeessidePA on FacebookTeesside Solidarity Movement
TSM General Assembly Meeting. 2nd and 4th Thursday every month Next meeting 9th July 7 - 9pm in St Mary's Centre, 82-90 Corporation Road, Middlesbrough TS1 2RW TSM on FacebookUnite the Community
Unite the Community Meeting. 1st Thursday of every month. Next meeting 2nd July and 6th August at 11.30am, at the Unite Building, Fry Street Middlesbrough.
Unite The Community on FacebookEast Cleveland Global Justice Now (former World Development Movement
The East Cleveland Global Justice Now. Meeting 16th July Downstairs in the Marine 8.15pm
Food First
Stockton Farmers Market - Saturday 25th July, Stockton high street
Greenpeace Teesside
Monthly meeting's first Tuesday of every month. Next meeting Tuesday 2nd June at 7.30pm the White horse at Darlington
Justice First
Displace Yourself Theatre. Wednesday 8th July is a day time drop-in session to hear more about the project and to feed-in/help develop the performance, and Friday 10th July is a late afternoon/early evening performance. More info - pete@justicefirst.org.ukTeesside Anarchist Network
Anarchist network meetings weekly 7pm - 9pm in Middlesbrough, Check facebook page for details or call 07804799562 Teesside Anarchist Network on Facebook
4 People Not Profit
Put a note in your diary for the upcoming 4 People not Profit Festival on the 5th September 12 - 8 in the Valley Gardens in Saltburn 4 People Not Profit FacebookTeesside Socialist Clothing Bank
Newport Hub, Union Street Middlesbrough. Open second Saturday of each month from 1pm – 3pm. Next opening11th July
Teesside Socialist Clothing Bank on FacebookTeesside People's Assembly
Teesside People's Assembly Against Austerity Meeting Wednesday 3rd June at 7.15pm in St Mary's Centre, 82-90 Corporation Road, Middlesbrough TS1 2RW.
Teesside Solidarity Movement
TSM General Assembly Meeting. 2nd and 4th Thursday every month Next meeting 11th June 7 - 9pm in St Mary's Centre, 82-90 Corporation Road, Middlesbrough TS1 2RW
Unite the Community
Unite the Community Meeting. 1st Thursday of every month. Next meeting 4th June at 11.30am, at the Unite Building, Fry Street Middlesbrough
East Cleveland Global Justice Now (former World Development Movement
The East Cleveland Global Justice Now. Meeting 4th June Downstairs in the Marine 8.15pm
Food First
Saltburn Farmers Market - Saturday 13th June, Saltburn square. Stockton Farmers Market - Saturday 27th June, Stockton high street
Greenpeace Teesside
Monthly meeting's first Tuesday of every month. Next meeting Tuesday 2nd June at 7.30pm the White horse at Darlington
Frack Free Cleveland
Monthly meeting's 2nd Thursday of every month. Next meeting 11th June at 7pm O'Grady's, Redcar
Justice First
4th Annual Football tournament. Saturday 13th June. Goals Soccer centre, Middlesbrough. Registration 9.30am. Matches 10am - 3pm. In aid of Justice first as part of refugee week. Mary Thompson Fund sponsored walk. Saturday 20th June, starting at Grosmont train station carpark, walking to Goathland and back via an old railway line, so the route is mostly flat and easy walking.
Teesside Anarchist Network
Anarchist network meetings weekly 7pm - 9pm in Middlesbrough, Check facebook page for details or call 07804799562 Teesside Anarchist Network Launch gig, Friday 5th June 7pm - 11.30pm Westgarth social club. Punk, Dub, Reggae and psychedelia
4 People Not Profit
Community Network meeting Monday 1st of June 7.30pm at the St Mary's Centre Middlesbrough. No film showing this June due to return in July
Teesside Socialist Clothing Bank
Newport Hub, Union Street Middlesbrough. Open second Saturday of each month from 1pm – 3pm. Next opening 9th May
4 People Not Profit is back on Saturday April 11th for yet another fantastic party night and fundraiser for the newly formed Teesside Socialist Clothing Bank (TSCB).
As part of the response to poverty creating policies TSCB aims to challenge the political roots of the social crisis. TSCB provides monthly access to clothing, shoes and toiletries for anyone in need, no referral or evidence of need required. Based at The Newport Hub on the 2nd Saturday of every month from 1-3pm, clean and good quality clothes, advice and guidance, hot food and drinks and various activities and entertainment in a safe family and community setting. Donations of clothes so far have been extremely generous and at present no more can be taken. TSCB do however need cash for running costs such as rent for the building, new underwear, food & drink and storage solutions- this is where you lovely generous people come in and join 4 People Not Profit to Party!
