Remembering Revolutionary Black Panther Fred Hampton ( 30/8/48-4/12/69)

 

Leading Black Panther Fred  Allen Hampton was born. on  the 30th of August 1948 in Summit ,Illinois to Francis and Iberia Hampton two factory workers who had migrated north as part of the Great Migration of Black Americans out of the south..Fred Hampton  was key in forming links between the Panthers and working-class people of all races. 

Hampton grew up with an older brother and sister. His family was friendly with the family of Emmett Till before Till's 1955 murder. Hampton's family moved to Maywood, another Chicago suburb when Hampton was 10. Hampton attended Irving Elementary School and Proviso East High School. In high school, he led the school's Interracial Committee. He also protested the school only nominating white girls to run for homecoming queen, which resulted in the inclusion of Black girls.

After graduating with honors from Proviso East High School, Hampton studied pre-law at Triton Junior College. He also attended Crane Junior College (later  Malcolm X College) and the University of Illinois at Chicago Circle.

Hampton became involved in the civil rights movement,  and led the Youth Council of the NAACP's West Suburban chapter, growing membership to more than 500. He advocated for a community pool in his hometown of Maywood, which led to an arrest for "mob action."

In November 1968, Hampton helped found the Illinois chapter of the Black Panther Party. From his base in Chicago, he served as chairman of this local chapter. Though Hampton was just 20, he became a respected leader in the Party, aided by his talent for public speaking and experience in community organising,  

Many saw him as the next possible Martin Luther King or the next Malcolm X, or perhaps the next great leader of Black Americans. He combined a huge personality  with a brilliant, critical mind and became a charismatic educator and speaker. His public statements on capitalism, racism, politics, Marxism and socialism were peppered with slang and profanity that refused to bow to the rules of the system. He sought to unite people through socialism, against the capitalist system, fighting against racism and discrimination  through practice and deeds, seeking to find solutions that would improve poor and working peoples lives, through struggle, without getting bogged down in watered down reformity.

He sought to do this through observation and practice. Such interracial working class organizing and open criticism of the capitalist economic system made him dangerous. It was one thing to organize along racial lines. It was another to try to unite the white, Black and Hispanic workers together in working class solidarity!  A dangerous message then,  still is today I guess.

 Fred Hampton was a dedicated revolutionary who studied theory and carried this through into everyday action. Throughout 1969, he maintained a demanding speaking schedule; he organised weekly rallies in support of BPP members in jail or on trial.

His organisation  provided breakfasts for poor school children and a free medical clinic for those that needed it. Hampton himself also taught political education classes. He also managed  to persuade two of Chicago's most powerful street gangs to stop fighting one another.
His attempt at unification of different peoples struggles  bought him to the attention of J.Edgar Hover and the F.B.I. From the 1950s until the 1970s, the FBI’s Counterintelligence Program (COINTELPRO) had already  been targeting  leaders of activist organizations like Fred Hampton. The program served to undermine, infiltrate, and spread misinformation (often through extrajudicial means) about political groups and the activists who belonged to them. COINTELPRO targeted civil rights leaders such as the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. as well as radical groups like the Black Panther Party, the American Indian Movement among others.  As Hampton’s influence in the Black Panthers grew, the FBI began to focus on his activities, opening a file on him in 1967.

The FBI enlisted a man named William O'Neal to infiltrate and sabotage the Black Panthers Party. O'Neal, who had been previously arrested for car theft and impersonating a federal officer, agreed to the task because the federal agency promised to drop the felony charges against him. O’Neal quickly gained access to Hampton by becoming both his bodyguard and a security director in Hampton’s Black Panther Party chapter.  

During an early morning police raid,on December 4, 1969,  he and fellow Black Panther Mark Clark were assassinated in a hail of bullets by the FBI and Chicago police. Hampton who was only 21.had been asleep when first hit, and, as he lay prone on the floor, was shot twice at point-blank range in the head. His body was then dragged into the doorway in a pool of blood.

The police opened fire on the remaining bedroom, hitting several Panthers repeatedly. The survivors were beaten, dragged into the street, and arrested on a charge of the attempted murder of the police officers who had carried out the raid, and aggravated assault. Many in the Chicago African American community were outraged over the raid and what they saw as the unnecessary deaths of Hampton and Clark.in what was seen as a serious attempt to undermine the Black Panthers powerful message, his  death was an act of police brutality. His death was government-sanctioned murder. His death was an assassination. His death was an execution. 5,000 people attended Hampton’s funeral where Reverends Ralph Abernathy and  Jesse Jackson eulogized the slain activist.   

It is tempting to look back at the raid as a singular example of law enforcement run amok; a violent and inexcusable governmental reaction to the political climate of the time. And yet, so much of what happened in the aftermath is familiar to anyone who has studied systematic police violence ever since. today..

