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Martin Empson

@resolutereader.bsky.social

640 followers 430 following 1K posts

One man's odyssey through the world of books. Author of 'Land & Labour', 'Kill All the Gentlemen', 'Socialism or Extinction', "The Time of the Harvest has Come!" Interested in Marxism, history, ecology, revolution. SWP.

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Martin Empson @resolutereader.bsky.social · Apr 7

Ready for the 500th anniversary, my book "The Time of the Harvest has Come: Revolution, Reformation adn the German Peasants' War" is now available.
⭐️Get it from all good bookshops or direct from the publishers @bookmarksbookshop.bsky.social
bookmarksbookshop.co.uk/product/the-...

The cover of Martin Empson's book "The Time of the Harvest has Come!" depicting the Battle of Frankenhausen, with soldiers storming a town in the style of a 16th century print.

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Martin Empson @resolutereader.bsky.social · 1d

Just finished reading Leon Trotsky's First Five Years of the Communist International (volume 1). Here's a summary review I wrote with some fascinatingly prescient quotes from Trotsky about what might happen if revolutions did not break through. resolutereader.blogspot.com/2025/10/leon...

Leon Trotsky - The First Five Years of the Communist International (Vol. I)

The setting up of the Communist Third International in the aftermath of the Russian Revolution was a conscious attempt to use the authority ...

resolutereader.blogspot.com

Martin Empson @resolutereader.bsky.social · 2d

The full story gets worse: "Days before the raid, the man who sheltered the mother and her daughter saw someone he believed to be a worker from the building taking pictures of the units “where the Venezuelans lived.”" chicago.suntimes.com/immigration/...

Neighbor shielded 7-year-old during South Shore federal raid: ‘I didn’t want them to take her’

During the Sept. 30 raid, one tenant protected a terrified girl and her mom. Remnants at the complex, including a detailed map of all the units, offer clues to what authorities may have known before t...

chicago.suntimes.com

Martin Empson @resolutereader.bsky.social · 2d

Who else has read this story before?

Amid the smoke bombs and screams that ricocheted throughout a South Shore building last month during a massive military-style immigration raid, one man heard a knock on his door.

On the other side was a mom and her 7-year-old daughter, pleading for his help.

“I wasn’t planning on letting her stay, but I didn’t know what the hell was going on,” the man said of his Venezuelan migrant neighbors. But he quickly relented. The little girl was inconsolable and hid under his bed.

Reposted by Martin Empson

Alex Callinicos @alexcallinicos.bsky.social · 3d

Excellent analysis of the Greek general strike on Friday. socialistworker.co.uk/internationa...

Strikes across Greece block everything for Palestine

Tens of thousands of workers in Greece staged a general strike for Palestine on Friday.It was a powerful show of solidarity with the Palestinian resistance.

socialistworker.co.uk

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Martin Empson @resolutereader.bsky.social · 3d

"the possibility is not excluded that the bourgeoisie... may continue to fight the revolution until it has drained modern civilization of every atom of every atom of its vitality, until it has plunged modern mankind into a state of collapse and decay for a long time to come." Trotsky, 1921.

Martin Empson @resolutereader.bsky.social · 4d

First time as tragedy; second time as farce. www.theguardian.com/world/2025/o...

Macron reappoints Sébastien Lecornu as French prime minister

Lecornu, who resigned as PM on Monday, is tasked with urgently delivering a budget to parliament

www.theguardian.com

Martin Empson @resolutereader.bsky.social · 6d

My friend and comrade Geoff Brown is doing a Manchester launch of his amazing People's History of the Anti Nazi League on 1 November, at the Marxism in a Day event. More info and booking here bit.ly/MancMarx

Details of the Manchester launch of Geoff Brown's A People's History of the Anti Nazi League, on Sat 1 Nov, in Friends Meeting House. Flyer is yellow with details of the event and a book cover. A QR code redirects to this booking website https://bit.ly/MancMarx

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Reposted by Martin Empson

Robert Mackey @robertmackey.bsky.social · 8d

The Oregon Republican Party tried to help Donald Trump make the case for military intervention in Portland with an image of a fiery protest — but since Portland is calm, they had to fabricate one by merging old photos of police in Ecuador and protesters in Brazil www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

Republicans post fake image of Oregon protest – using photos of South America

A federal judge had blocked Trump’s request to deploy California national guard to Portland

www.theguardian.com

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Martin Empson @resolutereader.bsky.social · 8d

I've been busy organising for a Manchester Climate Justice march and rally on Sat 15 Nov, 1.30pm. Here's the graphic, with support from local environmental groups and trade unions.

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Martin Empson @resolutereader.bsky.social · 10d

DOJ’s statement said, “We urge you therefore to choose to prioritise protecting the community, rather than arresting those peacefully holding signs in opposition to the absurd and draconian ban of a domestic direct action group.” socialistworker.co.uk/palestine-20...

