- firat May Day demonstration in 1890. tants, members of the CP, individual trade unionists, unemployed workers, all worked in the Councils of Action. They carried out mass picke ting: circulated bulletins; took over local transport; issued permits for essential supplies; arranged food and provisions for strikers; and got credit from the co-operative whore possible.
The food cogvor on Mar 9 ar Fast India Rock Road Some met cwery day. Othars were ia pernunent session, day and night/ Special Departments deuling with Finance, Propeganda, Publicity. Relief and Prisoners Aid were started. Orhers organised Workers Defence Corps and the troops and police took care to avoid these areas. Ti Northumberland and Durham these bodies were lederated and began to grow into organs of administration and government. In Newcastle, for esamipie, the OMS simply broke down, and the local authoritics had to go cap in hand to ask the unions to take over the vital services. The Trades Council agreed, on condition that ull police. OMS and troops were withdrawn. The workers, unlike the TUC with its plaintive appeals to the Government's sense of fair play, maintained the peace by asserting their superior power over that of the arried forces of the State.
The Councils of Action had been set up for the workers' democracy. What matters in a General Strike is who decides when it is to be called off and on what terms. Should the TUC, with no direct accountability to the workers, decide? Or should it be a national assembly of delegates from the areas, who are responsible to mass meetings, who should take all the decisions? The decision of the TUC, to call off the strike without even one single concession, gises a cleur answer to that question. The capitulation of the TUC moant the betrayal of the miners, massive wage cuts for the working class in the next years, and the demoralising unemployment of the thirties. No wonder that Birkenhead Chamberlain and some of the others listening wore triumphant siriles at the settle ment -quoted by Julian Symons in The Generai Strike.
Only by organising their owm power can the working class ensure that such a sell-out is not repeated. Furthermore only Councils of Action can recall that power if the Goverment fails to fulfil its agreaments. Finally it is only Councils of Action which cun form the basis for the working class to go on to the destruction of the capitalist State and establish its own State Add Weelw 1 Mav 1973 Pana 5
OR