The official investigation into the shootings was a farce, and it was left up to the survivors and the BPP to pursue a civil case against the SPU and the FBI. Finally, in 1983, it was acknowledged that there “had in fact been an active governmental conspiracy to deny Hampton, Clark and the BPP plaintiffs their civil rights”.

Damages of $1.85m were awarded to the survivors and the families of the deceased.

In 1990, and later in 2004, the Chicago City Council passed resolutions commemorating December 4 as Fred Hampton Day.

The saying most often associated with Fred Hampton is: “You can kill a revolutionary, but you cannot kill a revolution. You can jail a liberation fighter, but you cannot jail liberation.”

Fred Hampton Jnr was born a few months after his father’s murder. He, too, is active in the African-American revolutionary movement and has spent almost nine years in jail on politically-related charges..

While he met a tragic and untimely end, it is important to remember that he was killed for his ideas, because those ideas carried so much weight and . they  still do. Although many years have since gone since his passing, the peoples love for this man remains strong. His powerful message  remains strong. People still fighting discrimination and ongoing racism.Fred Hampton is a hero in the struggle for Black liberation, revolution and socialism. He should be remembered and his example should be followed by all progressive and revolutionary people.In 2004 the Chicago City Council passed a resolution commemorating December 4 as Fred Hampton Day.

In the courtroom at a 1969 trial for a trumped up robbery charge, only months before he was killed, the 21 year old gave an amazing speech  defending himself and all Black people, while at the same time calling on all working people to unite in revolutionary solidarity. There is no better way to end this article than with his words, passionately explaining the beliefs that he died for.

" We got to face some facts.  That the masses are poor, that the masses belong to what you call the lower classes, and I talk about the masses, I'm  talking about the white masses, I'm  talking about the black masses, and the brown masses, and the yellow masses.

We've got to face the fact that some people say you fight fire best with fire, but we say you put fire out best with water. We say you don't fight racism with racism. We're going to fight racism with solidarity.

We say don't fight capitalism with no black capitalism, you fight capitalism with socialism. "

Fred Hampton's powerful message  remains strong. People still fighting discrimination and ongoing racism.

Fred Hampton - Political Prisoner

 

 

I am a revolutionary - Fred Hampton

Your next Prime Minister everyone!

 

Your next  Prime Minister everyone! Seems there is no cost of living crisis for Liz Truss  who has claimed nearly £5,000 in  taxpayer expenses on gas and electric in the last five years .Yet she says she won’t “bung more money into the system” to help hard-up Brits facing fuel bills of £3,500 a year – and rising. So no need for looting for her  or to go cold or hungry or worry about  energy supply being cut off cause the public pay her bills even though many cant pay their own. 

https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/politics/pm-hopeful-liz-truss-claims-27849129   

If it were not for the Conservative Party’s renowned historic reputation for nepotism, it would be a complete mystery with regards to how Truss has got anywhere near political office.I would‘t trust Liz Truss to run a bath. This woman will be more incompetent than Boris Johnson Mark my words   On one occasion,  she was exposed as either unable or unwilling to spell ‘literate’. She also once blew 3.5k in a restaurant (and claimed it back as expenses). I'm sure she will be very understanding about a pensioner on 800 quid a month worrying about how they'll manage a 3.5k energy bill. 

As Environmental Secretary, she backed David Cameron’s Britain Stronger In Europe campaign for the 2016 EU Referendum, only to simulate the behaviour of an unabashed Brexiteer as soon as the winning side proved not to be her own. She then U-turned to passionately advocate for Theresa May’s deal with the EU (though also saying that no deal would be a more attractive option than remaining in the European Union, to her credit) only to then back Boris Johnson’s amendment of the deal which was worse, having offered not one, but two borders between Northern Ireland and Great Britain. She appears to flip-flop on issues of policy more than the fish she no doubt wishes British fishermen to surrender to the French. This brings us to Truss’ position on the Northern Irish protocol today, namely her will to abolish it.   

Of course, all those who voted for the deal in the first place deserve to bear the brunt of this criticism, not just Truss. But given the fact that she has been constantly metamorphosing throughout her political career – first from a Liberal Democrat to a Conservative, second from a One Nation open door centrist to hard line Thatcherite, and third from an attendee of marches supporting the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament to someone who seems to now froth at the mouth at the prospect of nuclear war – it would be foolish to assume that she has political conviction beyond her delusional self-image. 

For many the  biggest issue in the UK right now is the seemingly uncontrollable cost of living crisis. With annual  household bills expected ,  to reach over £4,200 in January Truss has rejected financial help for unprecedented bill increases as 'Gordon Brown economics.' 

'The first thing we should do a Conservatives is help people have more money of their own,' she claimed 'What I don't support is taking money off people in tax and then giving it back in handouts.'handouts' 

 Her cost-of-living plan or complete lack of one  would give *10 times* as much to the rich as those who need it.  

