| Full name | Solidarity Federation |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1994 (Previously known as the Direct Action Movement or DAM) |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Affiliation | International Workers Association |
| Website | www.solfed.org.uk |
The Solidarity Federation, also known by the abbreviation SolFed, is a federation of class struggle anarchists active in Britain. The organisation advocates a strategy of anarcho-syndicalism as a method of abolishing capitalism and the state. In 1994 it adopted its current name, having been the Direct Action Movement since 1979.
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The Syndicalist Workers' Federation was an early syndicalist group in active in Britain, and one of the Solidarity Federation's earliest predecessors. It was formed in 1950 by members of the dissolved Anarchist Federation of Britain (not to be confused with the current Anarchist Federation which was founded as the Anarchist Communist Federation in 1986). Unlike the AFB, which was influenced by Anarcho-Syndicalist ideas but ultimately not Syndicalist itself, the SWF was an primarily an Anarcho-Syndicalist organisation from the outset.
The group joined the International Workers Association and gave particular support to the Spanish resistance during the Franco era. It initially had some success, but when Tom Brown, a long-term and very active member was forced out of activity, it declined until by 1979 it had only one lone branch in Manchester. The SWF then dissolved itself into the group founded as the Direct Action Movement.
The Direct Action Movement was formed in 1979, when the one remaining SWF branch, along with other smaller Anarchist groups, decided to form a new organisation of Anarcho-Syndicalists in Britain. The DAM decided to pursue a more definitely syndicalist, worker-centred strategy.
The DAM was very involved in the Miners' Strike as well as a series of industrial disputes later in the 1980s, including the Ardbride dispute in Ardrossan, Scotland, involving a supplier to Laura Ashley, for which the DAM received international support. From 1988 in Scotland, then England and Wales, the DAM was active in opposing the Poll Tax.
In the early 1990s, DAM members set up the Despatch Industry Workers Union, which successfully organised workers for a number of inner-city courier firms.
The DAM was also involved in Anti-Fascist Action (AFA). AFA was an initiative of the Marxist group Red Action and the DAM, and was committed to physically combatting various British fascist and far-right groups. It often had encounters with groups such as the British National Front and the British National Party. Anti-fascist activities in places such as Liverpool, Yorkshire, Bristol and Norwich were dominated by local anarchists. Also anarchists, in particular the DAM, were the first to question the motives and tactics of the anti-fascist Searchlight magazine.
In March 1994, DAM changed its name to the Solidarity Federation. Presently, the Solidarity Federation publishes the quarterly magazine Direct Action and the industrial freesheet Catalyst. Several locals and networks also publish their own newsletters. Along with the Anarchist Federation it is one of the two national anarchist federations active in the UK at the present time.
The Solidarity Federation organises according to the principles of anarchist Federalism. The base unit of the federation is the Local, groups of members based within a specific geographical area. These local groups are autonomous, within the bounds laid out in the Solidarity Federation's constitution. These local groups come together as a confederation to form the national organisation. This most importantly manifests at the national conference, where each local presents a delegate to represent them. These local delegates do not act independently, but instead are guided by the mandate their fellow members have given them. Thus the Solidarity Federation is an attempt at a working grassroots democracy. This confederated national conference is the highest decision making body in the Solidarity Federation.
Internationally, the Solidarity Federation is affiliated to the International Workers Association, being the official British section of the anarcho-syndicalist international. With the IWA also following the principles of Federalism, the Solidarity Federation plays largely the same role in the IWA as a local does in SolFed, being a group of members organised by geographical region. All SolFed members are automatically members of the IWA.
Solidarity Federation members who work in the same work sector have also formed Networks. Their purpose is to promote solidarity amongst workers. Networks also use Direct Action to fight for better pay and conditions. The three existing networks are the Education Workers’ Network, as well as two general networks for and the Public and Private Sector Workers.