Entertainment from:
Sara Dennis
(Sublime singer songwriter)
Drummak
(Eclectronica)
DJ Marc Fox
(Breaks & Drum n Bass)
Our headliner was to be Leddie and Smoggy (social conscious hip hop from Boro) but due to unforseen work issues they have had to drop out. But to be confirmed Smoggy may play a solo set? In replacement we have the comedy music set from the hilarious Elvis Herod!
Saturday 11th April, 7.30-late, The Marine Hotel, Saltburn
Free Entry
4 People Not Profit TSCB Fundraiser
4 People Not Profit is back on Saturday April 11th for yet another fantastic party night and fundraiser for the newly formed Teesside Socialist Clothing Bank (TSCB).
As part of the response to poverty creating policies, TSCB aims to challenge the political roots of the social crisis. TSCB provides monthly access to clothing, shoes and toiletries for anyone in need, no referral or evidence of need required. Based at The Newport Hub on the 2nd Saturday of every month from 1-3pm, clean and good quality clothes, advice and guidance, hot food and drinks, and various activities and entertainment in a safe family and community setting. 
Donations of clothes so far have been extremely generous and at present no more can be taken. TSCB do however need cash for running costs such as rent for the building, new underwear, food & drink and storage solutions - this is where you lovely generous people come in and join 4 People Not Profit to Party.
Entertainment from:
Leddie & Smoggy (Boro's socially conscious hip hop pioneers) Sara Dennis (Sublime singer songwriter) Drummak (Eclectronica) DJ Marc Fox (Breaks & Drum n Bass)
Saturday 11th April, 7.30 onwards The Marine Hotel, Saltburn Free Entry
Global Justice Cleveland joins TTIP Protest in Brussels
You may, or more likely may not have, heard of a new trade deal currently being negotiated between the EU and the US called TTIP or the Transatlantic trade and investment partnership. A trade deal which if it goes through could severely damage workers rights, environmental protection, health and safety standards, and
help push through privatisation of public services like the NHS.
A brief summary of TTIP is as follows. It is a trade deal which is being negotiated between the US and the EU with the aim of reducing any barriers to trade taking place. One issue is the problem of the different standards that are currently in place on each side of the Atlantic. An example is the use of insecticides; large numbers of products are banned in the EU while America allows their use. Americans are happy to eat hormone reared beef washed in lactic acid and chicken rinsed in chlorine, while Europeans have banned such cost effective methods of food production. This leaves campaigners wondering whose guidelines will be applied and fearing that there will be a general lowering of standards.
However, the biggest concern about TTIP is an element called ISDS. This stands for Investor State Dispute Settlement. Currently about 20% of world trade deals contain this element so there has been the chance to see how it works in practice. It gives corporations the right to challenge national governments over any legislation they might want to introduce. The much quoted example of this is that of the Philip Morris tobacco company, who are taking legal action against the Australian government for legislating that in future all cigarettes must be sold in plain packaging. Philip Morris fears this will reduce their profits. The legal action does not take place in Australian courts but in a separate corporate legal system, using special lawyers who both represent the parties and also form judge and jury. Another impact of the ISDS is that if the NHS was privatised and a future government wanted to put it back in public hands, they could not do so under TTIP without it going to an ISDS court. The private companies with a stake in the NHS could sue for millions in loss of earnings. Effectively this would make a return to public ownership impossible for any government.
In February I represented Global Justice Cleveland and joined eighty other people at St Pancras Station to travel to Brussels for two days to protest against TTIP. We started off with a tour of Brussels, the tour was called 'Know your enemy'. We were told that there are a staggering 20,000 lobbyists in Brussels representing big business with the aim of influencing EU policy making.
We were told that the TTIP negotiators were due to meet the following day and that the location of their secret meeting had been discovered. We therefore met early in the morning to stand outside what appeared to be an office building. People were arriving to go to work while we held banners and chanted, 'T.T.I.P. – graveyard of democracy' and 'Cecilia Malstrom hear us say – we don't want TTIP – no way.'