Top 10%: £936 

Bottom 10%: £92 

In the time that Truss has been the minister for Women and Equalities, more than half of women have admitted they believe women’s equality is in danger of going back to the 1970s at work, home and in society, according to a Guardian survey.

last September, Truss was accused of treating the position like a ‘side hustle’ by the women and equalities committee. The committee also accused the government of regressing ‘equal rights after decades of progress’ through their lacklustre approach.

In terms of her voting record on LGBTQ+ rights, in May 2013, Truss was one of 117 Tories to vote in favour of marriage equality, then in July 2019 she voted to permit same-sex marriage in Northern Ireland. In September 2020, she was criticised by trans rights campaigners when she announced reforms to the Gender Recognition Act would not include a right to self-ID for trans people. 

In 2021 Truss announced the government’s proposals for a conversion therapy ban, with a draft bill in spring 2022. Many critics called it a ban ‘in name only’, with major loopholes remaining, for example, talking therapies for over-18s will not be outlawed. Conversion therapy for transgender people will also not be included in any ban. 

She was recently accused of delaying  a Foreign Office human rights report because of Rwanda criticism . Truss also said that Boris Johnson "did a fantastic job as prime minister." As Truss and Sunak attempted to woo Conservative members. remember we have no say  in who will be our next PM it became very clear they were both working very hard to assure than an  even more hostile environment will help to restore the green pastures of this crumbling nation.

And as a minister who also appoints members to the Equalities and Human Rights Commision's board, Truss' record of both human rights and foreign policy is concerning. After resuming arms sales to Saudi Arabia  in July 2020, days later, seven children and  two women were killed in a Saudi-led air strike,  Truss was subsequently branded " deeply cynical" by human rights group Amnesty International for arguing  that apparent war crimes by Saudi  forces in Yemen had been "isolated incidents " I don't thin this lack  of concern  for human rights is going to disappear when she becomes  prime minister.

Truss recently removed commitments to abortion, scxual health rights  and bodily autonomy from  an official statement on gender equality signed by more than 20 countries. 

Dubbed the ‘true blue’ candidate of the leadership race for sitting firmly on the right wing of the Conservative party, Truss is considered the economic descendant of the witch  that was Margaret Thatcher  and plans to cut tax immediately.

‘Under my leadership, I would start cutting taxes from day one to take immediate action to help people deal with the cost of living,’ she has said – with no mention of rising food prices, energy bills, transport costs or affordable housing.

Through appealing  to the Conservative base with populist soundbites and meaningless phrases, Truss has cemented her position as a person of power , while ignoring the  chaos she has been complicit in crafting.and while on the brink of the worst cost of energy crisis for a century wont pledge too scrap the energy price rise.  

There’s a class war in this country, and it’s being waged from above with such a callous disregard towards the needs of the most vulnerable. Social services should step in and take Britain away from the Conservatives on the grounds of neglect and dereliction of duty in a time of unbelievable crisis.Tey have entirely broken trust with the British people and no not have a mandate to govern, Join the campaign to fight back. http://wesayenough.co.uk

Rocketing energy bills inflict misery on households

 

Households in Great Britain face a  gigantic leap in energy bills from October after the regulator raised the energy price cap, taking the average gas and electricity bill to an eyewatering  £3,549 a year. In a blow for hard-pressed consumers already struggling with soaring inflation, Ofgem approved the £1,578 increase on the current figure of £1,971 for the average dual-fuel tariff – a rise of 80%. The cap will be almost treble what it was a yearas a year earlier last October, when it was raised to £1,277. The announcement comes as households attempt to budget for a tough winter. Rocketing energy bills have fuelled rampant inflation, which breached 10% last month  and is forecast by some economists to climb to 18% from January.

The scale of harm caused by these price rises needs to sink in. A warm home this winter will be a pipe dream for millions as they are priced out of a decent and healthy quality of life.This will be the biggest attack on living standards in decades piling further misery onto so many households.Your energy bill is a direct result of not voting for Jeremy Corbyn.

Fuel poverty charity National Energy Action (NEA) estimated that the rise would increase the numbers  of UK households in fuel poverty from 4.5 million last October to 8.9 million  this October, taking into account the Government's measly support package announced  in May, which should be extended and increased as soon as possible.

No one should go cold or hungry,  but Ofgem  is condemning millions of us to starve or freeze this winter. I thought a regulator was there to protect consumers following privatisation. All Ofgem are doing is protecting the super-profits of the energy companies which  make £6 million pounds an hour, this is a cost of greed crisis and in many cases could ne a death sentence. it's  disgusting.

Jonathan Brearley, CEO of OFGEM, is paid ~£300k p.a. to regulate energy Co's. They are enriching their execs snf foreign corporate shareholders whilst we endure poverty inducing bills.  It appears he is failing, let him know what you think  jonathan.brearley@ofgem.gov.uk

 Literally everything that is happening now is a price that hard right Tories in Starmer's Party and the Tory Party were willing to pay to keep us on a right wing trajectory. The silence from government, the raising of CAPS without any consultation, debate or compromise. People will be sacrificing essentials for themselves or their children, and having lights on and hot food should not be a privilege.This is 21st century Britain, enough is enough! The nationalisation of ‘big energy’, which could mean clean energy generation and lower household fuel bills  to everyone, is long overdue.

