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A new publication from the London, East & South East Region of the TUC.
Rally To Commemorate The 80th Anniversary Of The Battle Of Cable Street. Photo by Jack Taylor/Getty Images
Rally To Commemorate The 80th Anniversary Of The Battle Of Cable Street. Photo by Jack Taylor/Getty Images

The Battle of Cable Street is the fourth in the London, East & South East Region of the TUC's series of books celebrating the Region’s fighting history.

The Cable Street battle has gone down in history as a fine example of working class solidarity, working class organisation, and working class success.

The leaders of the response to Mosley’s Fascists’ intent to march through their East End community, and to the state’s intent to facilitate it, drew together the many people and cultures of their neighbours, as well as winning the support of the politically aware to ensure that the Fascists did not succeed.

Of course, this did not happen in a vacuum and the book includes context pieces that chart the background to this East End area, the rise of Fascism across Europe, as well as the world economic situation and the Spanish Civil War and Second World War wars that followed.

And finally we look at the state of far right politics today, knowing that Fascism lurks ready to utilise the continued poverty and hardship facing many people by offering easy and fake scapegoats.

As ever there are many books published that offer a detailed and referenced history of Cable Street. We do not intend to compete with them, rather to offer an accessible entry to the wider issues of the moment.

The Battle of Cable Street was written by Peta Steel and is published by SERTUC. You can download it here, or printed copies are available, price £2, from the office:
London, East & South East Region, TUC, Congress House, Great Russell Street, London WC1B 3LS. Send cash or a cheque payable to SERTUC.

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