107cowgate

Below we reproduce in full and with permission today’s statement from the Greater Ardoyne Residents Collective. Since partition and before, the Ardoyne Community has borne the brunt of naked sectarianism in our city. In every generation, our community has proudly resisted against the evil forces of the State and Loyalism that view our people as … Continue reading →

The lengths Police Scotland will go to in order to disrupt James Connolly Society activities always amazes. In Jim’s absence (and because he could do with being cheered up) we decided to republish this JCS statement. Last week the James Connolly Society received an email from Edinburgh City Council stating that Police Scotland wanted us … Continue reading →

On the centenary of James Connolly’s execution we republish his last statement. The statement was given to his daughter on the eve of his execution. We would also encourage people who can to attend tonight’s vigil at 107 Cowgate, 7pm. This last statement will be read allowed at the end of the vigil at 8pm. … Continue reading →

By John Frame What is going on with Tommy Sheridan and his Solidarity Party? The perma-tanned firebrand appears to have lost all sense of reason and political rationale since his last incarceration at Her Majesty’s pleasure as a convicted perjurer. He recently attended a political fundraiser in Edinburgh where he extolled the virtues of James … Continue reading →

  We don’t need the empire to give us anything. Our efforts will be legal and peaceful, because our commitment is to peace and fraternity among all human beings who live on this planet writes Fidel Castro. The kings of Spain brought us the conquistadores and masters, whose footprints remained in the circular land grants … Continue reading →

By James Connolly We are moved to ask this question because of the extraordinary confusion of thought upon the subject which prevails in this country, due principally to the pernicious and misleading newspaper garbage upon which the Irish public has been fed for the past twenty-five years. Our Irish daily newspapers have done all that … Continue reading →

By James Connolly The following resolution was moved at last meeting of the Dublin Port and Docks Board: That we request the Government to take such steps as are necessary for the purpose of compelling the City of Dublin Company to resume the cross-channel traffic carried on by their steamers previous to November last; and … Continue reading →

By James Connolly The Irish Parliamentary Party, which at every stage of the Home Rule game had been outwitted and bull-dozed by Carson and the Unionists, which had surrendered every point and yielded every advantage to the skilful campaign of the aristocratic orange military clique in times of peace, behaved in equally as cowardly and … Continue reading →

By James Connolly Ireland is in the throes of a new invasion. But whereas all other invasions have been invasions of fighting men, this last invasion is an invasion of men who have declined to fight. Since the passing of the military service law and its coming into force in England this country has been … Continue reading →

By James Connolly Recently we have been pondering deeply over the ties that bind this country to England. It is not a new theme for our thoughts; for long years we have carried on propaganda in Ireland pointing out how the strings of self-interest bound the capitalist and landlord classes to the Empire, and how … Continue reading →

By Mark Hayes It is a difficult task to comment on any aspect of politics in Ireland without wading into a swamp of conflicting emotions and perspectives. Ireland has been a crucible of grievances for hundreds of years and people have been prepared to kill and die for one cause or another – meanwhile academics … Continue reading →

By James Connolly In this week’s issue of The Workers’ Republic we publish figures showing the enormous profits now being made by shipowners and merchants engaged in the import trade, side by side with the demand of the Government that the working class should practise more economy, and avoid all requests for higher wages. In … Continue reading →

By James Connolly We are often asked the above question. Sometimes the question is not too politely put, sometimes it is put in frantic bewilderment, sometimes it is put in wrathful objurgation, sometimes it is put in tearful entreaty, sometimes it is put by Nationalists who affect to despise the Labour movement, sometimes it is … Continue reading →

By James Connolly We regret that we are not able to give in our paper a complete report of the splendid speech delivered under the auspices of the Dublin Trades Council on Tuesday, January 15 by Father Laurence, O.F.M.Cap. It was by far the most significant speech yet delivered in the Trades Hall, and the … Continue reading →

By James Connolly Conscription means the enforced utilising of all the manhood of a country in order to fight its battles. Economic conscription would mean the enforced use of all the economic powers of a country in order to fight its battles. If it is right to take the manhood it is doubly right to … Continue reading →

The first in a year long 107 Cowgate series of articles exploring the impact of the 1916 Revolution on the working class in Ireland and beyond. by Steve Hedley My first memories of learning about the Easter rising are from when I was about three years old sitting in a neighbours house in our street … Continue reading →

Film about James Connolly, produced as part of the Seachtar na Cásca series. —– 107 Cowgate is run by volunteers and we need your support to survive. Please donate to help sustain the site and the tours, conferences and other educational services we provide. Donate Here Now! 107 Cowgate On Social Media On Twitter On Facebook Jim Slaven tweets … Continue reading →