The Tories don't care about whether poor people die, on the contrary, they welcome it. Saves money on benefits and the NHS.  Clears poorer neighbourhoods allowing for gentrification and conspicuous overspending. The moaning about energy prices will stop, as those who can't afford it will have gone.  They looked the other way as thousands of people died because of their austerity policies.  A study published in the BMJ linked austerity to 120,000 extra deaths in England (primarily a result of the reduction in nurses) Another study estimates 130,000 deaths.

A caring tory is as common as hen's teeth. Humanity means nothing unless it brings them money and they can make a profit our of someones misery   They are ruthless, smug and sanctimonious. who  have showed their total indifference to people dying given their endless rule-breaking by travelling (Cummings etc), partying (Johnson and half his cabinet), meeting up behind privacy gates (Carrie and every Tory **** with a country pile) during the Covid years.

People's patience has worn very thin now and it's about time.This is a national emergency. and our bloody government has a moral duty to act but does nothing apart from telling us to use less energy only a matter of days after insisting  people should not feel they should cut down after grim warnings about spiralling prices.A disgraceful disregard for people, Bastards is to kind a word for them .We need to freeze gas and electricity prices immediately. I lived through the poll tax riots when people protested against an unfair charge and won . and it's far more desperate times that we are facing now. I don't understand why more people aren't bloody furious  at what's happening to this country.

All I want at the end of the day is to send Truss, Sunak, Johnson and their supporters to Rwanda. Permanently. Doesn't seem a lot to ask? After all they've been raving about the place for months. 

In  the meantime a National Day of Action on October 1st has been declared with protests across Britain. Freeze profits not people. Join here:https://wesayenough.co.uk/

The roll call of shame : The Tory MP's who voted to allow sewage to be discharged into our seas and rivers.

 

On Wednesday (20 October), 265 MPs shamefully voted with the Government  to reject an attempt by the House of Lords to toughen up the approach to the discharge of sewage, with 22 Conservative MPs rebelling and voting against the Government. 

 Lords Amendment 45 to the Environment Bill would have placed a legal duty on water companies in England and Wales to make improvements to their sewerage systems and demonstrate progressive reductions in the harm caused by discharges of untreated sewage.

This then meant that water treatment companies could continue to dump sewage into  our waterways.Water companies discharged raw sewage into rivers in England more than 400,000 times last year and for more than three million hours, according to figures published by the Environment Agency.

Swimmers are currently being warned  to avoid at least 60 Uk beaches as water companies are pumping raw swage into the seas with the southwest and south coast being the worst affected.

Campaign group Surfers Against Sewage  have created an interactive map which shows that popular locations such as Great Yarmouth,  New Quay and Bognor Regis have all been impacted just as families begin to enjoy their summer holidays. https://www.sas.org.uk/map/ 

I always viewed conservatism as the politics of the sewer, but I didn't ever expect it to be so literal.  We need public ownership of our water now.

Our beautiful rivers and coastline ruined by sewage pollution , terrifying bills. Low pay. Raging inequality. Soaring inflation. NHS on its knees, Social and care justice system too. Strikes .Transport hell. Price hikes. Food banks without food, 2/3 of households forecast to be in fuel poverty by January. Thanks Tories for this total hellscape. The Tories are both literally and metaphorically showering us all with shit. The vilest most hated Government in modern history. Time to flush them away!

Here is a list of all the Tory MPs who voted to allow water companies to  discharge raw sewage into seas and rivers. Many pf whom are now getting all hufty after being called out for voting the way they did , getting cross with us for minding about their abject negligence. Exactly  what does  it take for these people to say sorry. The Tories are both literally and metaphorically showering us all with shit. The vilest most hated Government in modern history. Time to flush them away!  .

 

Nigel Adams (Conservative – Selby and Ainsty) 

Adam Afriyie (Conservative – Windsor) 

Peter Aldous (Conservative – Waveney) 

Lucy Allan (Conservative – Telford) 

Lee Anderson (Conservative – Ashfield)

Stuart Andrew (Conservative – Pudsey)

Edward Argar (Conservative – Charnwood) 

Victoria Atkins (Conservative – Louth and Horncastle)

Gareth Bacon (Conservative – Orpington) 

Kemi Badenoch (Conservative – Saffron Walden)

Shaun Bailey (Conservative – West Bromwich West)

Duncan Baker (Conservative – North Norfolk)

Steve Baker (Conservative – Wycombe)

Harriett Baldwin (Conservative – West Worcestershire)

Steve Barclay (Conservative – North East Cambridgeshire)

