For Peace & Ecology

So, on to the latest counter-cultural celebrations, saturdays Peace & Ecology festival organised by Merseyside CND. http://www.laycock.uklinux.net/mcnd/

This was the second annual event of its kind, more of a gathering of progressive activists and their stalls with live background music, and sun too which was a result. Lots of peace groups and environmentalists, naturally, and international solidarity campaigns were well represented too.

And from my perspective particuarly pleasing to see the Keep Our NHS Public campaign established as a local presence.

Curiuosly no trotskyist left or trade union stalls - I'm not complaining about the absence of the former, though the non-trotskyist socialist groups are fairly idiosyncratic too. Maybe we should do something about the latter next year as local FBU and TGWU regions did fund and sponsor the event, as did Liverpool Trades Council

There were also more christian peace groups than I expected. This is perhaps explained by the very moving location this year. St Luke's in the city centre is the ruins of a church hit by a bomb in WW2, and is both grand and peaceful in itself; a real place of reflection which is usually left to people down on their luck drowning their sorrows away.

What the average city centre shoppers who stumbled across us makes of this I don't really know. But there was enough of an atmosphere not to care too much, and to relax and think only about the important things in life for a change.