By the No Austerity Struggle Front
On Saturday, February 1, the 7th National Conference of the No Austerity Struggle Front took place in Florence, Italy. Representatives of different groups of the struggle movements took part in the event, including Beko workers (who have participated in one of the most talked about disputes in recent days), Pirelli workers, transport workers (airport and railway), school and university workers, health workers, students, and Women in Struggle.
Different groups of the Palestinian movement also played an important role in the days’ events, in particular the Palestinian comrades who have been at the forefront of the mobilizations of the last months, including Sanitari per Gaza and Firenze per la Palestina. Several representatives of the anti-fascist and anti-capitalist movements in the Florence area also spoke (including a former GKN worker). The presence of the housing rights movements was also particularly important.
The introductory report was given by Daniele Cofani, a former Alitalia worker, who illustrated the repressive measures of the government on the basis of DDL 1660 (a law in the process of being passed). Next was Giovanna Lo Presti, the former national spokeswoman of Cub Scuola, who focused her report on the issue of working hours, reiterating the need for a reduction in working hours with equal pay and the abolition of night shifts, except for those jobs that cannot be stopped for reasons of social necessity. This was followed by a talk by Ivan Maddaluni, a railway worker, who gave an overview of trade union dynamics. Then Marzia Mecocci, a historical activist of the Housing Struggle Movement of Florence, illustrated the situation of high rents and gave an update on the ongoing struggles in the region (the Housing Struggle Movement of Florence is known for its daily interventions against evictions).
The debate was rich and participative, and one of its main themes was the common need to unite the struggles to overthrow the government and the bosses. Emphasis was made on taking as an example the heroic resistance of the Palestinian people who for eighty years have been opposing the colonial invasion of the Zionists, the outpost of Western imperialism (with the U.S. at its head) in the Middle East. The conclusions were drawn by Diego Bossi, a Pirelli worker, who also coordinated the debate.
During the day, at the suggestion of a NUDM colleague, solidarity was expressed with the anti-fascist, anti-racist, feminist and LGBT+ pride march that was taking place at that moment in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
An important moment was the international connection with Herbert Claros, from the union CSP Conlutas (Brazil) and leader of the International Trade Union Network of Solidarity and Struggles (of which FLNA is a member), and with João Reis, a Volkswagen worker from Portugal.
At the end of the debate, in addition to the political document that will guide the FLNA’s action in the coming months, several solidarity motions were put to the vote.
After the adoption of the texts, the book The Hidden History of Zionism by Ralph Schoenman was presented in the presence of Karim Farsakh (a Palestinian student in Italy and author of the foreword), Francesco Ricci (editor of the book) and Pablo Bartoli (from Solidarity and Alternative Association).
The day ended with the general feeling that there had been a high level debate, just as the days’ events also confirmed the importance of this instrument – the No Austerity Struggle Front – for the fate of the class struggle in Italy.
Article published on frontedilottanoausterity.org, 8/2/2025.