Simon Baynes (Conservative Clwyd South)

Aaron Bell (Conservative Newcastle under Lyme)

Scott Benton (Conservative – Blackpool South) 

Paul Beresford (Conservative – Mole Valley) 

Bob Blackman (Conservative – Harrow East) 

Crispin Blunt (Conservative – Reigate) Peter Bone (Conservative – Wellingborough) 

Andrew Bowie (Conservative – West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine)

Graham Brady (Conservative – Altrincham and Sale West)

Suella Braverman (Conservative – Fareham)

Jack Brereton (Conservative – Stoke-on-Trent South)

Andrew Bridgen (Conservative – North West Leicestershire)

Steve Brine (Conservative – Winchester)

Paul Bristow (Conservative – Peterborough)

Sara Britcliffe (Conservative – Hyndburn)

Anthony Browne (Conservative – South Cambridgeshire)

Fiona Bruce (Conservative – Congleton)

Felicity Buchan (Conservative – Kensington)

Alex Burghart (Conservative – Brentwood and Ongar)

Rob Butler (Conservative – Aylesbury) 

Alun Cairns (Conservative – Vale of Glamorgan)

Andy Carter (Conservative – Warrington South)

James Cartlidge (Conservative – South Suffolk) 

William Cash (Conservative – Stone)

Miriam Cates (Conservative – Penistone and Stocksbridge)

Maria Caulfield (Conservative – Lewes)

Alex Chalk (Conservative – Cheltenham)

Jo Churchill (Conservative – Bury St Edmunds)

Theo Clarke (Conservative – Stafford)

Brendan Clarke-Smith (Conservative – Bassetlaw)

Chris Clarkson (Conservative – Heywood and Middleton)

James Cleverly (Conservative – Braintree)

Thérèse Coffey (Conservative – Suffolk Coastal)

Damian Collins (Conservative – Folkestone and Hythe)

Alberto Costa (Conservative – South Leicestershire)

Robert Courts (Conservative – Witney)

Claire Coutinho (Conservative – East Surrey)

Stephen Crabb (Conservative – Preseli Pembrokeshire)

Virginia Crosbie (Conservative – Ynys Môn)

James Daly (Conservative – Bury North)

David T C Davies (Conservative – Monmouth)

James Davies (Conservative – Vale of Clwyd)

Gareth Davies (Conservative – Grantham and Stamford)

Mims Davies (Conservative – Mid Sussex)

Dehenna Davison (Conservative – Bishop Auckland)

Caroline Dinenage (Conservative – Gosport)

Sarah Dines (Conservative – Derbyshire Dales)

Jonathan Djanogly (Conservative – Huntingdon)

Leo Docherty (Conservative – Aldershot)

Michelle Donelan (Conservative – Chippenham)

Nadine Dorries (Conservative – Mid Bedfordshire)

Steve Double (Conservative – St Austell and Newquay)

Oliver Dowden (Conservative – Hertsmere)

Jackie Doyle-Price (Conservative – Thurrock) 

Flick Drummond (Conservative – Meon Valley)

David Duguid (Conservative – Banff and Buchan)

Iain Duncan Smith (Conservative – Chingford and Woodford Green)

Ruth Edwards (Conservative – Rushcliffe)

Michael Ellis (Conservative – Northampton North)

 Natalie Elphicke (Conservative – Dover)

George Eustice (Conservative – Camborne and Redruth)

Luke Evans (Conservative – Bosworth)

David Evennett (Conservative – Bexleyheath and Crayford)

Ben Everitt (Conservative – Milton Keynes North)

Michael Fabricant (Conservative – Lichfield)

Laura Farris (Conservative – Newbury)

Simon Fell (Conservative – Barrow and Furness)

Katherine Fletcher (Conservative – South Ribble)

Mark Fletcher (Conservative – Bolsover)

Nick Fletcher (Conservative – Don Valley)

Liam Fox (Conservative – North Somerset)

Lucy Frazer (Conservative – South East Cambridgeshire)

Mike Freer (Conservative – Finchley and Golders Green)

Marcus Fysh (Conservative – Yeovil)

Mark Garnier (Conservative – Wyre Forest

Nusrat Ghani (Conservative – Wealden)

Nick Gibb (Conservative – Bognor Regis and Littlehampton)

Peter Gibson (Conservative – Darlington)

Jo Gideon (Conservative – Stoke-on-Trent Central)

John Glen (Conservative – Salisbury)

Robert GAndrew Griffith (Conservative – Arundel and South Downs)

Kate Griffiths (Conservative – Burton) James Grundy (Conservative – Leigh)

Jonathan Gullis (Conservative – Stoke-on-Trent North)

Robert Halfon (Conservative – Harlow)

Luke Hall (Conservative – Thornbury and Yate)

Robert Goodwill (Conservative – Scarborough and Whitby) 

Richard Graham (Conservative – Gloucester)

