A-Infos (en) Italy, Umanita Nova #25-25 - General Strike September 22 - Report from the Streets (ca, de, it, pt, tr)[machine translation]

TURIN ---- The presence of striking workers was absolutely significant, 
especially - though not exclusively - among school employees, who often 
marched in groups together with parents and students. ---- The unions 
that had called or joined the strike in Turin - CUB, Cobas Scuola, USB - 
marched in a united contingent, even if many union activists were also 
embedded within the school sections. ---- Workers from other sectors, 
though less visible, were nevertheless numerous.
It is worth noting that many of the people watching the procession, 
which paraded for about an hour, often showed sympathy and support for 
the mobilisation.

MASSA CARRARA

It was also a strike Monday in Massa Carrara, called by USB and other 
grassroots union federations.
Despite pouring rain, those who chose to strike gathered for a picket at 
the east entrance of the port of Marina di Carrara.
The strike participation was high, especially in the school sector.
A good number of people gathered at the port gates, where coordinations, 
associations and unions defied the bad weather.

In the afternoon, as the weather cleared, the picket grew steadily and 
turned into a march, with the city responding strongly.
About four thousand people paraded along the seafront in solidarity with 
the Palestinian population and the Global Sumud Flotilla.
The spontaneous solidarity and mobilisation unleashed that day was 
exactly the energy we need.

PISA

Almost everyone agreed that the march for the September 22 General 
Strike was among the largest ever seen in Pisa.
Overflowing the small square in front of City Hall, the demonstration 
first followed the Lungarni (river embankments), then spread into other 
streets, and at one point made a U-turn, so the tail of the march 
crossed paths with its head.

The crowd then headed toward the Central Station - already occupied on 
September 4 - but bypassed it to aim for the International Airport.
A few hundred meters from the airport, the march veered onto the ramps 
of the FI-PI-LI expressway (Strada di Grande Comunicazione 
Firenze-Pisa-Livorno), marched about a kilometer, exited onto the 
Aurelia State Road, and finally returned downtown.

The procession was punctuated by frequent rain showers but was spared 
from significant police presence, who were almost invisible.

Crowd size estimates range from 6,000 (pessimists) to 10,000 (optimists).
It was certainly a broad and diverse participation: many families with 
children, veteran activists, young students, workers with or without 
banners, and many others.

What united this multitude was a shared intent: to protest against the 
massacre in Gaza and Palestine and against the culpable inertia of 
Italian and global authorities.

For two years Pisa has seen countless initiatives in support of 
Palestinians, and this will likely continue.
Indeed, just 48 hours after the strike, a protest against terrorist 
attacks on the Global Sumud Flotilla turned into a march of several 
hundred people, which then blocked Pisa San Rossore Station. (Caotico info)

MILAN

The September 22 general strike, promoted by the grassroots unions with 
the participation of USI-CIT, marked a historic turning point, with 
participation far beyond the traditional base of grassroots unionism - 
mobilisations occurred in 80 cities with around one million people 
across the country.

This was the result of the persistent nationwide presence of grassroots 
unions at protests against the massacre of the Palestinian people, their 
expulsion from Gaza, and unconditional support for the International 
Flotilla humanitarian mission.

In Milan, there was enormous popular participation despite heavy rain.
Tens of thousands of people filled the streets; joy and solidarity lit 
up the march as people embraced, greeted each other, and spoke with 
neighbors along the route.

Many young people, especially very young students organized within their 
schools, marched alongside teachers with banners.
The march was so densely packed that it moved slowly, taking up the 
entire street width and even spilling over the sidewalks.

This massive, warm solidarity was largely ignored by mainstream media, 
who instead focused scandalized attention on a few broken windows at the 
Central Station.
Meanwhile, the genocide of the Palestinian population and the forced 
expulsion of Gaza's inhabitants were not treated as scandals.

While governments remain passive, the difficult and dangerous mission of 
the International Flotilla was attacked by drones in international 
waters, damaging boats and trying to intimidate them into giving up 
their goal.

Despite institutional appeals to hand over aid through the Patriarchate 
of Jerusalem, the Flotilla continues with the aim of opening a permanent 
humanitarian aid route to Gaza.

The real force enabling the Flotilla's mission is ourselves:
by expanding popular mobilisations, strikes that halt production, port 
blockades, and generalized blockages.
This is the only possible path to try to end the genocide.

Meanwhile, mobilisations continue, and squares in many cities are being 
occupied.
In Milan, tents have been set up in Piazza Della Scala.

