#OTD 5th of October 1968, a civil rights march in Derry was stopped by the RUC at its starting point in the Waterside and marchers were attacked with batons. The RUC assault led to rioting in the city, and is often cited as the starting point of “the Troubles”.
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![Scanned article, reading:
On August 28, three families from the East Wall area of Dublin moved in and squatted the Mansion House. The squat lasted for almost a week. The families on one side of the Mansion House and the Ideal Homes exhibition on the other. The families were homeless after being evicted by their landlord at 104 Church Road. The Corporation refused to house them because they did not have enough points. With 12,000 people on the housing list in Dublin, the points system is just a form of rationing and quite a vicious one at that. When young couples have to resort to having babies to increase their number of points, which is common practice, then it is more than time to declare a housing crisis and start a massive building programme with direct labour.
The Corporation insisted that it could not house these three families because it would not be fair to all the other families on the waiting list. Yet within a week of squatting the Mansion House they were all housed. This was a great victory for direct action and against the faceless bureaucracy which hides behind the points system.
Decent housing is a basic human right which is heing denied to thousands of people at the moment. Another generation of children is growing up in overcrowded conditions, living with all the tensions that kind of situation produces. It is quite amazing how fast the Corporation could find the resources to give Sean McDermot Street a facelift for the papal visit, but can never find the resources to provide decent housing and maintainence.
There is an unorganised squatters ‘movement’ in Corporation housing at the moment because of the demand for housing. However it is still possible for the Corpo. to play off the legal tenants against the squatters.
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![Website screenshot, reading:
1981: Serious clashes between Republican demonstrators and Gardaí outside the British Embassy took place
On 18th of July 1981, a march in support of the Hunger Strikers campaign, ongoing since March of that year, ended with violent clashes outside the British Embassy after a Garda baton-charge, in which more than 200 people were hurt.
A document from Revolutionary Struggle after the event, ‘Organise Against State Repression’, states:
On the 18th. July thousands of people from all over the country mobilised in Dublin for a march on the British Embassy in support of the Hunger [Strikers]. Before reaching the Embassy however, the marchers were stopped at Merrion Rd. by a wall of cops in riot gear, [several] rows deep. This strategy of confrontation and intimidation, meant to frighten people off the streets and deny them expression, was resisted by many brave comrades who tried to fight their way through. The cops held rank for fifteen minutes and then charged. Their violence and brutality as they ran riot, beating everyone in their path was [psychotic].
Related Pages:
Hunger Strikes, 1980/81
Organise Against State Repression](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:voubmrdtjrduaaqwmfwsqsvj/bafkreib3zxnourttgoianyxslpfbtxocluqnwrphxrfu4hyiflr5ghttce)
![Scanned newspaper article headlined "Wales Defiled!", with a caricature image of Charles, and reading:
On July 1 as we go to press a representative of the English Crown, the most vicious institution of murder the world has ever known, was installed as "prince" of Wales.
Surrounded by the largest force of police and troops ever mounted in peacetime the English "royals" imposed themselves on the people of Wales. The "royal" occasion did not pass without protest however: bombs exploded in Cardiff, the Welsh Capital, and in Abergele, forty miles from Caernarvon, two men were killed while placing explosives in a government office.
At the same time the marathon trial of members of the Free Wales Army was coming to an end and the verdicts were due to be announced on July 1. Referring to the trial, our Welsh correspondent writes:
Now as the Free Wales Army trial drags to its seemingly interminable close the moment of decision – the "crunch" – arrives. Not only for those patriots in the dock at Swansea. The hour of decision has arrived for the whole movement towards devolution of Government away from the Whitehall tyrannies of the Harold Wilson regime. Sadly, most sadly, one or two signs of the cracking of resolve are to be seen amongst those who took upon themselves the heavy responsibility of putting themselves forward as martyrs in the cause of the struggle to save the lifeblood of the Welsh nation.
The inspiration for the Welsh militant movement sprang – as it was bound to do – from the great examples of the Irish patriots of the time of Ireland's agony.
But from the example of the martyrs for Irish independence those who are now in doubt – and who can blame them after the ordeal they have undergone in English prisons over the past months? – they, these new martyrs in the cause of Wales, must draw fresh strength.
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![Scanned article headlined "Spare Rib" and reading:
A WEEK AGO THE CENSORSHIP BOARD BANNED SPARE RIB ON THE GROUNDS THAT IT IS OBSCENE AND INDECENT. ON SAT, THE 12th MEMBERS OF I.W.U. WENT TO BELFAST TO PICK UP 22 COPIES OF THE MAGAZINE, WITH THE INTENTION OF DEFYING THE BAN BY SELLING THEM OPENLY IN DUBLIN.
There we were, all 20 of us, bright and bleary eyed, aboard the 8.30 shoppers special to Belfast. Two and and a half hours later, we arrived in Belfast where a sister from the Northern Women's movement was waiting or us to lead us through check points and back streets to a pub where we settled down to a lunch of sandwiches and Guinness at 33p a pint. A couple of hours later more women Joined us with placards condemning the banning of Spare Rib, and we all set out to form a picket outside Board Failte [sic] which was conveniently situated right next door to the pub.
At 5.30 we were back on the train heading for Dublin with our precious booty of 200 Spare Rib. This time we commandeered the entire first compartment of the train and waited impatiently for customs officers to make their appearance at Dundalk. At Dundalk a custom officer walked straight through looking at his shoes; 3 of the women chased after hm, to inform him that they were bringing banned magazines through. The official turned his back, raised his hand and said "that's alright, go ahead." Next thing we were in Dublin station. We jumped out as soon as the train stopped, and linking arms formed lines of five and marched down the platform chanting "Lift the ban on Spare Rib" and "We'll read what we want not what we're told". At once, our sisters from the home team, awaiting us behind the ticket barrier, joined in the chanting and lifted placards for all to see.
The sisters from the train stopped at the barrier and let the other passengers through, with women both side of the barrier singing and chanting the whole time. We surged through the barrier and when a woman… [truncated by Bluesky]](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:voubmrdtjrduaaqwmfwsqsvj/bafkreihqajhv4akoasqg6jappuwtrqcymgdmw647af3x7mdegonf3blyqy)
![An article from The Bottom Dog headlined: O'Meara and Itinerants, and showing a cut out of a Nenagh Guardian article titled: Mr O'Meara hits at itinerants' sympathisrs [sic]](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:voubmrdtjrduaaqwmfwsqsvj/bafkreibpbakvy6qskpkfixq5tbvm7xznbdn5ajkpcdnxncylfrzhphg6ji)
![Logo of the Socialist Party of Ireland [1971], showing a five-pointed star with a torch in the centre.](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:voubmrdtjrduaaqwmfwsqsvj/bafkreietiewmtpbkkrwfyxrujoireuq4ijqvqahf5vngigoeedkrcss3eq)