By James Connolly A correspondent has written to us asking whether there is not a great similarity between the position and actions of the Irish Volunteers of our day, and that of the Volunteers of ’82. He points out that the Volunteers of ’82, despite the eulogies lavished upon them by the writers of Irish … Continue reading →

By James Connolly The long-drawn out fight with the City of Dublin Steam Packet Company is one of the most striking lessons yet offered of the absurdity of our present social arrangements. Here we have the spectacle of one man being able to upset the business and destroy the happiness of a whole community, in … Continue reading →

Continuing the theme this article from Italian Marxist revolutionary Antonio Gramsci was, like Connolly’s article, published 100 years ago today. By Antonio Gramsci Every morning, when I wake again under the pall of the sky, I feel that for me it is New Year’s day. That’s why I hate these New Year’s that fall like fixed … Continue reading →

  By James Connolly We should in this issue wish all our readers a “Happy New Year”. We do so wish them. But such a wish rings better when it is accompanied by a belief that the wish may be realised, and at the present moment the signs of a Happy New Year are none … Continue reading →

Below is the full text of the James Connolly Society’s New Year statement. The James Connolly Society extends New Year greetings to our activists, members and supporters. We offer solidarity greetings to political prisoners throughout the world and the organisations we have worked with over the last 12 months. 2015 has been an incredible year … Continue reading →

On the 21st December, 1796, a French Fleet entered Bantry Bay bearing on board arms, ammunition, and an army of fifteen thousand men for the liberation of Ireland. The French army commander had been separated from the fleet in a storm, and his successor hesitated about taking the responsibility of landing his troops. For days … Continue reading →

MORE POETRY Watch and Wait, boys, watch and wait, Let it be your motto, ever, Foolish zeal, unguarded hate, Often baulks a brave endeavour. God ordains, boys, God ordains That we pine a little longer, Ere we burst the galling chains, Ere we crush the brutal wronger. Did ever you read and ponder over these … Continue reading →

By James Connolly As we approach the Blessed Christmas Season we are reminded that this is the period of the year when all good Christians are exhorted to follow the above precept. Forgive and Forget. How sweet the words sound, and how soothing to the mind and conscience of men it is when they can … Continue reading →

As part of a new initiative to bring the writings of James Connolly to a wider audience 107 Cowgate will be republishing Connolly’s writings exactly 100 years to the day of their original publication. This initiative is being developed in conjunction with the James Connolly Society’s ‘Return to Connolly’ strategy. As we approach the centenary of … Continue reading →

Last month Gary O’Shea, a founding member of Anti-Fascist Action, delivered the keynote address at Connolly Conference 2015 in Edinburgh. Introducing the speech Gary said ‘Liberal piety surrounding immigration must first be rejected in order to allow the working class movement to develop it’s own analysis’. We are delighted to publish, for the first time, the whole … Continue reading →

Etienne Balibar, one of France’s leading intellectuals writes for Open Democracy in the aftermath of the Paris attacks. Here he inserts some much needed historical and political context into the debate and, as members of AA (Althusserians Anonymous), we at 107 Cowgate think it is always worth listening to Balibar. By Etienne Balibar Yes, we are at … Continue reading →

This weekend marks the 29th anniversary of the 1986 Sinn Fein Ard Fheis. Famous for this exchange between Martin McGuinness and Ruairí Ó Brádaigh over the issue of abstentionism. Although, as both men correctly point out, it was actually about the strategic direction of the republican movement. We all know what happened next and the subsequent political … Continue reading →

By Tanja Nijmeijer Regarding an article published in The Guardian, called “Colombia peace deal with Farc is hailed as new model for ending conflicts” written by Ed Vulliamy, I would like to make a few clarifications. The author mentions that only one of the six elements of the Agenda remains to be discussed: decommissioning and disarmament. … Continue reading →

Havana, Cuba, site of the Peace Talks, September 23, 2015 Compatriots and friends of peace in Colombia: We bring you today, in addition to our fraternal embrace, a report of collective victory: we achieved, with the invaluable help of the Legal Subcommission, to remove many of the obstacles that were making the path of our … Continue reading →

Report from Havana, Cuba. The Peace Delegation of the FARC-EP published today photos of the arrival of its commander-in-chief,Timoleón Jiménez (Timochenko), on its twitter account. He arrived early this morning at the José Martí airport in Havana and shortly afterwards met with the peace delegation of the FARC-EP. He came to Havana to sign, together … Continue reading →

In the first in a new series on Missing Histories, Jim Slaven of the James Connolly Society (and 107 Cowgate) spoke to the Scottish Independence Podcast about Connolly’s life and relevance. The interview also covers Thomas Paine, republicanism, Hibernian and Scottish independence. You can download here if you right click THIS LINK and “save as” You … Continue reading →