Helen Grant (Conservative – Maidstone and The Weald) Chris Green (Conservative – Bolton West)

Stephen Hammond (Conservative – Wimbledon)

Matt Hancock (Conservative – West Suffolk) Mark Harper (Conservative – Forest of Dean)

Rebecca Harris (Conservative – Castle Point)

Sally-Ann Hart (Conservative – Hastings and Rye)

John Hayes (Conservative South Holland & The Deepings)

James Heappey (Conservative – Wells)

Darren Henry (Conservative – Broxtowe)

Antony Higginbotham (Conservative – Burnley)

Richard Holden (Conservative – North West Durham)

Kevin Hollinrake (Conservative – Thirsk and Malton)

Philip Hollobone (Conservative – Kettering)

Paul Holmes (Conservative – Eastleigh)

John Howell (Conservative – Henley)

Paul Howell (Conservative – Sedgefield)

Nigel Huddleston (Conservative – Mid Worcestershire)

Neil Hudson (Conservative – Penrith and The Border)

Eddie Hughes (Conservative – Walsall North)

Jane Hunt (Conservative – Loughborough)

Tom Hunt (Conservative – Ipswich)

Alister Jack (Conservative – Dumfries and Galloway)

Andrea Jenkyns (Conservative – Morley and Outwood)

Robert Jenrick (Conservative – Newark)

Caroline Johnson (Conservative – Sleaford and North Hykeham)

Gareth Johnson (Conservative – Dartford)

David Johnston (Conservative – Wantage)

Andrew Jones (Conservative – Harrogate and Knaresborough)

David Jones (Conservative – Clwyd West)

Marcus Jones (Conservative – Nuneaton)

Simon Jupp (Conservative – East Devon)

Daniel Kawczynski (Conservative – Shrewsbury and Atcham)

Alicia Kearns (Conservative – Rutland and Melton)

Gillian Keegan (Conservative – Chichester)

Julian Knight (Conservative – Solihull)

Greg Knight (Conservative – East Yorkshire)

Danny Kruger (Conservative – Devizes)

Kwasi Kwarteng (Conservative – Spelthorne) (Proxy vote cast by Stuart Andrew)

John Lamont (Conservative – Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk)

Andrea Leadsom (Conservative – South Northamptonshire)

Andrew Lewer (Conservative – Northampton South)

Julian Lewis (Conservative – New Forest East)

Chris Loder (Conservative – West Dorset)

Mark Logan (Conservative – Bolton North East)

Marco Longhi (Conservative – Dudley North)

Julia Lopez (Conservative – Hornchurch and Upminster)

Jack Lopresti (Conservative – Filton and Bradley Stoke)

Cherilyn Mackrory (Conservative – Truro and Falmouth)

Rachel Maclean (Conservative – Redditch)

Kit Malthouse (Conservative – North West Hampshire)

Anthony Mangnall (Conservative – Totnes)

Scott Mann (Conservative – North Cornwall)

Julie Marson (Conservative – Hertford and Stortford)

Theresa May (Conservative – Maidenhead)

Jerome Mayhew (Conservative – Broadland)

Paul Maynard (Conservative – Blackpool North and Cleveleys)

Karl McCartney (Conservative – Lincoln)

Stephen McPartland (Conservative – Stevenage)

Mark Menzies (Conservative – Fylde)

Stephen Metcalfe (Conservative – South Basildon and East Thurrock)

Robin Millar (Conservative – Aberconwy)

Maria Miller (Conservative – Basingstoke)

Nigel Mills (Conservative – Amber Valley)

Andrew Mitchell (Conservative – Sutton Coldfield)

Gagan Mohindra (Conservative – South West Hertfordshire)

Damien Moore (Conservative – Southport)

Robbie Moore (Conservative – Keighley)

Penny Mordaunt (Conservative Portsmouth North)

Anne Marie Morris (Conservative Newton Abbot)

James Morris (Conservative – Halesowen and Rowley Regis)

Joy Morrissey (Conservative – Beaconsfield)

Jill Mortimer (Conservative – Hartlepool)

Wendy Morton (Conservative – Aldridge-Brownhills)

Kieran Mullan (Conservative – Crewe and Nantwich)

Holly Mumby-Croft (Conservative – Scunthorpe) 

David Mundell (Conservative – Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale)

Sheryll Murray (Conservative – South East Cornwall)

Andrew Murrison (Conservative – South West Wiltshire)

Robert Neill (Conservative – Bromley and Chislehurst)

Lia Nici (Conservative – Great Grimsby)

Neil O’Brien (Conservative – Harborough)

Guy Opperman (Conservative – Hexham)

Neil Parish (Conservative – Tiverton and Honiton) 

Owen Paterson (Conservative – North Shropshire)

Mark Pawsey (Conservative – Rugby)

Mike Penning (Conservative – Hemel Hempstead)

John Penrose (Conservative – Weston-super-Mare)