Further protests were held in key locations where the negotiations were taking place across Brussels. We also met Green MEP's who spoke about TTIP and explained their stance which is that they are completely against it and as a result they are not taking part in the negotiations. They praised us for our campaigning and encouraged us to continue. We later met two Labour MEP's who sit on the Trade Committee, one of them was our own Jude Kirton-Darling. Unlike the Greens the Labour MEP's are taking part in negotiations and are trying to argue in favour of a 'good TTIP'. Some activists were disappointed with this stance, believing that this is a contradiction in terms. In their defence Jude believes that the only way to have an influence is to take part in the debate.
It is good news that awareness of TTIP appears to be growing so larger numbers of MEP's and MP's are being lobbied by their constituents. While I was in Brussels I really got the feeling that by uniting across Europe it will be possible to beat TTIP.Barbara Welford (Global Justice Cleveland)
Environmental Spectrum - New online radio
Life on earth consists of over 8 million species, and we are suppose to be one of the most intelligent species among them. Yet not only do we threaten the existence of our own species, we threaten every other species as well. If we carry on along the path we are going it looks like we are heading for extinction.
The environmental spectrum new online radio show is not perfect and neither is it the answer to our problems, but it may help those trying to preserve life on earth and get others to help, as this should be everybody's responsibility.
Enjoy and play your part good luck! http://environmentalspectrum.org.uk/Spana
I am a Scumbag-ist
Yes I have got to admit it ……I am a scumbag-ist, and I think you should be too. I just hate scumbags who do horrendous scumbag like things and sadly in today's world filled with terrorism, war and general unprovoked violence there are plenty of scumbags about.
Unfortunately though in today's modern age we seem to be slipping back into primitive tribalism, where scumbags do horrible things and we make broad generalisations about everyone who we identify as part of the group of that individual scumbag. Now in ancient times tribalism used to be a very useful survival mechanism to identify enemies who were part of one particular group to avoid or fight, and to identify with your own group for protection. But in today's complex age of multiculturalism and living in such diverse societies this primitive evolutionary mechanism of tribalism serves no useful purpose.
The hangover of ancient tribalistic thinking forms the basis of racism and ignorance of other cultures and people today. Some of the worst horrors of recent history come from this broad hatred of entire groups of people based on the acts of a tiny few, such as Genocides committed against the Jews by the Nazi's or the Hutu's against the Tutsi's in Rwanda.
It is this same primitive thinking which is causing such hatred against Muslim's in today's current climate. Admittedly some Muslims have done some very bad things in recent years, from 9/11 to the beheading of Lee Rigby. But these people were individual scumbags who committed appalling acts. To now label all Muslims or even the majority of Muslims as scumbags as well, makes no logical sense.
As an example of this sheer irrational thinking, we also see in the news that recently there has been a lot of middle aged white men in the entertainment industry who have been found to be scumbag paedophiles. Does this mean we should be worried about the rest of the middle aged white men in the entertainment industry. Should we not just lynch Jeremy Clarkson and Terry Wogan now and protest outside the BBC? Of course not! This would be ridiculous but is the same principle as believing all Muslims are terrorist scumbags.
Just because a selection of people who do very bad things belong to a certain demographic, does not mean the rest of the people in that certain demographic are also liable to do similar very bad things. The only judgement you can make is on the individual and the people who do these awful things are individual scumbags. To label the entire group or demographic they belong to as scumbags is insulting to many thousands or even millions of good people, and is just fuelling further division, distrust and hatred in society.
