On the interminable political news and discussion TV programmes here in Italy the pundits are all talking about ‘catching the virus' of the huge protests in the Spanish state and France. Hundreds of thousands of students mobilized on 16 October. Tent protests have sprung up in some city squares and there were minority skirmishes with the police in a few places.
On 17 October students joined the national demonstration against the spiraling cost of living called by the General Confederation (…)

“At present, it is impossible to predict how the movement will develop. The issue of housing, however, is already at the centre of public debate, even as the government attempts to refocus the debate on ‘violence' or the legitimacy of occupying a public space with tents.”

“That potential for instant destruction has become more imminent, with the most militarily powerful countries adding fuel to an already overheated arms race and engaging in wars with each other, indirectly if not directly. Making the situation more perilous is the introduction of Artificial Intelligence-powered tools into warfare.”

“In his infamous United Nations speech a year ago, Trump denounced global heating as the “biggest scam in world history.” Since his re-election, Trump has withdrawn the US from the Paris Accords, closed offices and programs dealing with climate change, terminated dozens of experts working on global heating and, crucially, withdrawn billions of dollars aimed at mitigating the effects of climate change.”

The summer of 2026 broke all heat records. We have witnessed unprecedented forest fires in Europe and droughts in regions that, until now, had been largely spared. In this context, it is interesting to examine landscapes and society from the perspective of water.

An estimated 7 to 9 million people joined some 3,000 No Kings demonstrations across the United States on October 17 to encourage voters to vote and to defend the vote. The liberal organizations leading No Kings—Indivisible, the American Civil Liberties Union, the American Federation of Teachers, and Black and Latino voters' group—called for a non-partisan demonstration. Certainly, there were many Independents and some Republicans present, but, like three earlier No Kings protests, this was another massive movement against President Donald Trump.

A housing encampment was set up in Rossio this Saturday, in response to rising rents, which put the prospect of housing out of reach for young people in Portugal.

Paris calls? Rome answers! This was the announcement made by Maurizio Landini, General Secretary of the CGIL, from the podium in Piazza del Popolo at the end of a major national march. It will be a day of natural solidarity with the students, just as is currently happening in France.

Written for an Australian audience, Colin Long's reply to the Australian Greens leader David Shoebridge makes arguments useful for Ukraine solidarity activists everywhere.

[Bilbao, Spain, October 15, 2026] Hundreds of thousands have marched in Spain in recent weeks to stop evictions, in opposition to housing speculation, against rising rent, and to demand more housing. One woman's eviction sparked the movement.

The struggle for the rights of Kenyan workers at the French multinational digital services company is being organised from Nairobi to Paris.

“We did not fight against apartheid because we were Zulus or Xhosas or Sothos. We fought because we were Blacks and we were being deprived of the right to be South African by a regime that did not recognise our existence as Black people in this country. ”

After a scorching and deadly summer for the working classes, the mobilizations for decent, free and democratic education that began in June are back in full force!

“Preparing for the General Strike on November 11 requires the greatest possible unity of action among the organising bodies to establish neighbourhood, workplace, and campus committees across the country—as has already been proposed by the Tenants' Union and various other trade union, feminist, environmental, and social organisations.”

“Alan Thornett, who has died aged 89, was the best-known militant in the British car industry during the decade when the industry settled the fate of British trade unionism.”

Last week was the end of the New York City's honeymoon with Mayor Zohran Mamdani as he confronted controversies over the anniversary of the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel and an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) shooting of an immigrant.

The day of action on 6 October was exceptional. With over 90 per cent of universities blockaded, according to the Union étudiante, and 1,800 secondary schools blockaded, according to the Union syndicale lycéenne, the movement is, from the outset, stronger than the 2006 movement against the CPE – the last major, successful youth movement. The future of this movement is perhaps even more significant.

The 17th World Social Forum was held in Benin in early August. While it remains an irreplaceable forum for debate, this session was a failure in terms of both numbers and political participation.

The first round defeated the left. Michael Löwy warns: democracy is at risk and, however contradictory, Lula is the only option for stopping fascism's “suicide train.” Braking it means buying time to build other political horizons.

“Socialism is the rule of the working class. Planning is an instrument of the democratic workers' state for organizing production for human need under its collective political and social rule and the transition to a classless society.”