This year witnessed massive struggles throughout the world by working people in defence of their rights, and against imperialist organised wars.
Protests against Israeli genocide in Gaza
Crores of people across the globe came out onto the streets to condemn the Israeli state for the genocidal war it has unleashed against the Palestinian people. People questioned and opposed the governments and companies that are supporting the bloody aims of Israel.
Earlier this year, in March, students in UK occupied three universities to draw attention to their universities’ support for the genocide in Gaza which had killed tens of thousands of Palestinians. Students from the University of Bristol in South-West England, University of Leeds in Northern England and Goldsmith’s University in London stood up in support of the Palestinian people. The protest at Bristol University followed a march in solidarity with Palestinian women on International Women’s Day. According to the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, UK universities collectively invest $430 million in companies which do business with Israel and are thus involved in Israel’s violations of international law against Palestinians. The students demanded that any kind of collaboration or support of the universities to the Israeli government must be stopped. They condemned the horrible crimes that the Israeli state has committed on the Palestinian people and demanded immediate ceasefire.
On 13 April, hundreds of thousands of people in Britain participated in a massive protest march in London, denouncing the British government for its connivance in the massacre of thousands of innocent Palestinians, by facilitating the supply of arms and drones to Israel, which are being manufactured in the UK by Israeli companies. A contingent of Indian Workers’ Association Great Britain (IWA GB) took part in this protest march.
In campuses across the US, as well as in offices of American multinationals, people organised militant protests against any form of support to the genocide unleashed by Israel in Gaza. In April, Google workers in the US protested against the company’s supply of computing services to the Israeli military. Hundreds of workers participated in rallies outside Google offices in New York, California and Seattle. They demanded that the company end military contracts with Israel. Google workers have been expressing their concern about providing AI and Cloud computing services to Israel, for the past nearly three years. Workers of Google said that they cannot be silenced by the repressive measures unleashed against them by the Google management.
Thousands of people gathered at London’s Piccadilly Circus on 7 September, and marched to the Israeli Embassy in London, in a massive show of protest against Israel’s bombardment of Gaza and the British government’s continued support for the Israeli Army. The people called for an end to Israel’s ongoing genocide in Gaza. They demanded that the British government immediately and completely stop its arms supplies to Israel.
Tens of thousands of American people raised their voices against the genocide in Gaza and attacks on the Palestinians in the West Bank, and the US state’s support for the genocide, during the Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Chicago from 19-22 August 2024. The demonstrators called on all the working people of America to unite with them on the demand to immediately stop American support for the genocide.
About 1,200 people participated in a protest on 11 September 2024, picketing the Land Forces 2024 exposition being held in Melbourne, Australia. Pro-Palestine slogans were raised through loudspeakers while protestors waved Palestine flags. The protest was organised by the Students for Palestine and Disrupt Wars groups. The national co-convener of Students for Palestine clarified that “We’re protesting to stand up for all those who have been killed by the type of weapons on display at the convention.”
Protests of workers, farmers and students
Junior Doctors of the National Health Service (NHS) in Britain went on a 6-day strike, from 3-9 January 2024. One of their demands was for a 35% increase in their wages. They pointed out that their real wages have gone down by 25% since the last wage settlement in 2008. In addition, the striking doctors complained of long working hours, increasing workload, relentless work pressure and very high stress levels. They have organized strikes and protests at least ten times since March 2023.
On 8 July 2024, more than 6000 workers in South Korea working for Samsung Electronics stopped work, initially calling a three-day strike, demanding better pay, paid leave and benefits. They organized the strike under the banner of National Samsung Electronics Union (NSEU). On 10 July, the NSEU declared an indefinite strike thereafter till the management was ready to negotiate. On 15 July, they organized another rally with hundreds of workers in front of one of the factory gates.
In recent times, students from India are acing a lot of challenges in achieving their objectives of education and employment in Canada. There has been a tightening of rules about extension of study and work permits and many Indian students will be forced to leave Canada after completing their education. In May of this year, Indian students in Canada began a protest to highlight their grievances. Their demands were that the rules of visa extensions and work permits should not be changed in the middle of their academic program. They demanded extension of their work permits and removal of the restrictions imposed by the government in December 2023 with regard to getting permanent residence.
Tens of thousands of hotel workers in some of the biggest hotel chains across the United States went on a 3-day strike on 1 September 2024, over a major holiday weekend, to demand better pay and working conditions. Workers struck work in nine cities, from East to West of the country, including Boston, Honolulu, San Francisco, San Diego and Seattle. The strike was triggered by the managements of the Hilton, Hyatt and Marriott hotel chains failing to reach an agreement in wage contract negotiations with the union representing the hotel workers. The union is demanding that all staff positions be filled, as existed before the Covid pandemic. This countrywide strike of hotel workers follows a strike during the Fourth of July holiday weekend in 2023, at 65 hotels in Southern California.
Since the beginning of this year, farmers of Europe have participated in powerful protests against increasing attacks on their livelihood. These protests took place in both the highly advanced capitalist countries such as France and Germany, as well as other countries such as Poland and Rumania. They protested against several anti-farmer measures adopted by the European Commission and by the governments of the member countries. From the beginning of the Ukraine war more than two years ago, the European Union (EU) allowed unlimited duty free imports of agricultural produce from Ukraine in the name of supporting Ukraine. As a result, Ukrainian agricultural produce began to be dumped in the markets of the member countries of the EU, lowering the demand for agricultural produce of farmers of these countries. 
The European Commission has been steadily cutting down on subsidies to farmers. The rising cost of energy and escalating expenses, as well as the cutting back of state subsidies for agriculture, are squeezing the livelihood of farmers and agricultural workers. Farmers of member countries of the EU are demanding that their governments implement measures to safeguard their livelihood. As part of their protests, farmers in Poland, France and Germany dumped their produce in front of city administration buildings and on highways, and conducted raids on stores, destroying Ukrainian made products. Farmers are condemning their governments for pouring billions of Euros into the war against Russia. They are increasingly coming to the conclusion that the European Union represents the interests of the biggest monopoly capitalists of Europe, and that it does not care for their interests.