In no bourgeois democratic country in the world do men and women have equal rights. In some countries they might have equality before the law, but this does not mean that they are equal when it comes to wages and social rights.

The political situation across the Canadian state is characterized by subterranean moods of discontent that burst out in sporadic explosions. All of these movements are manifestations of the underlying crisis of the system. To help arm workers and young people in the fights to come, Fightback is publishing our political perspectives for 2013 — "Theses on the Class Struggle in Canada"

A wildcat strike by prison guards shook Alberta, paralyzing the prison system and quickly escalating. The government’s response to the complaints of workers in the prison system only provoked anger; the suspension of two employees for raising safety complaints provoked the incoming evening shift to refuse to turn up. Later, the government’s intention to seek a court-ordered return to work spread the strike to the 10 correctional facilities across the province. Soon after the order was issued, sheriffs at courthouses across Alberta joined the strike, and some crown prosecutors walked out as well.

One of the most disgraceful aspects of Canadian labour policy has come under the spotlight after Canadian banking giant RBC recently sacked 45 workers within their information technology (IT) division, outsourcing those jobs to lower-waged workers from India.  What was supposed to be a minor shuffling of jobs has, instead, become a raging scandal that has exposed how far the capitalist class is willing to go to undermine workers’ wages and rights — and all of it openly supported by the federal government.

In the Spring of 2006, millions of immigrant workers flooded the streets of the United States to say “enough is enough!” The spark was an ultra-reactionary “immigration reform” bill sponsored by Wisconsin Republican Jim Sensenbrenner. But the frustration had built up for decades, as dangerous working conditions, low wages, discrimination, and the constant fear of raids and deportations reached the breaking point. The boundless energy and determination to fight overflowed the “safe” limits of the traditional immigrant rights and non-profit charities.

Boston, April 17, 2013—Two days later, still stunned by the horrific scene of two bombs scattering the festive crowds cheering runners crossing the finish line of the 117^thrunning of the Boston Marathon, residents of the Boston area are left asking, “Why?”

Statement of Lucha de Clases (Class Strugge), Marxist Tendency of the PSUV. What we have witnessed in recent days is a developing coup as correctly described by Comrade President Nicolas Maduro.These are not just peaceful protests of fellow Venezuelans who believe that there has been fraud, but an orchestrated plan to overthrow the Bolivarian government and smash the revolution. How can we fight it?

With the watering down of the federal NDP constitution the party has taken a step to the right at its Montreal convention. This step mirrors similar developments within the social-democratic labour parties internationally, and is a tragic irony given the ongoing crisis of capitalism. However, disappointing as it is, the removal of a constitutional preamble that nobody had ever read does not fundamentally change the character of the NDP. Because of the crisis, mass movements are inevitable; these in turn will have their reflection in the mass organizations.

On Sunday April 14, Bolivarian candidate Nicolas Maduro won the Venezuelan presidential election by a narrow margin. With 99.12% of the votes counted, there was a 78.71% turn out, with Maduro receiving 7,505,378 votes (50.66%), and Capriles 7,270,403 votes (49.07%). Opposition candidate Capriles declared that he does not recognise the result and demanded an audit of 100% of the vote.

Bolivarian candidate Nicolas Maduro won the Venezuelan presidential election of April 14 by a narrow margin. With 99.12% of the votes counted, there was a 78.71% turn out, with Maduro receiving 7,505,378 votes (50.66%), and Capriles 7,270,403 votes (49.07%). Capriles declared that he does not recognise the result and demanded an audit of 100% of the vote.

Millions of people turned out on April 11 in a huge red tide filling seven avenues in Caracas for the closing rally of the campaign of Bolivarian presidential candidate Nicolas Maduro. The presidential elections are set to take place on Sunday April 14.

The week of March 4 was historic for Wall Street. The Dow Jones Industrial Average broke its all-time record high on Tuesday, and continued to break that record throughout the week. Friday brought with it the monthly jobs report. Initial estimates are that 236,000 new jobs were added in February, somewhat higher than the 160,000 predicted by most economists. 

This coming Saturday the Venezuelan presidential elections will take place. These elections have once more mobilized the masses who are coming to the fore to defend their revolution and the legacy of its deceased leader Hugo Chavez. Although the victory of the revolution is clear in these elections, it is equally clear that they will mark the opening of a new and decisive phase in the history fo the revolution. The following text is a statement by Lucha de Clases- the Venezuelan section of the IMT - that outlines the dangers ahead and the tasks of the revolution.

This article appears in the April edition of Labour Briefing. It is almost an impossible task to sum up the legacy of Hugo Chávez in 650 words, but that was the space which was available.

The Constitution Committee of the federal NDP has proposed a rewrite of the preamble to the party’s constitution. The new wording is supposedly a compromise, after the right-wing of the party was defeated in 2011 when it tried to remove all references to socialism. However, this new amendment is no compromise at all and marks a significant turn to the right. “Socialism” is relegated to the past in a tokenistic fashion. Most notably, sections on social ownership are removed and replaced with the primacy of the market. This is a bitter irony, precisely when “the market” is showing its abject failure globally, and in Canada. Removal of the defence of social ownership also opens up the