So let's unite and be scumbag-ists together and aim our hate at the individuals who deserve it!Justin
Teesside People's Assembly Teesside People's Assembly Against Austerity Meeting - Tuesday 7th April at 7.15pm in St Mary's Centre, 82-90 Corporation Road, Middlesbrough TS1 2RW. Teesside Solidarity Movement TSM General Assembly Meeting. 2nd and 4th Thursday every month Next meeting 9th April 7 - 9pm in St Mary's Centre, 82-90 Corporation Road, Middlesbrough TS1 2RW Unite the Community Unite the Community Meeting. 1st Thursday of every month. Next meeting 2nd April at 11.30am, at the Unite Building, Fry Street Middlesbrough East Cleveland Global Justice Now (former World Development Movement The East Cleveland Global Justice Now. Meeting 16th April Downstairs in the Marine 8.15pm Food First Saltburn Farmers Market - Saturday 11th April & 9th May, Saltburn square. Stockton Farmers Market - Saturday 25th April & 30th May, Stockton high street Greenpeace Teesside Monthly meeting's first Tuesday of every month. Next meeting Tuesday 7th April at 7.00pm at the Stockton Arc. Frack Free Cleveland Monthly meeting's 2nd Thursday of every month. Next meeting 9th April at 7pm, O'Grady's Redcar and 14th May at 7pm Hop and Vine, Saltburn Teesside Anarchist Network Anarchist network meetings weekly 7pm - 9pm in Middlesbrough, Check facebook page for details or call 07804799562 Teesside Anarchist Network Launch gig, Friday 5th June 7pm - 11.30pm Westgarth social club. Punk, Dub, Reggae and psychedelia 4 People Not Profit Film night presenting 'Citizenfour’ - Thursday 16th April doors 7.00pm film 7.30pm, upstairs in the Marine pub Saltburn. A film about Edward Snowden and his leaking of US surveillance information Film night presenting 'The Square' - Thursday 21st May doors 7.00pm film 7.30pm upstairs in the Marine pub Saltburn. The first of our revolution series about the uprising in Egypt. Other Stuff Teesside Socialist Clothing Bank Newport Hub, Union Street Middlesbrough. Open second Saturday of each month from 1pm – 3pm. Next opening 11th AprilMay
Teesside People's Assembly Teesside People's Assembly Against Austerity Special Meeting - 'Opposing austerity after the election'. Tuesday 26th May at 7.15pm in St Mary's Centre, 82-90 Corporation Road, Middlesbrough TS1 2RW. Teesside Solidarity Movement TSM General Assembly Meeting. 2nd and 4th Thursday every month Next meeting 14th May 7 - 9pm in St Mary's Centre, 82-90 Corporation Road, Middlesbrough TS1 2RW Unite the Community Unite the Community Meeting. 1st Thursday of every month. Next meeting 7th May at 11.30am, at the Unite Building, Fry Street Middlesbrough East Cleveland Global Justice Now (former World Development Movement The East Cleveland Global Justice Now. Meeting 4th June Downstairs in the Marine 8.15pm Food First Saltburn Farmers Market - Saturday 9th May & 13th June, Saltburn square. Stockton Farmers Market - Saturday 30th May & 27th June, Stockton high street Greenpeace Teesside Monthly meeting's first Tuesday of every month. Next meeting Tuesday 5th May at 7.00pm at the Stockton Arc. Frack Free Cleveland Monthly meeting's 2nd Thursday of every month. Next meeting 14th May at 7pm Hop and Vine, Saltburn Justice First 4th Annual Football tournament. Saturday 13th June. Goals Soccer centre, Middlesbrough. Registration 9.30am. Matches 10am - 3pm. In aid of Justice first as part of refugee week. Mary Thompson Fund sponsored walk. Saturday 20th June, starting at Grosmont train station carpark, walking to Goathland and back via an old railway line, so the route is mostly flat and easy walking. Moors Sustainable On Saturday May 16th, a Green Open Homes event will showcase renewable energy technologies and other energy saving measures installed in ordinary homes. Ten homes will be opening their doors in the area covering Saltburn, Marske, Redcar, East Cleveland, Guisborough, Great Ayton and Stokesley. "Look out for our posters and publicity nearer 16th May and do get in touch if you would like to be on our mailing list." says Jacky. You can telephone Jacky on 01642 503395, visit moorsustainable.org.uk or email on info@moorsustainable.org.uk. Teesside Anarchist Network Anarchist network meetings weekly 7pm - 9pm in Middlesbrough, Check facebook page for details or call 07804799562 Teesside Anarchist Network Launch gig, Friday 5th June 7pm - 11.30pm Westgarth social club. Punk, Dub, Reggae and psychedelia 4 People Not Profit Film night presenting 'The Square' - Thursday 21st May doors 7.00pm film 7.30pm upstairs in the Marine pub Saltburn. The first of our revolution series about the uprising in Egypt. Other Stuff Teesside Socialist Clothing Bank Newport Hub, Union Street Middlesbrough. Open second Saturday of each month from 1pm – 3pm. Next opening 9th MayWelcome to the 2nd issue of 4 People Not Profit's Community Network Newsletter. 4 People Not Profit have been premier event organisers putting on gigs and film nights in Saltburn promoting social justice and human rights issues for the last 7 years. We have now launched the community network initiative in order to try and create a network of all the left, environmental and community groups in the Teesside area to promote communication and collaborative working to get more people involved in community activism.
At this crucial fragmented time in the U.K, where communities are driven apart by individuals socio-economic background, culture and race, we must try to come together and celebrate what unites us in our humanity and common needs of warmth, security, food on our plates, to live a life with meaning and to love and to be loved.
