Issue 15 of Linchpin, the newspaper of Common Cause, is now available online.

Inside you will find articles on CUPE's upcoming strikes and lockouts affecting the City and University of Toronto, the struggle against Caterpillar being waged by locked out workers at Electro-Motive in London, reports from Occupy Toronto and Occupy Hamilton, interviews with participants in the Egyptian Revolution and more!

Download Linchpin here!

Protest signs and work boots hang off a fence at the front gate of the Electro-Motive Diesel plant in London Ont. on Jan. 21 Photo: Mick Sweetman

By Alex Balch

There was little to celebrate this New Years Eve for workers at the Electro-Motive Canada (EMC) plant in London, Ontario. As midnight struck, the factory's 465 employees found themselves locked out of their workplace and forced into a labour dispute with one of the largest industrial equipment manufacturers in the world – Caterpillar Inc (CAT).

Common Cause supports the locked out workers of CAW Local 27 in their struggle for a living wage. The year of 2012 has begun with a blatant attack on the working class. Electromotive Canada (EMC), owned by Caterpillar, has demanded a 50 per cent wage cut and major pension and benefit concessions. When the workers refused to accept that offer the company locked them out at the start of the year. This shows that the capitalist class, aka the 1%, is only interested in their own profits and will stop at nothing to meet this goal.

The events at EMC will set the tone for the struggle against exploitation in London, Canada, and beyond. Whether this ends in victory or defeat, this struggle is important for all working people, but we must do everything we can to win. If mobilized, the power of the labour movement can stop the bosses in their tracks.

Between October 22 and October 25, Common Cause organized a speaking tour entitled “Class War On The Workfloor” in four Ontario cities (Hamilton, Toronto, Kitchener & London). The speaker was postal worker, anarchist and rank-and-file trouble maker, Rachael Stafford, from Edmonton.

Un argument pour que les survivantes(s) de viol et de violence domestique deviennent des militantes(s) syndicalistes

Liberté Locke, une militante au syndicat des travailleurs de Starbuck, écrit dans cet article la similarité entre la violence au travail et la violence sexuelle. Elle explique en effet que les agresseurs sexuels et les patrons utilisent les mêmes techniques de contrôle et qu’il nous est nécessaire de se battre contre ces deux formes d’oppression.

AVERTISSEMENT: Cet article parle du sujet de la violence sexuelle.

J’ai été violée par mon chum le 18 Août, 2006. La journée suivante, je retenais mes larmes pendant que je mentais à un inconnu au téléphone expliquant pourquoi je devais manquer ma 2e entrevue pour un emploi que j’avais besoin désespérément. Quand j’ai finalement raccroché, je reçu un nouveau message texte. ‘’ Ce n’est pas terminé. Ce ne sera jamais terminé entre nous...’’

Statement on “Project Marvel” Raids in Hamilton

NO MORE POLICE TERROR IN OUR CITY!

Hamilton CopWatch statement on recent ‘Project Marvel’ raids

On Tuesday December 13th Toronto police launched a coordinated series of pre-dawn raids across Canada involving over 900 cops from several jurisdictions executing 67 warrants targeting Toronto based ‘street gangs’ and their extended networks. Locally a total of 5 homes were attacked by Hamilton and Toronto Police, including the residence of a 68-year-old Sharon McCrudden (Toronto Police later admitted they had the wrong address) and another of Pamela Markland and her 6 children. Despite the use of dangerous paramilitary tactics, Hamilton Police have come up with no arrests or charges as a result of the raids.

Following the June 2010 G20 summit in Toronto, a wave of repression came down on anarchists and anti-authoritarians in Southern Ontario. Ryan Rainville was one of those arrested and held in jail for three months before being released into house arrest at a Native men's residence in Toronto called Sagatay.

Throughout his court proceedings, Ryan proudly proclaimed his anarchist values and defended the use of property destruction during anti-capitalist protests that weekend to disrupt the economy.

Ryan eventually plead guilty to three counts of Mischief Over $5000 and Breach of Peace. On October 31st, 2011 with at least a dozen supporters present, Ryan made the following statement to the court.

- Guelph Anarchist Black Cross (http://guelphprisonersolidarity.wordpress.com)

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