——- 107 Cowgate is run by volunteers and we need your support to survive. Please donate to help sustain the site and the tours, conferences and other educational services we provide. Donate Here Now! 107 Cowgate On Social Media On Twitter On Facebook Jim Slaven tweets @JimSlaven

107 Cowgate in conjunction with the James Connolly Society are holding a refugee crisis appeal. 107 Cowgate is based in Edinburgh’s Old Town, the part of the city known as Little Ireland in acknowledgement of the influx of Irish refugees and immigrants to the area historically. The JCS was founded by members of that community. … Continue reading →

This years Connolly Conference 2015 will be held in Edinburgh on Saturday 10th October. Speakers from Scotland, England, Wales and Ireland will discuss political developments in the context of James Connolly’s life and work. Tickets can be purchased online here.

New short video for the 30th anniversary of the James Connolly Commemoration organised annually by the James Connolly Society in his home city of Edinburgh. The video features posters and images from the previous 29 JCS commemorations.

By Jim Slaven The centenary of the 1916 Easter Rising has loomed large for several years and coincides with an increasing desire for political transformation across the island of Ireland. In Scotland 2016 represents the 30th anniversary of the James Connolly Society’s annual Connolly commemoration. The most significant event of its kind outside Ireland. The political … Continue reading →

Video of the recent debate between Ruth Dudley Edwards and Tommy McKearney in Dublin. The debate on ‘1916 Rising- A good or bad thing for Ireland? was hosted by the Sean Heuston 1916 Society.

Anti-colonialist writer and revolutionary Frantz Fanon would have been 90 years old today. Below is Jean-Paul Sartre’s introduction to Fanon’s classis The Wretched of the Earth. Not so very long ago, the earth numbered two thousand million inhabitants: five hundred million men, and one thousand five hundred million natives. The former had the Word; the … Continue reading →

Hon. Mr. Alexis Tsipras Prime Minister of Greece: I congratulate you warmly on your brilliant political victory, the details of which I followed closely on the Telesur channel. Cubans are very familiar with Greece. It taught philosophy, art and science of antiquity when we studied in school, and with these subjects, the most complex of all human … Continue reading →

By Jim Slaven Interregnum was originally used to describe that period between the death of one monarch and the enthronement of the next. This period was characterised by a suspension of old laws as people prepared for the new monarch introducing new laws. It was a period of flux yet simultaneously a period of stasis. … Continue reading →

The main speech at the 2015 James Connolly Commemoration in Edinburgh was delivered by Pól O’Scanaill, National Organiser of the 1916 Societies. Video of the speech, followed by some photographs from the commemoration can be viewed here. It is a great honour for me to be asked to speak at this commemoration for one of my … Continue reading →

There has been talk over recent weeks and months of ‘optimism’ regarding the potential for progress within the jail. David Ford’s Assessment Team has told us that he is committed to implementing the August 2010 Agreement. This is a view echoed by the I.C.R.C., a body which he has now permitted to potentially chair the … Continue reading →

Short video of the 2015 James Connolly Commemoration which was held at Connolly’s birthplace, 107 Cowgate. There are also photographs from the event included at the end of the video.   —– 107 Cowgate is run by volunteers and we need your support to survive. Please donate to help sustain the site and the tours, conferences … Continue reading →

On Wednesday 3rd of June, members of the 1916 Societies, taking advantage of lax security at the Stormont Assembly in Belfast, accessed the roof of the building, using the opportunity to raise the Irish National Flag and its sister flag, the flag of the Irish Republic. While only a symbolic gesture, nevertheless the actions concerned … Continue reading →

Ar dtús tá mé lán sásta agus bródúil a bheith anseo inniu ag caint faoi Óglach George Mc Brearty. First of all I am delighted and honoured to be asked here today to speak at this monument to our friend and comrade George McBrearty. I’d like to welcome George’s mother, his brothers and sisters and … Continue reading →

By Stevie McAloise Friday 19th September, 2014, was an interesting day in Glasgow. It was, of course, the day that followed the massive 45% vote in favour of independence, more than double the previous figures in favour of Scotland breaking from the UK. Despite losing the referendum, the momentum was with the YES campaign and … Continue reading →

  By Jim Slaven In 1884 Aloysius O’Kelly’s Mass in a Connemara Cabin became the only painting of an Irish subject ever to be exhibited at the prestigious Paris Salon. In subsequent years it was also exhibited and well received in London and New York before vanishing at the end of the nineteenth century. The … Continue reading →

Following our recent Spring Conference – with the Centenary of the Rising and the Proclamation of the Republic now less than 12 months out – the 1916 Societies consider the coming weeks an opportune moment to officially launch our ‘One Ireland One Vote Petition’ – an integral feature of our campaign for a 32-County referendum … Continue reading →