We live in a time where very powerful individuals, politicians, corporate leaders, and media barons are wanting to promote an image of a divided Britain and for that matter the world. Where they can play us off one another and pray on our fears to create distrust and hatred for others who are different to us. So here in Britain the pages of our daily papers pour scorn on benefit scroungers, single mothers and of course immigrants. So while we spit bile at some of the weakest and most vulnerable in society, they can profit hugely from our ignorance about the real issues in this country and the world of corporate corruption, international tax avoidance and immoral banking practices that caused the financial crisis and continue unabated.
To combat these issues we must come together to fight for a better world and a better Britain and even just a better local community. Every individual can get out there and join a local activist group or just contribute to the actions of an activist group that they feel passionately about.
In our own small way 4 people Not profit will be linking up with the Teesside People's Assembly to show the film 'Sell Off' on February 19th, highlighting the slow erosion of the NHS to make way for a privatised for profit health care system. And in April we will be working with the Teesside Solidarity Movement to put on a gig raising money for the Middlesbrough Socialist Clothing Bank which has just opened to help provide clothes for those which are currently struggling in these harsh economic times.
See inside for articles on the great work of Justice First and their promotion of the City Of Sanctuary initiative in The Tees Valley. Also see the 2014 review of the tireless work of the Teesside People's Assembly, and check out the events listings for meetings and events by a range of activist and campaign groups which you could get involved in.
For more information on the 4 People Not Profit Community Network email: Justin Supercharger52@hotmail.com
“For love of domination we must substitute equality; for love of victory we must substitute justice; for brutality we must substitute intelligence; for competition we must substitute cooperation. We must learn to think of the human race as one family.”
Bertrand Russell (1872-1970)
Justice First help create A Tees Valley of Sanctuary
A few years ago Sheffield became the very first ‘City of Sanctuary’. The idea was to make the city a more welcoming place for newly arrived ‘seekers of sanctuary’ or more commonly known as ‘asylum seekers’ - those fleeing from persecution and the threat of torture, detention without trial, and often death - and who are seeking a place of safety. The term ‘asylum seeker’ has had some bad press over the years and the term ‘sanctuary’ is seen as a better explanation of why people come to a safe country. Incidentally, the UK takes many fewer asylum/sanctuary seekers than many other western European countries such as France (twice as many) and Germany (more than 3 times UK numbers).
Anyway, the ‘City of Sanctuary’ (CoS) idea soon took hold, and is now a national movement. The three key principles of a CoS are:
- That the CoS is a mainstream grassroots movement building coalitions of organisations from all sectors of society in a given area that makes a public commitment to welcoming people seeking sanctuary and refugees, and fully including them in their activities.
- Creating opportunities for relationships between local people and those seeking sanctuary. Where local organisations and communities include people seeking sanctuary in their activities, personal relationships will be formed which will lead to greater understanding and support from the host community. City of Sanctuary seeks to influence the political debate on sanctuary indirectly through cultural change, and does not usually engage in political lobbying or anti-deportation campaigns directly.
- To offer a positive vision of a culture of hospitality for those in need of safety, by encourage communities to take pride in offering a place of safety for people whose lives are threatened, and celebrating their contribution to our towns and cities.
The focus of the above principles is on those people who are forced to seek sanctuary rather than voluntary migration or diversity in general. But at the same time the intention is that the process of working for a culture of hospitality will also benefit other migrant groups, as well as host communities.
So does this mean that there isn’t a welcoming culture in the Tees Valley? No not at all. I have worked in this field since 1991 in the Tees Valley and I am currently the chair of a hardship fund for people seeking sanctuary/asylum and settled refugees, called the Mary Thompson Fund. I am constantly blown away by the support, kindness and understanding from local people and organisations. There are several organisations setup specifically to support and build friendships with sanctuary seekers and hundreds of organisations and individuals that have supported the fund and other similar initiatives.
A Tees Valley of Sanctuary aims to build on the existing magnificent support of local people by bringing everyone together and formalising support by signing up to a pledge to do just a little bit more: be it inviting sanctuary seekers to more events; committing to learning a bit more about people’s previous and current situation; raising more funding as well as awareness of the issues. A fully functioning CoS would typically include pledges signed by the local authorities and other statutory agencies, with CoS streams such as schools for sanctuary, and faith groups for sanctuary. In Newcastle (now there’s somewhere to compete with!), they have choirs for sanctuary and are developing the idea of book clubs for sanctuary where a book club will welcome and encourage sanctuary seekers to join and to also read more books with a sanctuary/refugee theme. In the Tees Valley the steering group has representatives from all the key refugee-supporting agencies. This avoids any duplication of services or unnecessary competition for funding, and the potential streams of sanctuary include: Musicians, Businesses, Lawyers, as well as Local Authorities and Schools for Sanctuary.