ROME

A general strike called by grassroots unions achieved very high 
participation rates, even in workplaces where combative unions are 
usually absent or weak.
Alongside the strike, there were massive marches in over 80 Italian 
cities, forming a nationwide mobilisation - the popular answer to 
institutional complicity in Gaza's ongoing genocide.

In Rome, the demonstration filled the streets and paralyzed the city 
like rarely seen in recent times.

Protesters gathered at eight different assembly points across the 
capital (Stazione Quattro Venti, Metro Piramide stop, Piazza 
Indipendenza, Piazza dell'Immacolata, Piazza Sempione, Ponte Lungo, 
Metro Pigneto stop, and Piazzale Aldo Moro).
They then marched to Termini Station, where they first rallied and then 
merged into one immense procession, crossing Rome under the cry of "FREE 
PALESTINE".

An estimated 100,000 people joined - an exceptionally high turnout for a 
city march, exceeding many celebrated national demonstrations.

The majority were young people and students, signaling their rejection 
of a pre-written future of war, poverty, and oppression.

Our anarchist contingent stood out with a large, clear banner:

"NEITHER GOD, NOR STATE, NOR WAR - FREEDOM FOR ALL ON FREE LAND"

Behind it flew black and red-and-black anarchist flags.
It was a scene not only of solidarity with the Palestinian people but of 
a radical position: breaking with patriotism, nationalism, and 
authoritarian religion.

Our message was unequivocal: support for Gaza, but no support for 
identities that build walls or justify hatred with "sacred" labels.

Autumn has begun - we hope it will be a hot autumn of social struggle!

(Gruppo Anarchico Mikhail Bakunin - FAI Roma & Lazio)

FLORENCE

In Florence, the rallying cry of the massive September 22 strike was 
"Let's Block Everything!"
A real traffic blockade was carried out at the A1 motorway exit roundabout.
The chosen march route went through the industrial area of Calenzano.

Here, the "block everything" theme connected directly to the issue of 
workplace deaths, as the procession passed the ENI power plant where a 
terrible gas explosion last December killed five workers and injured 
twenty-six.

Once again, the precarious subcontracts system and profit-driven 
policies were denounced.

The march continued to Leonardo, a factory where a picket had already 
been held during the June 20 strike.
There, speeches denounced war economies, weapons production, rearmament, 
and rising military spending.

It then passed near GKN and concluded in central Calenzano.

Participation exceeded even the expectations of the grassroots unions 
that had called it, drawing in workers frustrated by the CGIL's sabotage 
with its token strike on Friday the 19th.

Beyond the labor world - with especially high participation from the 
education sector - the day captured a widespread public anger at war and 
government policies that clearly needs to continue.

TRIESTE

The September 22 strike and street actions in Trieste surpassed all 
expectations.
People gathered at 10:00 am at Gate 4 of the port to block access.

The initiative was launched by USB, supported by other grassroots unions 
(USI-CIT, Cobas) and many political and social groups.
Even before 10:00 am, it was clear participation would be huge, with 
groups arriving from across the region.

Estimates ranged from 5,000 to 7,000 real participants.
Strike participation was significant in various sectors, especially in 
schools.

Another positive sign: a level of high school student participation not 
seen in decades.
It was arguably the most successful "political" general strike called by 
grassroots unions in Trieste in the past thirty years.

By noon, after a tense debate between those wanting to force the police 
blockade to enter the port and those against, three separate marches set 
off toward the city center, later merging.

This effectively paralyzed another port entrance for much of the day.
The big march ended in front of the central train station, where 
speeches were made and some spontaneous traffic blockades occurred.
Police closed the train station, canceling several services.

Later, another march of several hundred people returned to Gate 4, which 
remained guarded by a hundred people until 7:00 pm when the blockade ended.

It was a very positive day of struggle, with many bright spots and some 
shadows:
notably the lack of dockworker participation, tensions among protesters 
at the port gates, and police provocations - including an attack from 
behind on the "antagonist" march that caused minor injuries.

As the Gruppo Anarchico Germinal, we supported the mobilisation and were 
present in all phases of the day.
Actions continued in the following days; we remain engaged, bringing an 
anti-militarist and anti-border perspective to every struggle.

LIVORNO

On Monday, September 22, an entire city blocked the port... ---- From 
6:00 a.m., a dense presence at the Valessini port gate stopped the few 
non-striking trucks from entering the port area.

By 8:30 a.m., the mass arrival of high school students, many striking 
workers, and a huge number of people enabled the crowd to push through 
the gate and enter the port.

