Left-Wing and the ‘Other’ History: The 1906 Cananea Strike

The timeline of revolutions is never clear in regards to when we can say it began or ended. For example, we traditionally mark the storming of the Bastille as the start of the French Revolution, but there were agricultural strikes in the year preceding this. Likewise, the Mexican Revolution (dated roughly 1910 to 1920) is

Left-Wing and the ‘Other’ History: The El Paso Bath Riots, 1917

This blog is written just after 2024’s International Women’s Day and it is important to acknowledge that International Women’s Day was founded to celebrate working class women and their involvement in fighting for a just war. Every radical movement in world history has had women at the centre, in some way, and in 1917 along

The Other 9/11: The Day Chilean Democracy Died

Decades before the terror attacks on the Twin Towers September 11 had been a day of infamy. On September 11 1973 a US-backed coup toppled Chile’s democratically elected socialist government and issued in one of the most brutal dictatorships of Latin America. As I am writing this the fiftieth anniversary of the coup was just

Left-wing and the ‘Other’ History: The First Recorded Strike

Throughout history strikes have been an important way for the exploited classes to fight back against their oppression. From railway workers to sex workers, from students to teachers, to screenwriters to farmers in each inhabited continent workers have went on strike to defend or obtain their rights. Strikes have been present throughout history, and today

Left-wing and the ‘Other’ History: The Revolutionary Life of Ito Noe

As I am writing International Women’s Day is around the corner, and I wanted this opportunity to discuss a radical woman from interwar Japan. Ito Noe (1895-1923) was a significant figure in Japanese interwar feminism and the anarchist movement. Holding radical ideas which challenged society’s conservative notion of womanhood, love, and the family, she would

Left-Wing and the ‘Other’ History: Qiu Jin

The history of China is full of revolutionary figures, and one important but overlooked one is that of Qiu Jin. Born in 1875 she was a revolutionary feminist figure who went from a life of domesticity to leading a revolution against the ruling Qing dynasty. This remarkable woman became a martyr for feminism and social

Left-Wing and the ‘Other’ History: The Australian History Wars

Whenever academic history and popular history intersect during a major shift in historiography we see intense debates about the study of the past. Often they become embroiled in a ‘culture war’ with Left-wing and Right-wing figures becoming associated with a certain viewpoint of history. For example, there were the volatile debates about ‘truth’ and ‘accuracy’

Left-Wing and the ‘Other’ History: International Women’s Day

As I am writing this it is International Women’s Day 2020, and across the world marches are taking place to highlight gender inequality which still exists worldwide. However, the radical origins of International Women’s Day has largely been overlooked as it has been co-opted by wider society – similar protest movements and celebrations, such as

Left-Wing and the ‘Other’ History: The Internationale

The Internationale, or L’Internationale with its original French title, has remained one of the most important and widespread left-wing anthems since its creation close to 150 years ago. If you have not heard the song this video below will be helpful: This is just one of the several versions of the song in English alone. Originating

Left-Wing and the ‘Other’ History: The Zapatistas

*Part of this post has been adapted from an essay written by myself for the University of Edinburgh On January 1 1994 in the forests of Chiapas, southern Mexico an uprising took place. An armed libertarian socialist group calling themselves the Ejército Zapatista de Liberación Nacional, (the Zapatista National Liberation Army), better known as the EZLN,