Flexibility is built into the whole process so that each city/area moves at its own pace and develops the kind of support and ‘streams’ to suit the local area. The key to be recognised as a CoS is evidence that the three core principles outlined above are being met/exceeded.
If you would like to be involved in this exciting and rewarding initiative please contact Pete Widlinski Email: pete@teesvalley.cityofsanctuary.org
“The world will not be destroyed by those who do evil, but by those who watch them without doing anything.”
Albert Einstein
Teesside People’s Assembly review of 2014
2014 has not been a great year for most people living under the austerity regime. Attacks on public services, the welfare state and employment conditions have continued apace, whilst the owners and directors of big business have rewarded themselves still further.
This has made the campaign work of Teesside People's Assembly all the more vital.
We cannot provide a lengthy list of spectacular victories, but we have organised a number of actions and worked in solidarity with others to ensure that the austerity agenda has not gone unchallenged, to raise awareness that there is an alternative and to begin building the movement that will be needed for people to believe that change is possible.
The main actions we organised or co-organised during 2014 were as follows:
- Public services strike rally with speakers from UNISON, Unite the union, the PCS and UCU (in partnership with Northern Public Services Alliance, 20 October)
- Anti-cuts demonstrations at Middlesbrough Council budget meetings (20 January and 3 March)
- 'No More Austerity’ march in London (21 June)
- Public meetings on TTIP (30 September) and how to fight austerity (28 May)
- Stuff Austerity event in Stockton (20 September), featuring live performances by Werbeniuk,Steve Cooke, Icarus Williams and Andy Landscape.
Teesside People's Assembly have also supported and been involved with many other actions over the year that are standing up against Austerity.
Several of our actions achieved coverage on regional television and radio and in the local press, as a result of which we were subsequently asked to comment in the media on other austerity issues.
We worked closely with a number of campaign, community and labour movement groups, including 999 Call for the NHS, the People’s NHS, Northern Public Services Alliance, Teesside Solidarity Movement, Teesside Palestine Solidarity Campaign, Darlington Against Cuts, trade union branches and, of course, People’s Assembly branches throughout the region.
We further developed our website and social media presence (Facebook & Twitter), maintained an electronic mailing list to keep our supporters up to date, published videos of demonstrations on our Youtube channel and released podcast recordings of speeches and debate from our public events.
As well as promoting our own actions, our online work sought to raise awareness of, and promote solidarity with, anti-austerity campaigns throughout the country and internationally. We look forward to building on our successes, as well as learning from the things we could have done better, during the coming year.
Our Next meeting of 2015 will be held on Tuesday 3rd March at 7.15pm in St Mary's Centre, Middlesbrough. The agenda will include plans for a national day of action for the NHS and an anti-benefit sanctions demo in Hartlepool. All of our meetings are public, so do please come along and get involved..
Teesside People's Assembly against Austerity.
Email: TeessidePA@gmail.com
Follow us online at:
www.TeessidePA.tumblr.com
www.facebook.com/TeessidePA
www.twitter.com/TeessidePA
www.youtube.com/TeessidePA
Steve Cooke
What's on where...
Teesside Greenpeace
‘Time to act on Climate change' Monday 26th February 7.00 - 8.30pm Quaker meeting house, 131 Cambridge road, Linthorpe Middlesbrough. With speaker Suzanne Jeffrey (Campaign against Climate change)#TeesNo2sanctions DAY OF ACTION planning meeting
Teesside Solidarity Movement will be hosting a planning meeting for the forthcoming national day of action called for by Unite Community scheduled for 19 March. Thus far the day of action has been additionally supported by Teesside People's Assembly Against Austerity. 12 February at 19:00. St. Mary's Centre, 82-90 Corporation Road, Middlesbrough.East Cleveland Global Justice Now (former World Development Movement)
The East Cleveland Global Justice Now. Meeting 2nd March Downstairs in the Marine at 8.15pmJustice First
Marske Fishermen's Choir. Friday 27th March 7.30pm at The Marine Hotel, Marine Parade, Saltburn. £5 inc buffet, Tickets available from Justice first 01642 601122. In aid of the Mary Thompson Fund (supporting refugees in Teesside)Teesside People's Assembly
Meeting - Tuesday 3rd March at 7.15pm in St Mary's Centre, 82-90 Corporation Road, Middlesbrough TS1 2RW.Food First
Saltburn Farmers Market - Saturday 14th March, Saltburn square. Stockton Farmers Market - Saturday 28th March, Stockton high streetTeesside Socialist Clothing Bank
Newport Hub, Union Street, Middlesbrough. Open the second Saturday of each month from 11am – 2pmGreenpeace Teesside
Monthly meeting's first Tuesday of every month. Next meeting: Tuesday 3rd March, 7.00pm at the Stockton Arc.4 People Not Profit Saltburn's premier event organisers who have been putting on gigs and film nights in Saltburn promoting social justice and human rights issues for the last 7 years have launched a new initiative The Community Network.
