May Day is the most important day for the working class. For over a
century, workers around the world have gathered on this date to fight
for a reduction in working hours and against social injustices. Amid a
scenario of fragmentation and bureaucracy within the unions, taking to
the streets alongside a more combative sector is an important task at
this time. ---- In much of the country, the CUT (Unified Labor Union)
and the PT (Workers' Party) backed down from their participation on the
day, weakening their presence and not organizing their own
demonstrations. The unions returned to celebrating the date with the old
"pague" attitude: in São Paulo, the "unified" May Day between the CSB
(Brazilian Socialist Workers' Party), Força Sindical (Union of Workers'
Unions), UGT (Union of Workers' Unions), CTB (Central Labor Union), NCST
(National Labor Union), Pública (Public Workers' Union), and support
from the CUT (Central Labor Union) featured mega-shows and a raffle for
ten cars. The emphasis ended up being on the strength of each side in
the context of the government's detachment from taking up class-based
causes. The protests with more combative causes increased compared to
recent years and were the largest, with the fight against the 6x1 scale
as their central issue.
OSL activists took to the streets according to the reality of each
location, critically articulating their stance on the Lula/Alckmin
administration and the need for class independence to advance
working-class gains. In our interventions at the protests, we spoke
about the need to maintain the struggles in the streets and in the
workplace, and not to trust in politicking and backroom deals with
bosses and politicians, even if they present themselves as allies.
Overall, May Day highlighted the fragmentation of the popular movement,
the crisis of the labor movement, and the central contradiction between
the concrete demands of the working class and the electoral interests of
party leaderships. The demonstrations across the country lacked unity of
action and, with a few exceptions, lacked the broad participation and
support of the oppressed classes. This dispersion is a direct result of
the policies of the main trade unions and parties that make up the Broad
Front supporting the Lula/Alckmin administration, which prioritized the
government at a time of declining approval ratings, with an eye on the
2026 elections.
Lula, who did not attend the union bureaucracy's rallies this year
(after the failure of the 2024 rally), opted for a nationally televised
address on April 30th, promising a reduction in working hours,
attempting to balance the interests of his electoral base without
clashing with the interests of business leaders and congressional allies.
Among the positive points, the opposition to the 6x1 work shift proved
to be an important point for mobilizing the working class, which helped
give meaning to the May Day demonstrations, which had recently served
more as a day of celebration, remembrance, and electoral platform. The
challenge now is to mobilize the agenda for the daily lives of the
working class, beyond large-scale demonstrations and bureaucratized
entities.
https://socialismolibertario.net/
_________________________________________
A - I N F O S N E W S S E R V I C E
By, For, and About Anarchists
Send news reports to A-infos-en mailing list
A-infos-en@ainfos.ca
century, workers around the world have gathered on this date to fight
for a reduction in working hours and against social injustices. Amid a
scenario of fragmentation and bureaucracy within the unions, taking to
the streets alongside a more combative sector is an important task at
this time. ---- In much of the country, the CUT (Unified Labor Union)
and the PT (Workers' Party) backed down from their participation on the
day, weakening their presence and not organizing their own
demonstrations. The unions returned to celebrating the date with the old
"pague" attitude: in São Paulo, the "unified" May Day between the CSB
(Brazilian Socialist Workers' Party), Força Sindical (Union of Workers'
Unions), UGT (Union of Workers' Unions), CTB (Central Labor Union), NCST
(National Labor Union), Pública (Public Workers' Union), and support
from the CUT (Central Labor Union) featured mega-shows and a raffle for
ten cars. The emphasis ended up being on the strength of each side in
the context of the government's detachment from taking up class-based
causes. The protests with more combative causes increased compared to
recent years and were the largest, with the fight against the 6x1 scale
as their central issue.
OSL activists took to the streets according to the reality of each
location, critically articulating their stance on the Lula/Alckmin
administration and the need for class independence to advance
working-class gains. In our interventions at the protests, we spoke
about the need to maintain the struggles in the streets and in the
workplace, and not to trust in politicking and backroom deals with
bosses and politicians, even if they present themselves as allies.
Overall, May Day highlighted the fragmentation of the popular movement,
the crisis of the labor movement, and the central contradiction between
the concrete demands of the working class and the electoral interests of
party leaderships. The demonstrations across the country lacked unity of
action and, with a few exceptions, lacked the broad participation and
support of the oppressed classes. This dispersion is a direct result of
the policies of the main trade unions and parties that make up the Broad
Front supporting the Lula/Alckmin administration, which prioritized the
government at a time of declining approval ratings, with an eye on the
2026 elections.
Lula, who did not attend the union bureaucracy's rallies this year
(after the failure of the 2024 rally), opted for a nationally televised
address on April 30th, promising a reduction in working hours,
attempting to balance the interests of his electoral base without
clashing with the interests of business leaders and congressional allies.
Among the positive points, the opposition to the 6x1 work shift proved
to be an important point for mobilizing the working class, which helped
give meaning to the May Day demonstrations, which had recently served
more as a day of celebration, remembrance, and electoral platform. The
challenge now is to mobilize the agenda for the daily lives of the
working class, beyond large-scale demonstrations and bureaucratized
entities.
https://socialismolibertario.net/
_________________________________________
A - I N F O S N E W S S E R V I C E
By, For, and About Anarchists
Send news reports to A-infos-en mailing list
A-infos-en@ainfos.ca
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