Thousands of people flooded onto the Molo Italia dock, launching an 
occupation that lasted three uninterrupted days.
During those days there were assemblies, debates, and social moments, 
while also waging a citywide labor dispute.

Beyond protesting the ongoing genocide in Gaza, as well as war, 
armament, and rearmament policies, the population strongly opposed the 
docking of a U.S. cargo ship carrying Caterpillar vehicles destined for 
the Camp Darby military base to be armed and armored.

The determination to call another strike if the ship tried to dock was 
immediate.
Even more significant was the mass popular response, with people 
constantly flowing to the port, using shuttles provided by dockworkers 
to join the occupation.

The Railway Workers Against the War also mobilised, vowing to block rail 
transport toward Camp Darby if the ship found another nearby port.

This struggle paid off: the Prefect formally assured that the ship would 
not dock.
On Wednesday evening, a large march left the port, creating a permanent 
encampment at another port gate, which remains active and lively with 
assemblies and meetings.

From this encampment, on Saturday the 27th, a group left for La Spezia; 
another call was launched to block an incoming Israeli-flagged 
commercial ship expected in the coming days.
The struggle is still ongoing.

This movement is supported not only by dockworkers - who alone could not 
sustain such a huge fight - but by the entire city, moving in unison.

As anarchists, we have actively participated in these blockades, 
strikes, and permanent encampments, seeing with our own eyes solidarity 
and direct action put into practice.

From the Livorno Anarchist Federation statement:

"Anarchists can only be present and actively involved in blockades and 
strikes because anarchism is not a dogmatic ideology but a concrete 
practice.
A practice coherent with fundamental principles, starting with solidarity.

The strike day intertwined solidarity with the people of Gaza and 
Palestine and the struggle against the genocide carried out by the state 
of Israel, with the fight against war, rearmament, and the war economy.
Continuing the anti-war strikes of recent years, it once again put the 
working class and the practice of the strike at the center.

Hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets, with demonstrations 
in over 80 cities.
We know this is only the beginning - in many cities the momentum has not 
died out.
Stop believing in institutions, party leaderships, and union bureaucracies.
Those who tell us that the ship carries 'only commercial goods,' that 
protests risk jobs, are the first to profit from arms trade and the 
stability of a political and economic system willing to destroy the 
world with bombs, as is happening in Gaza.

We know well that weapons are not only those defined by Law 185 of 1990 
- which warmongers constantly try to dismantle.
Weapons are not only those that shoot: they are also support materials 
and equipment that can be used by military forces, tools to starve 
populations, goods traded with a state committing genocide.
In this case, it is clear the SLNC Severn comes to Livorno because just 
a few kilometers away is the U.S. military base Camp Darby, the largest 
U.S. arsenal outside America.

We support the Autonomous Dockworkers Group, which for years has fought 
against arms transport in the port of Livorno.
Their action highlighted the militarisation of our port, which since 
WWII has been a key hub for arms transit.

We call on everyone to join the encampment and expand participation as 
widely as possible.
In two days, through direct action, self-organisation, and 
self-management, we have already achieved an important result: creating 
a movement base around a concrete goal.
From this struggle, we can create a precedent to inspire everyone."

NAPLES

Yesterday's day of struggle, within the national general strike called 
by grassroots unions, against the GENOCIDE carried out by the Israeli 
neo-fascist government and supported by all existing states, and against 
wars worldwide, saw unprecedented popular participation in recent years 
- going far beyond the initial union call.

It became the perfect occasion for not only workers but hundreds of 
thousands of ordinary people to express their anger, rejection of 
genocide, of all wars, of rearmament.

It was a huge, largely spontaneous and genuine day of struggle, decisive 
in signaling that the only way to free humanity from war, genocide, 
exploitation, hunger, and inequality is through:

self-organisation, STRUGGLE, solidarity, mutual aid, wellbeing for all, 
and freedom.

We must continue to fight, demonstrate, and build an INDEFINITE GENERAL 
STRIKE until war ceases to exist and all arms factories are turned into 
bakeries and places of collective wellbeing.

We, the Francesco Mastrogiovanni Anarchist Group (FAI Naples), were and 
will always be present with our flags and contribution.

PEACE AMONG THE OPPRESSED AND WAR ON THE OPPRESSORS.
NEITHER STATE, NOR GOD, NOR SERVANTS, NOR MASTERS.
EQUALITY, SOLIDARITY, AND FREEDOM.

https://umanitanova.org/sciopero-generale-22-settembre-report-dalle-piazze/
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