The idea is to create a network to link up all of the left, environmental and community groups in the Teesside area to promote communication and collaborative working to get more people involved in community activism.
The 4 People Not Profit Community Network had its launch meeting on Tuesday the 11th of November at the Marine. Around 25 or so people attended representing a range of local activist groups including; The World Development Movement, Friends of the Earth, The People's Assembly, Teesside Solidarity Movement, Beachwatch, Frack free Cleveland, Transition Saltburn amongst others and various other interested activists.
The Community Network will comprise of a regular mailing list of all events and a regular newsletter available on the mailing list and paper copies to be distributed around the Teesside area. The Community Network will hold meetings on a bi monthly basis to promote collaborative working and to act as a social evening for different groups and individuals to get together and see what events and campaigns they can work together on. Ultimately we are looking to put on a festival at the end of next summer in Saltburn to promote community unity.
If you are a member of a community or activist group or an individual that looks to help the disadvantaged, or protect the environment or just promotes community unity and breaking down barriers in the local area, and would like to join this Community Network please contact me:
Justin - supercharger52@hotmail.com
(N.B. If you are wanting to add an event to our google calendar which should be up and operational shortly please email Jonny to info@4peoplenotprofit.co.uk with "Event" in the subject for now whilst I set up a better form, cheers, Jonny.)
“Never doubt that a small group of concerned citizens can change the world. Indeed it’s the only thing that ever has.”
~Margaret Mead
Underground Coal Gasification
By Neil Bye
Five Quarter want to use the North East as a test bed for Underground Coal Gasification an experimental method of squeezing out the remaining drops of coal. They have received licences all down the NE coast with no local consultation. It involves injecting oxygen down one well to a coal seam where it ignites a gasification process that releases Syngas which is harvested through another well. Syngas contains carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, hydrogen and methane. Five-Quarter claim that what they are planning is Deep Gas Winning. They admit that the rocks around the gasification chamber will fracture. This means they are fracking as well as gasifying.
In tests run in Australia UCG wells were found to leak the same substances to groundwater as can be released by fracking. There are dangers of blowbacks and explosions. If these accidents happen offshore they will be very difficult to clean up. This could result in massive pollution to the North East coastline. Many tests have failed. It has never been used on a commercial basis.
The gas produced is Syngas or coal gas. It is a mixture of methane (natural gas), carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide and hydrogen. Carbon dioxide is a problem due to climate change. They plan to pump it back into the hole they have made using Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS). This is another process that has not been fully tested. Surely it would be better to use renewable and not produce the CO2 in the first place.
There is of course the carrot of job creation. Any jobs created by fracking will be highly specialized. However, if the same amounts of money were to be invested in renewable energies and/or home and public building insulation, which the public have been shown to prefer as the majority of surveys have shown. There would be far more new jobs, fewer environmental concerns, and beneficial consequences for global warming.<
Links:-
Five Quarter
www.five-quarter.com/
Underground Coal Gasification
frack-off.org.uk/extreme-energies/underground-coal-gasification/
Licences all down the NE coast
frackfreecleveland.co.uk/app/map.php
Deep Gas Winning
www.euroasiaindustry.com/article/winning-the-race-for-gas
Carbon Capture and Storage
frackfreecleveland.co.uk/files/CCS-briefing.pdf
“Every word you utter to another human being has an effect, but you don’t know it. If people began to understand that change comes about as a result of millions of tiny acts that seem totally insignificant, well then, they wouldn’t hesitate to take those tiny acts.”
