Recapture the Flag
From our flag to our social fabric, our nation is being warped and rewoven in ways that can appear beyond our control.
Issue 148
Solidarity in Action
Nov – Dec 2025
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International Solidarity in Practice
Effective solidarity in action is now what matters most, writes Sofiah Macleod.
Complicity is Racism
Deep and entrenched prejudice provides cover for Israeli genocide, argues Lubnah Shomali.
Israeli Energy Apartheid and Scotland’s Complicity
Three companies headquartered in Aberdeen are supporting and profiting from energy apartheid and a genocide that the Scottish Government claims to oppose, writes Dave Black.
Glasgow Placements for Palestinian Nurses
Gerry O’Hare tells the story of the partnership behind clinical placements undertaken by Palestinian cancer nurses in Glasgow.
Cats, Sanctions, and the Obliteration of Life
Western sanctions violate the very principles the West claims to uphold, argues Mustafa Fetouri.
Destination Defence
Daire Ní Chnáimh dissects Destination Defence, a new campaign launched by the British government in collaboration with ADS, the arms industry trade group.
Ukrainian Union Priorities During War and After
Stephen Smellie reports on the UNISON delegation to Ukraine in autumn.
We Were Not the Only Ones / Fishers of Men
Two poems by Kriss Nichol and Ray Evans, members of Dove Tales, the Association of Artists for Peace.
Macedonian Labour in Jeopardy
Ljupka Apostolovska reports on political interference and the struggle for independent trade unions in Macedonia.
The Unending Task
After the far right surge in Scotland this summer it is time to build the strength for next time, writes Carl Lewis.
We had to stop them appearing on the streets
Henry Maitles explores the impact of the British Union of Fascists in Scotland in the 1930s and the lessons we can learn for today.
Unite The Left Behind
Social centres have proven their potential as a model of organising, writes the Aberdeen Social Centre Organising Group.
The Party Question in Unchartered Waters
Your Party washed up on Scotland’s shores, while Civic Scotland mobilisations have lapped gently against the Parliament’s walls. Neither will help the Left articulate a new national vision, writes Coll McCail.
What Nicola Did
Stephen Smellie reviews Frankly by Nicola Sturgeon (Pan Macmillan, 2025) and finds an autobiography of a mere careerist that is frankly disappointing.
Variant: the Necessity of Critique
The future of cultural criticism in Scotland depends on new forms of support and the old question of funding, write the Variant Editorial Collective.
Don’t Stop Dreaming
We publish the Jimmy Reid Memorial Lecture 2025, delivered by Ghassan Abu-Sittah at the Glasgow City Chambers on the 2nd October.