Defend Our Juries defies Labour’s draconian call to stop Palestine protests

Labour home secretary Shabana Mahmood demanded Defend Our Juries (DOJ) call off their protest in Trafalgar Square

socialistworker.co.uk

Martin Empson @resolutereader.bsky.social · 10d

Government response to people being repeatedly angry at their policies, is to try and stop people expressing their anger. www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...

Police to get new powers to crack down on repeated protests, says Home Office

Move follows arrest of almost 500 people at latest pro-Palestinian demonstration in London on Saturday

www.theguardian.com

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Martin Empson @resolutereader.bsky.social · 11d

Tagging the publisher @chelseagreenbooks.bsky.social

Martin Empson @resolutereader.bsky.social · 11d

My latest book review looks at @nicolawriting.bsky.social's wonderful "Ghosts of the Farm". It tells the story of Julia White, a woman farmer in the 1940s, together with Nicola's own story and ponders land, gender, politics and much more. Read it.
resolutereader.blogspot.com/2025/10/nico...

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Martin Empson @resolutereader.bsky.social · 11d

I just wrote a @campaigncc.bsky.social letter: MP letter action: call on Starmer to show up for the climate. Write one here: actionnetwork.org/letters/mp-l...

MP letter action: call on Starmer to show up for the climate

COP30, the annual UN climate change summit, is taking place in November in Belem, Brazil. As the climate crisis escalates, this is probably the most significant climate summit since Paris ten years ag...

actionnetwork.org

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Martin Empson @resolutereader.bsky.social · 12d

I think the left should return to describing the likes of Starmer as "criminals of yellow social democracy" as in this Leon Trotsky quote from January 1919.

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Martin Empson @resolutereader.bsky.social · 13d

Why are any of you still in the Labour Party?

Martin Empson @resolutereader.bsky.social · 14d

Well, this will be worth a watch www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...

Met officers suspended over alleged abuse of suspects and support for Tommy Robinson

BBC’s Panorama to broadcast allegations about wrongdoing at Charing Cross police station

www.theguardian.com

Martin Empson @resolutereader.bsky.social · 15d

"Revolutionaries should try to forge unity in action... This is the best guarantee of struggles winning, and in the process raising the level of combativity and class consciousness of workers—so as to create more favourable conditions for revolutionaries" isj.org.uk/hegemony-and...

Revolutionaries, hegemony and the united front • International Socialism

The working class is fragmented in its politics, including its support for different parties or no party at all.1 The existence of these divisions is not an accident of history that can be wished away...

isj.org.uk

Reposted by Martin Empson

Birmingham Climate Justice Coalition @brumcjc.bsky.social · 16d

Environmental damage is putting European way of life at risk, says report

EU officials warn climate breakdown and wildlife loss ‘are ruining ecosystems that underpin the economy’

www.theguardian.com

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Martin Empson @resolutereader.bsky.social · 16d

"Vietnam: The (last) war the US lost" by Joe Allen. My review of an interesting book that explores the nature of the US antiwar movement and why US imperialism was defeated in Vietnam. Much of relevance for today resolutereader.blogspot.com/2025/09/joe-...

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Martin Empson @resolutereader.bsky.social · 16d

This is a fantastic obituary from @solidarity-aus.bsky.social in Australia about the Aboriginal communist Ray Peckham. Shows how anti-racist movements together with power of the organised working class can win big gains. solidarity.net.au/highlights/v...

Vale Ray Peckham: Aboriginal communist who changed history – Solidarity Online

Paddy Gibson, Wendy Bowles and John Nolan look at the life of legendary working class Aboriginal activist Ray Peckham, and the lessons from his battles for Aboriginal rights

solidarity.net.au

Martin Empson @resolutereader.bsky.social · 17d

Labour and tariff crisis for US farming. Statistics in this report as staggering. "US agricultural workforce fell by about 7% between March and July." www.youtube.com/watch?v=xPh2...

'It's a 5-alarm fire for our industry': Soybean farmer on tariff struggles | NewsNation Now

YouTube video by NewsNation

www.youtube.com

Martin Empson @resolutereader.bsky.social · 18d

Tonight's film was Akira Kurosawa's Ran (1985), a stunning film visually, full of clever set pieces, but shaped by remarkable character acting and inspiring use of Shakespeare. King Lear will never be the same.

Martin Empson @resolutereader.bsky.social · 19d

Comrades from Australia, Greece and Britain discuss the fight against the rise of the right and the fascists. Similar causes and dynamics to the movements from the right, and lessons to be learnt everywhere. soundofsolidarity.podbean.com/e/fighting-t...

Fighting the rise of the far right: lessons from Greece and Britain | The Sound of Solidarity

Socialists from Britain and Greece draw on their experiences of fighting the rise of the far right. Judy Cox is a member of the Socialist Workers Party, which has played a central role in Stand Up to ...

soundofsolidarity.podbean.com

Martin Empson @resolutereader.bsky.social · 19d

I liked that book a great deal. Helped me frame events before I began to read deeper on the history of the era.