“I witnessed first-hand how charities [were facing] a concerted effort to delegitimise their right to speak up for marginalised groups across the country, whether that was trans people, or refugees and asylum seekers.” - Alex Farrow, head of the Kaleidoscope Trust.

We urge David Lammy to immediately authorise a senior official to meet with the legal representatives of Heba Muraisi & Kamran Ahmed - both on prolonged hunger strike & at extreme risk of death. Their representatives have repeatedly requested this meeting & it is now critical to prevent a tragedy.

Read the full statement from our colleagues in Latin America and the Caribbean on the US attack on Venezuela here: atalc.org/2026/01/03/s...

In the UK, where Reform wants to usher in ICE and Labour wants to imitate Reform, we should not regret, as @olufemiotaiwo.bsky.social says, to inform ourselves of who is going to win. Fascism is here, but there are more antifascists than fascists in the US and the UK.

“It should not be necessary to risk your life to demand fair treatment and just decisions. But when everyone in power has stopped listening, there are few remaining options.” – @georgemonbiot.bsky.social https://bit.ly/3Z13K8h

The death of a legal observer in Minnesota by ICE is a warning to the UK in so many ways. We’re tying ourselves to a violent, corrupt, racist nation which does not care about its citizens. Reform believes in its model, Labour is appeasing it. It is the public who will suffer.

Minneapolis Public Schools leaders are canceling classes Thursday and Friday “due to safety concerns” following the killing of a woman Wednesday by an ICE agent. www.mprnews.org/story/2026/0...

Outrage as Trump withdraws US from key UN climate treaty

Yet another huge contract, awarded without any competitive bidding process, to Wes Streeting's favourite NHS supplier, the Hard Right US surveillance tech specialists Palantir, for military decision making capability.

The rise of the far-right urgently threatens our lives and the planet. We're working to mobilise communities, groups and movements to resist their division and hatred – and win a fairer, fossil fuel-free world. Chip in to help us take action in 2026 👇 www.gofundme.com/f/donate-to-...

Hard to digest: we still live in Fast Food Nation | Eric Schlosser

Are you making #NewYear plans? Perhaps you're looking for ways to give back? Volunteer Brum brings together volunteering opportunities from across Birmingham – from group roles and one-off events to volunteering you can do from home. Take a look: 🤝

The voices of division in our country are growing louder. Join us in London on 28 March for the #TOGETHER Against the Far Right national demonstration. It’s up to us to unite against them. Save the date and sign-up for updates here 👉 togetheralliance.org.uk

This evening ✊

25 days to go to #MEGAPICKET3D Backed by 24 organisations. All sites. One Day. The third dimension is union power🦸 ✊RSVP: bit.ly/Megapicket3RSVP 🛏️Book your hotel room: bit.ly/Megapicket3Accomodation #StrikeMap #Megapicket #Birmingham #BrumBinStrike #UpTheWorkers #BinStrike

Year of Climate Action

Zack Polanski once again demonstrating that the Greens are the only viable alternative to the Reform/Tory/Labour bloc.

[There is a clear logic to the US doing this] “because the US & oil companies look beyond the mid-terms and next year.” “Where Venezuela really matters is 2030 & beyond. Folks are realising we’re going to need a lot more oil in coming decades than we thought.” 2/4

Cooper is a coward and a disgrace

Here is Bob McNally, a US ‘oil expert’ & former energy advisor to GW Bush explaining on #BBCWato today why kidnapping Venezuelan president Maduro and seizing control of the country makes perfect sense from the point of view of the oil industry and more generally in terms of US global power: 1/4

I'm writing about the Palestine Action hunger strikers at the moment, any of whom could die at any moment, and the astonishing media and government silence surrounding them. The Establishment seems to have become even crueller than when Thatcher was PM.

Free public lecture by @sethrockman.bsky.social on slavery, capitalism, and his award winning new book. 6 PM, Friday, 16 January. BRIG Cafe @inthewarehouse.bsky.social Introduced by Gabrielle Hemmings (@unibirmingham.bsky.social) See you there!

Donald Trump won’t stop with Venezuela. Cuba, Greenland, Colombia and Mexico are already in his crosshairs. This is U.S. imperialism, plain and simple — and it must be resisted in all its forms.

Oligarchy (noun): A government of and by a few at the top, who exercise power for their own benefit. Their power and wealth increase as they make laws that favor themselves, manipulate financial markets, and create monopolies that put more wealth into their pockets.

Not one word of condemnation by our government of Trump's illegal act of war in Venezuela. Not one word.

This leaves me wondering how many other countries are on Trump's "to invade" list for 2026, and whether the UK government will oppose any of them.

These people are out of their minds. They are endangering the whole world. This has to stop. This is the wife of the man who is currently running foreign policy for the United States:

All it takes for evil to thrive is for mediocre world leaders to say “I’d rather not say”

Wrote a thing: The carnage associated with fossil fuel is why speeding the transition to renewables is good for international stability as well as everything else. Fossil fuel is inseparable from violence, and dependence on it it has created a brutal world order....

The USA is a rogue state. Trump is a felon who poses a clear and present threat to global peace. He must be removed, and all nations place sanctions on the USA. Of course, this won't happen, because oil and money.

‪A profound meditation on the meaning of Mamdani's mayoralty by @mollycrabapple.bsky.social - it's a map to the future that runs through New York's radical past. We are so much stronger, so much harder to manipulate, when we know our history. www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

"We're in the oil business" - Trump

Also America

Trump just said what it is all about. The sooner the world sheds its addiction to fossil fuels, the better. The alternatives are available, plentiful and cheaper.

🇻🇪HANDS OFF VENEZUELA!🇻🇪 The USA has kidnapped the Venezuelan President and First Lady creating international crisis. NO to Imperialism! NO to War! Birmingham TUC supports the rally by Birmingham Stop The War: TUESDAY 6 JANUARY 5:30PM High Street, City Centre, Birmingham

No one supports a war in Venezuela btw

Stop Trump Coalition condemns the bombing of Venezuela and calls for the British government to finally condemn the US for its warmongering. stoptrump.org.uk/trumps-crimi...

Venezuela has the world’s largest oil reserves — and that’s no coincidence. This is naked U.S. imperialism: an illegal assault on Caracas aimed at overthrowing a sovereign government and plundering its resources. Starmer’s Labour government must condemn this unequivocally.

Solidarity with the Venezuelan people 🇻🇪

The US attack on Venezuela is an illegal act of aggression against a sovereign country (with lots of oil). Venezuela has become a more deeply repressive dictatorship & urgently needs democratic solution but this is unjustified & unjustifiable. Look forward to seeing swift UK Government condemnation.

And this is why we will replace Labour and not be disappointed in them. www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/poli...

The bombing of Venezuela is an act of aggression: unprovoked, unjustified and unjustifiable.