Workers Solidarity Movement

Dublin Anarchist Bookfair 2010 - May 29th

The 5th Anarchist Bookfair took place in Dublin the weekend of 29th May 2010. Below you will find details of the events at the bookfair including audio recordings of many of the events.

A day out of the ordinary- The Dublin Anarchist Bookfair!

May saw the return of the annual Anarchist Bookfair to Dublin, our fifth Bookfair to take place in the city to date. Starting from humble beginnings in the St. Nicholas of Myra Hall in The Liberties five years ago, last years Bookfair was arguably the most successful to date. Over one thousand people passed through Liberty Hall during the day with ten different meetings and workshops held discussing a wide range of topics ranging from Palestine to Left Unity, Iran to Shell to Sea, Social Centres and beyond.

Report and photos from the 2010 Dublin anarchist bookfair

To find out about future bookfairs and be notified of the release of audio from this one join the  Dublin Anarchist Bookfair Facebook group

Meetings at the 2010 bookfair

Friday night - 20:00 - Seomra Spraoi
The first copies were distibuted as Gardai attacked the Anglo Irish bank occupation and then attempted to stop the anti-capitalist bloc march but this is the formal launch of the new WSM magazine Irish Anarchist Review much of the content of which looks at the fight against the capitalist crisis in the workplace. Authors & editors introduced the articles, there will be some formal discussion and lots of hanging out and informal discussion.  (Recording available)

Saturday 29th May - Liberty Hall, Eden Quay

10.30 - doors opened

11.30 - 12.30
Main theater - 'Fighting their crisis'
After the anti-capitalist blocs and the Anglo Irish protests how can we build to defeat the government and make the rich pay for their crisis?  (Recording available)
Connolly room - From the ground up
Suzanne & Sinead from RAG (Revolutionary Anarcha-feminist Group) present a workshop on mental health. (no recording)
Red space -  Organising the Unorganised
Trade Union Organising in Las Vegas - - speaker is one of the union organisers that ran this successful campaign involving 1000's of health care workers (no recording)

12.45 - 1.45
Connolly room - An Introduction to Anarchism,
Paul Bowman & Joseph present an introduction to anarchism and the WSM (Recording to come)
Red Room - Israeli Apartheid, BDS and Grassroots Resistance in Palestine
Speaker will be Freda Hughes from the Irish Palestine Solidarity Campaign (Recording available)

13.00 - 14.30
Main theater - Lost Revolution - The Sucesses and Failures of the Workers Party
Brian Hanley and Scott Millar, the authors of the book "The Lost Revolution",  will be having a discussion with Alan MacSimoin, a member of the WSM who was a member of the Workers Party during the 70's, on thetopic of "The Sucesses and Failures of the Workers Party". (no recording)

14.00 - 15.00
Connolly room - Revolutionary unions in Spain today
w/ Manu Garcia & José Antonio Guttierez Danton. Manu Garcia has been in the CNT (Spanish confederation of anarcho-syndicalist trade unions) for years, and was influential in building up the CNT's strong presence in Andalusia. He will be sharing with us his valuable experiences of union organising and great information and history about anarchism in Spain. (no recording)

15.00- 16.00
Main theater -One million Signatures- An Iranian Feminist Speaks
An Iranian women's rights activist and journalist who spent 45 days on death row in Iran. She has been involved in the One Million Signatures campaign in Iran, see the Wikipedia entry for more info. At her request we will not be advertising her name. With Farah Mokhtareizadeh (Recording available)

15.15 - 16.15
Connolly room - Revolutionary Experiments In Ireland 1917-1923 with Guest Speaker, Connor Kostick author of Revolution in Ireland: Popular militancy 1917 to 1923 (Recording available)
Red space - - The Great Oil & Gas Giveaway
How a handful of exploration companies got their hands on the hundreds of billions of oil & gas wealth and what we can do about it.  Speaker Caoimhe Kerins from Dublin Shell to Sea. (no recording)

16.30 - 18.00
Main theater - Film showing - a documentary on a major Irish community struggle. (no recording)

16.30- 17.30
Connolly room - The Struggle for a womans right to choose: from the global to the personal
Speaker: Sinéad Ahern from Choice Ireland (Recording to come)
Red space - José Antonio Guttierez Danton launches his first book. (This session was in Spanish, no recording)

Post bookfair party
The evening of the Dublin anarchist bookfair in Seomra Spraoi
 

Sunday 30 May - Radical Dublin Walking tour - 13:00 - Met up outside Ambassador Cinema
As part of this years Anarchist Bookfair weekend, Donal Fallon of the Workers Solidarity Movement will be provided a walking tour of the city taking in some aspects of Dublin's radical history. From soviets to strikes, and spanning the time of the First International right through to recent struggles. (Recording to come)

Sign up to the Dublin Anarchist Bookfair Facebook group to get notifications of future bookfairs

Promotional material
Dublin anarchist bookfair 2010 posters and leaflets
Listen to the Radio Solidarity ad for Dublin @ Bookfair 2010
 

Some material from previous bookfairs

Feedback on the bookfair from attendees
The audio file was recorded at the Seomra Spraoi social after the 2009 Dublin anarchist bookfair. In it 25 people give their impressions of the day.

From the 2009 Dublin anarchist bookfair

The 4th/2009 Dublin Anarchist Bookfair took place on weekend of the 7th of March in Liberty Hall. The Bookfair hosted workshops, stalls from campaigning groups and book stalls.  Meetings include former Black Panther to Speak and US Anarchist Ashanti Alston 

From the 2008 Dublin anarchist bookfair

On March the 15th 2008 the third annual Dublin Anarchist Bookfair took placein the Teachers Club - no. 36 Parnell Square.

Bookstalls and information stalls at the 2008 bookfair included Anarchist Federation UK, Anarchists Against the Wall, Anti War Ireland, Baracka Books, Belfast ABC, Choice Ireland, Class War Federation, Cork Autonomous Zone, Eirigi, HOPI - Hands Off the People of Iran Ireland Palestine Solidarity Campaign, Irish Socialist Network, Just Books, Latin American Solidarity Centre, MAOR, Mayday Magazine, Organise!, Oxfam bookshop, Projectile( Newcastle Anarchist film festival), Residents Against Racism, Revolt Video, Revolutionary Anarcha Feminist Group, Seomra Sproai Social Centre, Soldarity Federation

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Discussions and talks at the 2008 Dublin anarchist bookfair included

• The Health Service in Ireland is tackled and we have a health professional give their opinion on the war being waged in there.
• War, where next and how can it be stopped.
• Climate Change - can this be dealt with in our free market world.
• Palestine - what can be done by people here.
• Social centres, how can they be developed and what are the practical very real obstacles that need to be overcome.
• Feminism and Class
• Trade Unions
• An introduction to Anarchism
• And the struggle for true choice in 21st Century Ireland, are also scheduled talks due to take place.
• Also we have a guest speaker from Manchester talking about the very real life experience how communities can organise to resist police brutality - a pertinent issue in Dublin as Larry Wheelock will relate.

In addition we had the following "extra-curricular" activities accompanying the weekend for the curious and adventurous:

• Film Room: Alternative movies and films showing all day
• Sunday 16th March – Dublin’s Other History – a short activist walking tour of Dublin city centre. Meet outside Teachers Club at 2pm

Timetable from 2008 Dublin anarchist bookfair

2008 Bookfair fundraiser:The Dublin premiere of the film 'Torture is us' was held in the Teachers Club, 3 on Friday February 22nd