Round up of Mayday actions

by ooops Tue May 09, 2006 13:59

Presidential Supreme decree 28,701 of May 1st 2006 was issued by Juan Evo Morales Aima (President Evo Morales) of Bolivia nationalising his country's sub-soil resources of Oil and Gas.

by dunk Tue May 09, 2006 14:34

For many it is important to remember the pagan origins of Mayday in a time when people worked WITH nature and celebrated the seasonal festive times that marked the agricultural events of food production - the source of life.
from that time, things changed, the power bodies of the time (catholic church) banned the festivals but those old ways never really died in Ireland which, untill the famine, was seen as the most liberal state in christendom.
This year is the 120th anniversary of events in Chicago that led to the Haymarket "riot"; a police-provoked disturbance at a workers rally for which four innocent men were hung. This event led to the international workers holiday; MAYDAY.

a little more on the origins:
"The international working class holiday; Mayday, originated in pagan Europe. It was a festive holy day celebrating the first spring planting. The ancient Celts and Saxons celebrated May 1st as Beltane or the day of fire. Bel was the Celtic god of the sun.
The Saxons began their May day celebrations on the eve of May, April 30. It was an evening of games and feasting celebrating the end of winter and the return of the sun and fertility of the soil. Torch bearing peasants and villager would wind their way up paths to the top of tall hills or mountain crags and then ignite wooden wheels which they would roll down into the fields
The May eve celebrations were eventually outlawed by the Catholic church, but were still celebrated by peasants until the late 1700's. While good church going folk would shy away from joining in the celebrations, those less afraid of papal authority would don animal masks and various costumes, not unlike our modern Halloween. The revelers, lead by the Goddess of the Hunt; Diana (sometimes played by a pagan-priest in women's clothing) and the Horned God; Herne, would travel up the hill shouting, chanting and singing, while blowing hunting horns. This night became known in Europe as Walpurgisnacht, or night of the witches
The Celtic tradition of Mayday in the British isles continued to be celebrated through-out the middle ages by rural and village folk. Here the traditions were similar with a goddess and god of the hunt. "
from THE ORIGINS AND TRADITIONS OF MAYDAY, By Eugene W. Plawiuk - http://melbourne.indymedia.org/print.php?id=90106

''May 4 marks the 120th anniversary of the Chicago's Haymarket "riot," a police-provoked disturbance at a workers rally for which four innocent men were hung. Two of these four did nothing more than express unpopular political views in public, the other two had no demonstrated connection to provoking the riot leading to the deaths 7 police officers and at least 3 civilians (probably more). Two of the Haymarket martyrs, Albert Parsons and August Spies, were particularly admirable leaders of the Chicago labor/anarchist movement in the 1870s and 1880s that had as its first priority an 8-hour workday (over 30 years before national implementation of the limited work day with overtime requiring heightened compensation), and as its long range vision a society in which members of "self-governing communities and workplaces would determine their own rights and responsibilities democratically, without the domination of a powerful national state with its judges and laws, its police forces and armies." (J. Green, DEATH IN THE MAYMARKET p. 129.)

more info and pictures and such at
http://ninethousandflowers.blogspot.com/2006/05/tribute....html

Heres an excellent and extremely informative audio article from urban75 about the history of mayday, from its celtic origins, outlawing of mayday in 1600's onto to dancing around the maypole, labours attempts at keeping day alive, london carnival against capital (mayday 2000) when indymedia.uk first broadcasted, euro mayday... and more
http://radio.indymedia.org/uploads/mayday_128.mp3
from imc-radio network
http://radio.indymedia.org/news/2005/05/4711.php

in keeping with the old mayday ways there were pagan/ spiritual / eco gatherings here in ireland to mark Beltine :
Beltine Twin Fires on Tara
http://www.indymedia.ie/article/75327

gathering The Hill of Uisneach this weekend
http://www.indymedia.ie/article/75754

and from that the spirit of being connected to and working WITH nature carries on in todays "modern" Ireland; from living and being close to the magic of nature, keeping old ways and skills alive,
CELT Weekend in the Woods 6th / 7th May 2006
http://www.indymedia.ie/article/75702

and that spirit also remains for some who try to bring the ideas of working WITH nature back to the modern urban world:
Site visit and gardening @ Saint Joseph's Girls' National School, Finglas
http://www.indymedia.ie/article/75692

Dublin : first Greenway cycle of 2006
http://www.indymedia.ie/article/75672

The Cursed Earth Garden
http://www.indymedia.ie/article/75922

ill leave you with the little story that came from last weekend down by the banks of the river Shannon in magical lands of County Clare:

from the river that has been here for god knows how long, the wooded banks that saw life for nearly as long, the man who came from further a field, who came up the river and ended up living in a magical woods, to the folk who came over time to share in the magic and to help make things grow, to the people in the nearby village who pitched in together and helped make a beautiful, simple and powerful community, to the woman from beyond the village who took an interest in seeds and started saving them, to the friends who joined her in her back garden, to the folk who came from further afield for a few weeks back in 2002, to the folk who kept it going, kept the connections alive, to those who took it to the next level, to those who shared knowledge on building homes and making chairs, to those that lifted the spirits with tales and tunes around the fires, to those who shared time, tea, peace and quite, to those that were simply there, who smiled and who said nothing.

by Anomino-anarko-appreciato Tue May 09, 2006 14:46

there was also a bit of artistic action over the mayday period by members of PSDcrew,Anachist youth,seomra sproai and Liberte

by John Tue May 09, 2006 22:59

We had a fun time in Cork too, surprised no other entries or photos, there were lots of folk with cameras. Kicked off with Tir na gCasta sound system at 3pm outside the Opera House, skate kids, hippies, punks and colourful outfits then moved off sound system and all to join and reinvigorate the Trades' Council march from Connolly Hall. Some aggravation from cops all hung up about people drinking on the streets. marched through town to Daunt's Square for speeches and the now traditional Reclaim the Footpath event. More music, wild dancing and celebration of this most beautiful of seasons. Resistance, joy, fertility all rolled into one. see ye next year folks

by anarkitty Thu May 11, 2006 13:32

yeah, cork mayday was wikkid, someone post pictures please!