Chris Philp (Conservative – Croydon South)

Christopher Pincher (Conservative – Tamworth)

Dan Poulter (Conservative – Central Suffolk and North Ipswich)

Rebecca Pow (Conservative – Taunton Deane)

Victoria Prentis (Conservative – Banbury)

Mark Pritchard (Conservative – The Wrekin)

Tom Pursglove (Conservative – Corby)

Will Quince (Conservative – Colchester)

Tom Randall (Conservative – Gedling) 

John Redwood (Conservative –Wokingham) 

Jacob Rees-Mogg (Conservative – North East Somerset)

Nicola Richards (Conservative – West Bromwich East)

Angela Richardson (Conservative – Guildford)

Laurence Robertson (Conservative – Tewkesbury)

Mary Robinson (Conservative – Cheadle)

Douglas Ross (Conservative – Moray)

Lee Rowley (Conservative – North East Derbyshire)

Dean Russell (Conservative – Watford)

David Rutley (Conservative – Macclesfield)

Gary Sambrook (Conservative – Birmingham, Northfield)

Selaine Saxby (Conservative – North Devon)

Paul Scully (Conservative – Sutton and Cheam)

Bob Seely (Conservative – Isle of Wight)

Andrew Selous (Conservative – South West Bedfordshire)

Grant Shapps (Conservative – Welwyn Hatfield)

Alec Shelbrooke (Conservative – Elmet and Rothwell)

Chris Skidmore (Conservative – Kingswood)

Chloe Smith (Conservative – Norwich North)

Greg Smith (Conservative – Buckingham)

Henry Smith (Conservative – Crawley)

Julian Smith (Conservative – Skipton and Ripon)

Royston Smith (Conservative – Southampton, Itchen)

Ben Spencer (Conservative – Runnymede and Weybridge)

Mark Spencer (Conservative – Sherwood)

Alexander Stafford (Conservative – Rother Valley)

Andrew Stephenson (Conservative – Pendle)

Jane Stevenson (Conservative – Wolverhampton North East)

Bob Stewart (Conservative – Beckenham)

Iain Stewart (Conservative – Milton Keynes South)

Gary Streeter (Conservative – South West Devon)

Mel Stride (Conservative – Central Devon)

Graham Stuart (Conservative – Beverley and Holderness)

Julian Sturdy (Conservative – York Outer)

James Sunderland (Conservative – Bracknell) 

Desmond Swayne (Conservative – New Forest West)

Robert Syms (Conservative – Poole)

Maggie Throup (Conservative – Erewash)

Edward Timpson (Conservative – Eddisbury)

Justin Tomlinson (Conservative – North Swindon)

Michael Tomlinson (Conservative – Mid Dorset and North Poole)

Craig Tracey (Conservative – North Warwickshire)

Laura Trott (Conservative – Sevenoaks)

Tom Tugendhat (Conservative – Tonbridge and Malling)

Shailesh Vara (Conservative – North West Cambridgeshire)

Martin Vickers (Conservative – Cleethorpes)

Matt Vickers (Conservative – Stockton South)

Christian Wakeford (Conservative – Bury South)

Robin Walker (Conservative – Worcester)

Charles Walker (Conservative – Broxbourne)

Jamie Wallis (Conservative – Bridgend)

David Warburton (Conservative – Somerton and Frome)

Matt Warman (Conservative – Boston and Skegness) 

Giles Watling (Conservative – Clacton)

Suzanne Webb (Conservative – Stourbridge)

Helen Whately (Conservative – Faversham and Mid Kent)

Heather Wheeler (Conservative – South Derbyshire)

John Whittingdale (Conservative – Maldon)

James Wild (Conservative – North West Norfolk)

Craig Williams (Conservative – Montgomeryshire)

Gavin Williamson (Conservative – South Staffordshire)

Mike Wood (Conservative – Dudley South)

William Wragg (Conservative – Hazel Grove)

Jeremy Wright (Conservative – Kenilworth and Southam)

Jacob Young (Conservative – Redcar)

Enough Is Enough !

We have reached  beyond tipping  point

Our communities torn bitterly apart,

As the cost of living soars so high

Energy prices out of control,

People unable to afford to eat

Tax cuts given to the elites.

No money for struggling families

Vestiges of privilege still intact,

The rich getting richer and richer

Wars tearing nations bloodily apart ,

Refugees forced to Rwanda

Trapped in an agonising reality.

Global warming, climate crisis

Disasters all around impending,

Democracy mutating daily

Into present day dystopia,

Tories forcing through draconian policies

Keep tightening their chains round necks..

As Summer draws to an end

A constant gruelling battle for survival,

Benefits stripped to the bone

After years of cuts and freezes,

The poor will have a miserable time

Many will go hungry, many will be cold.

With Labour party opposition not opposing

Vultures preying upon the weak, 

The working class at least fighting back

Screaming enough is enough,

Standing united and proud 

Against an establishment that does not care.