~Howard Zinn
Birthdays and Bonuses
By Jessie Joe JacobsThere I was, having a meal with a group of people a little younger than me, and from a very different world to me… from affluent families and with public school backgrounds. We got chatting about how we all celebrated our 21st birthdays. I heard stories that were out of this world, birthdays more lavish than a Hello Magazine wedding. We’re talking yachts, old country manors, exclusive London nightclubs and restaurants. We’re talking huge amounts of alcohol and some very bad behaviour.
I guess it didn't totally surprise me, I've watched Made in Chelsea, I understand that there’s another world that exists in Britain, a world of decadence and of excess, of opulence and of greed. And yet something really disturbed me and still does about the stories I heard that night: it was the complete ignorance of the other world that exists in Britain, the world of hurt and pain, of poverty and abuse, of hunger and going without.
It’s been my privilege to be part of a charity involved in this second world. A few years ago I was walking to a local shop and I saw a girl that I recognised from outreach work. She was dressed in a short skirt and was clearly out "working". I hadn't seen her for a while and had hoped that she'd left that world behind. I went over to talk to her. After exchanging a few words, she told me it was her 21st birthday. She told me she hadn't received a card or a present. Her dad (who was one of her abusers) had given her £20 a few days ago. Her mum had passed away and everybody else had deserted her long ago. Here’s what she told me: “I didn’t want to be alone for my birthday, so I came back on the streets.”
With no money, no family & no friends she had turned back to the only thing she knew. Prostitution! That's how this young girl spent her 21st birthday. We all know that true equality exists only in Utopia, that it would be impossible to create a fully levelled world where everyone has the same opportunities, the same life chances or the same hopes, dreams or even birthday celebrations. But that doesn’t mean that we should just accept the extreme examples of inequality that exist all across the UK.
It’s unjust that in one of the worlds richest economies where our bankers don't get out of bed for less than £10,000 a day; that children are going hungry, or being exploited as slaves or prostitutes. It’s fundamentally unfair that the chairman of a premier league football club should receive multimillion pound bonuses whilst he traps his staff in poverty on zero hours contracts. It’s not an okay world where one girl plans what type of champagne she will give away for her 21st birthday while another plans what Street she will sell her body on.
On the back of every Labour Party membership card it defines our values as "working together to create a community where power, wealth and opportunity are in the hands of the many not the few". Britain ought not ever call itself ‘Great’ whilst these levels of inequality remain. ReLabour wants to expose these inequalities, generate a conversation about Labour’s historic mandate to tackle these issues. If you think that tackling inequality is at the heart of what it means to be Labour drop us a tweet @ReLabour and join in the conversation.
“An activist is someone who cannot help but fight for something. That person is not usually motivated by a need for power, or money, or fame, but in fact driven slightly mad by some injustice, some cruelty, some unfairness – So much so that he or she is compelled by some internal moral engine to act to make it better.”
~ Eve Ensler
Teesside Solidarity Movement Clothing Bank
By Lawrie Coombs
New provision initiatives are popping up as partial answers to the social and economic crisis facing us. Set against a backdrop of the welfare state being taken apart and the most vulnerable in society treated to ritualised humiliation, new answers going beyond charity are being discussed.
Starting in County Durham a number of trades unions have looked to provide free clothing for individuals and families in need and unable to afford basic items. Durham Miners Association, Unite Community alongside a local branch of GMB and other individual activists have been behind the formation of Co. Durham Socialist Clothing Store which has emerged to meet this need.
Operating presently in two areas of County Durham, the new project is organised on principles of solidarity as opposed charity and opposes notions of 'deserving' and 'undeserving poor'. Notwithstanding it's non-charity emphasis, the projects work closely with local foodbank provision. The project handles its work sensitively and attempts to combine a basic advice/guidance approach to communities in distress with campaigning work against poverty in general.
A number of activists from Teesside Solidarity Movement are presently working towards establishing a locally based project set up with similar ethos and principles. It hopes to dovetail this basic provision work with campaigning against poverty and deprivation.
Please contact Lawrie for more details 07804799562
THE 85 RICHEST PEOPLE OWN THE SAME WEALTH AS THE 3.5 BILLION POOREST PEOPLE
4 People Not Profit Community Network Nov-Dec Events
4 People Not Profit Community Network August Events
Community Network Issue 4 Aug/Sept 2015
4 People Not Profit Community Network July Events
4 People Not Profit Community Network June Events
Fundraiser for the Teesside Socialist Clothing Bank
Community Network Issue 3 April/May 2015
4 People Not Profit Community Network April/May events listing
Community Network Issue 2 February/March 2015
Community Network Newsletter Issue 1 January 2015