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Klasse! is out!

Klasse! (Class!) is a new, free and left-wing three-monthly newspaper to encourage debate and information exchange within social and political movements in the Netherlands. The paper is printed in an edition of 7,000 and will be available at the main info-points (alternative bookshops, squats, social centres) in Dutch cities (see the website for a list of venues). You can also read a PDF version online and we are grateful for help with distribution in your neighbourhood or city. If you mail us (klasse@globalinfo.nl), we will send you a bunch. Unfortunately, we have no money to pay for postage, but the paper itself is entirely free.

2 min leestijd
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We started the paper, as the lead article in the first edition elaborates, because we feel there is a need for a space to consolidate the rather marginal left-wing scene in the Netherlands and create a space for debate. The issues we want to concentrate on are therefore focused on the question of organisation, and central left-wing issues such as labour, the (global) economy and migration, but also culture. The last page offers resource websites and information on politically active groups and political spaces in the Netherlands.

Although we believe it is important to offer the paper for free, it does of course cost a substantial amount to produce it, we are therefore grateful for any financial support (gironummer 9554857, ‘Het Lab’, Amsterdam). We will also organise benefit gigs and any extra money generated will be used to produce more pages.

The first edition of the paper provides information on political activism for freedom of movement in the Netherlands and the fight against immigration detention, economic issues such as the development of ‘Global Europe’, European Partnership Agreements and actions against free trade agreements, cultural activism such as the Space Hijackers who bought an army tank and tried to ride it into the arms trade conference in London. We also interviewed a Dutch trade union activist and a cleaner from Schiphol about the cleaner’s campaign which uses social union activism from below to organise precarious, often migrant work forces, as well as a member of the Dutch clowns army RebelAct, which supports the campaign. The interview highlights critique put forward by social movements towards the organizing strategy and its implementation by trade unions and provides some answers.

We hope you like the paper and are happy to receive suggestions via klasse@globalinfo.nl and soon you will be able to react to articles directly on globalinfo.nl/klasse.

The Polder Zapatisas!