Until change is rightfully achieved 

Will continue to sing loudly out,

Hearts filled with devotion and pride

Anger and fierce defiance, all they can muster,  ,

As flowers still bloom below their feet

Wont let the bastards grind them down.

The Man Who Turned Desert Into Forest By Planting A Tree Everyday For 40 Years

 

In 1979  at the age of 16 extraordinary environmental activist  Jadav "Molai" Payeng came across a large number of snakes that got washed away by a flood onto a treeless sand bank and  had died due to excessive heat. 

Experts claimed that within 20 years, this area could be completely washed away. Trees are a great natural way to prevent flooding, as the raindrops stay on the leaves and are evaporated back into the air. Therefore, less water reaches the ground. Tree’s also can absorb 120 gallons of water during a drought. In an area with unlimited water there are records of trees absorbing as much as 150 gallons of water in a single day.  This cycle of precipitation, evaporating, condensation and then again precipitation, or rainfall is what keeps these eco-systems thriving as they will have a continuous cycle of water.

Jadav was so concerned by what was happening  that he started planting trees, all on his own on a around the  sandbar of the river Brahmaputra,in Majuli Island in Northen India, the largest river Island on Earth.

Jadav left behind his formal education to give all his attention to the forest. The son of a buffalo trader, Jadav grew up a poor farmer from a marginalized tribal community in Assam, India.Jadav continued to plant  over the next 40 years and  has single-handedly created a  flourishing forest  with its own eco- system that covers 1,390 acres bigger than New York’s Central Park.

Jadav began by planting bamboo and then moved onto other species. At first planting trees was time consuming until the trees started providing the seed themselves. As his forest grew dense, so did the amount of inhabitants. Wildlife experts say the forest now attracts 80% of the world’s migratory birds and houses Bengal tigers, Indian rhinoceros, over 100 deer and rabbits, monkeys, and a herd of around 100 elephants visit the forest every year.

 His endeavours went entirely unnoticed for decades,. and  his dedication was only discovered in 2007 when a photojournalist stumbled upon Payeng and discovered him seeding his forest and wrote an article about him. He soon gained the attention of the Indian government and then the entire country — winning multiple awards for his incredible achievements.

Despite his tremendous effort Jadav does not take credit for the flourishing forest, instead crediting ‘the birds, cows, deer, wind, water and elephants (that) have helped me.’

Speaking to how his forest has effected the eco-system Jadav proudly says that ‘people want to know my story. I tell them I just plant trees, and I’d like all of you to do so.’

‘Trees are the lifeline of the forest. They don’t just give us shade and oxygen. They feed birds and animals and balance our eco system. If there is no life left, what is the use of all the advancements we have made?’

 After all this hard work the forest is now in danger, Jadav's worst fear for his forest is deforestation for financial gain, which makes the flora and fauna vulnerable to human greed. He believes all species on this planet are animals, including humans, and that humans don’t realize that frugality and honoring nature is key to our survival. Jadav says “The threat now comes from man who would destroy the forest for economic gain.’ he continues "There are no monsters in nature, except for humans.”

Jadav plans to plant 5,000 more acres of trees on Majuli to create a 500-mile stretch of flora on the banks of Brahmaputra River.

 

 

 

Known popularly today  as 'The Forest Man of India' to honor Jadav for his environmental activism and for planting one tree every day, the forest was named "Molai" after him. Jadav's story also inspired a children's book, Jadav and the Tree Place, that tells his story of how he made a forest that is now home to wild animals.

Speaking to how his forest has effected the eco-system Jadav proudly says that ‘people want to know my story. I tell them I just plant trees, and I’d like all of you to do so.’

‘Trees are the lifeline of the forest. They don’t just give us shade and oxygen. They feed birds and animals and balance our eco system. If there is no life left, what is the use of all the advancements we have made?’

Since his story went viral in 2012, Jadav has travelled around the world speaking in schools and attending conferences on climate change and environmental issues and has revolutionised the movement towards reforestation and tree plantation. 

He has been the subject of many documentaries and now people travel across the globe to see the Molai forest. An amazing  story that reminds us that sometimes the problem of climate change seems too large to tackle alone, but Jadav is the perfect example of how one person can make a difference to the eco-system around them.

The critically acclaimed Forest Man a 2013 documentary short, tells of Jadav’s continued endeavours in environmental activism. Compassion and empathy towards nature and its beings is what Jadav follows and lives by. Payeng who put the forest above his own needs in 2015 was honored with Padma Shri, the fourth highest civilian award in India.

Jadav  believes that if developing countries take necessary efforts to protect the environment, the world's natural balance will be restored. He has also asked UNESCO members that we should compel residents to take good care of the environment and support reforestation for future generations, if we accomplish this, the world will be a happier and healthier place to live. Here’s to many more environmental heroes like Molai Payeng and their efforts to save the planet for all of us!