By Elowyn Paitson
LISMORE — There is now an official Resistance branch here! Members of the Southern Cross University Resistance Club voted unanimously last week to become a fully functioning branch. While the club been active and involved in a variety of actions this year, we are now embarking on consolidating Resistance further.
It's exciting to be a part of something that's bigger than just this group, that's doing similar stuff all over Australia. Being a branch enhances that feeling and encourages us to be more organised.
The group began at the start of 1997 with just two members, who boldly set out to bring Resistance to Lismore with the aims of organising progressive campaigns on and off campus, and of promoting democratic socialism and activism amongst youth.
Recruiting members, developing the group as a cohesive unit and educating new members on socialist politics have been a major focus. But despite our small size, we have also successfully organised several actions and events.
The campaign for solidarity with Indonesia and East Timor has been quite successful, with two presentations of the film There is only one word — Resist!. The second showing, held in town in May, attracted 50 people. As a result, Resistance was able to create links with other activists in the area.
Resistance and Lismore Friends of East Timor will be holding a fundraising dinner in conjunction with the tour of Indonesian activist Edwin Gonzales and East Timorese activist Naldo Rai, on August 26 at the Lismore City Hall. Local Indonesian artist and activist Yosi Suprato will be exhibiting his artwork in support of the campaign.
Resistance has been involved in organising and publicising the campaign for free education on SCU campus, including the March 26 and May 8 national days of action in protest against federal government cuts to education and the threat of up-front fees.
The May 8 action focused on the university administration's takeover of the Student Representative Union's financial affairs, and ensured that financial control was returned to the SRU on August 1.
Another day of action is planned in late August. Resistance, along with the Non-Aligned Left within the National Union of Students and other local activists, is involved in organising and supporting a broad left ticket in the student elections in late September.
Resistance has helped organise and promote an anti-racism rally in Lismore, which drew 900 people, and organise public meetings in Lismore and Byron Bay as part of the national anti-racism "Justice Tour". Resistance will continue to campaign against racism, as One Nation continues to spread its racist message.
Lismore City Council is currently lobbying the state government to legislate the Parental Responsibility Act (PRA), a law to give police greater powers to harass and detain young people.
With a high rate of youth unemployment, domestic abuse and very little youth recreation, there are few options for many young people besides hanging out in the streets.
This act will restrict youth access to public space and increase animosity between local youth and police. Aimed at under-16s, the act does little to address the real problems faced by youth, and is a negative step.
Resistance members recently attended a public forum to discuss the issue. Eight speakers — including a police officer, a councillor, a lawyer, representatives of the Lismore Youth Council and local Aboriginal community, activist Peter O'Brien, and local youth social workers — presented cases against the act.
One hundred people attended the forum and at the end of the night voted unanimously against introduction of the PRA. Resistance, along with other youth activists in the area, will attend the next council meeting on August 6 to oppose the act, and will organise a campaign against it if necessary.
Initially only a campus group, Lismore Resistance now has members from high school and the general community. Over the next months, we hope to grow and raise the profile of Resistance. We are planning increased high school activity, including producing and distributing a Student Underground magazine.
Anouk Steinberg, a high school Resistance member, reports, "It's really exciting to be involved in political activity. There are a lot of potential activists at school; we just need to inform them about Resistance and encourage them to be active."