MAY 1: SOLIDARITY AND THE STRUGGLE TO OVERCOME TYRANNY

 

May 1, International Workers' Day, is a powerful reminder of the capacity of solidarity to overcome tyranny, and the slide into barbarism.

INTERNATIONAL WORKERS’ Day, May 1st, has long served as a rallying cry for the working class—a call to recognise the power and dignity of labour in the face of exploitation. In 2025, this commemoration carries an especially resonant message. Across the globe, workers will unite to demand rights, justice, and equality. Yet, even as they celebrate their achievements, workers are compelled to confront the enduring challenges of oppression, both under domestic and international circumstances. Nowhere is this dual struggle more evident than in Gaza, a territory where the Palestinian people face an Israeli military engaged in nothing less than genocide. The intertwined narratives of labour rights and Palestinian liberation illuminate a broader, global fight against capitalist exploitation—a fight where the choice between socialism and barbarism, as Rosa Luxemburg once warned, remains a stark reality.

At its core, International Workers’ Day is not simply a celebration of labour, but a powerful reminder of the capacity of solidarity to overcome tyranny. Workers, regardless of geographic and cultural boundaries, have historically found strength in collective organisation. Whether striking for higher wages, safer conditions, or fundamental human rights, their actions highlight a universal truth: progress is born from the unity of the exploited. 

In the current global order, capitalist systems continue to prioritise profit over people, turning labour into a commodity while ignoring the human cost. This exploitation is evident not only in traditional industrialised societies, but also in regions like Gaza, where the Palestinian working class endures both economic deprivation and political subjugation. Workers there have, historically, been caught in a web of unemployment, underinvestment in public welfare, and the crushing weight of external military enforcement. The same drive for justice that propels strikes and protests in Europe or America is echoed in the heartbeats of Gazan workers longing for dignity and self-determination.

The struggle for Palestinian liberation is inseparable from the broader fight for workers’ rights and social justice. It is here that Rosa Luxemburg’s insights provide a critical lens through which to view the present moment. Luxemburg, one of the most influential of socialist thinkers, argued that society stands at a crossroads—a choice between socialism and barbarism. Her words resonate deeply in the context of both the international labour movement and the Palestinian struggle. According to Luxemburg, the alternate paths represent profoundly different futures: one marked by humanisation, collective decision-making, and equality; the other characterised by a descent into savagery, marked by the devaluation of human life in the pursuit of profit.

In Gaza, where the ramifications of global economic and political power structures are acutely felt, the struggle embodies this very choice. Here, the determination to uphold dignity and rights against overwhelming odds is a clarion call to embrace socialism—a path where collective well-being is prioritised over individual gain—rather than a slide into the barbarism of unchecked capitalism. In a new and important essay, The Rise of End Times Fascism, authors Naomi Klein and Astra Taylor provide a picture of the barbarism that must be resisted: 'We are up against an ideology that has given up not only on the premise and promise of liberal democracy but on the livability of our shared world—on its beauty, on its people, on our children, on other species.'

International Workers’ Day is a reminder of the potential for alternative futures. Celebrations and protests on May 1st are imbued with the same revolutionary energy that illuminated the early days of industrial labour struggles. Across the world, workers proclaim that their fate should not be dictated by profit margins or the whims of distant elites, but by their own collective will. In Gaza, similar ambitions are expressed through grassroots movements that demand economic justice and political liberation. The struggles of Gazan workers and the Palestinian people in general, mirrors the broader international demand for a fundamental reordering of society—a reordering based on fairness, mutual aid, and solidarity.

Yet, achieving such a goal requires overcoming entrenched interests and dismantling oppressive structures—both in Western industrial centres and in conflict zones like Gaza. The capitalist system’s reliance on military might, militarised borders, and economic blockades is designed to quash such aspirations. Workers and activists around the globe, however, are increasingly rejecting this paradigm. They advocate for policies that reinvest power into communities and prioritise human needs over corporate interests. The idea of socialism that emerges from this critique is one that emphasises distributive justice: ensuring that every individual, whether in New York, Auckland, or Gaza, has access to basic rights, healthcare, education, and the opportunity to participate in decisions affecting their lives.

The struggle is far from abstract. It is lived daily in the factories, farms, offices, and even in the rubble of Gaza’s streets. As long as economic systems continue to value profit over people, and as long as political structures remain complicit in these inequities, the working class’s demand for genuine representation and emancipation remains unfulfilled. Rosa Luxemburg’s enduring call—a choice between socialism and barbarism—is a rallying cry for all who work, all who suffer, and all who dream of a more equitable world. There remains a world to win.

On this International Workers’ Day, let the struggle of Gaza remind us of the global dimensions of worker exploitation and the urgent need for solidarity. Workers everywhere have the power to create change. In the spirit of solidarity and inspired by socialist ideals, we must commit ourselves to a future where the dignity of every worker is upheld, and where the oppressive structures of capitalism are replaced with systems that honour human life and collective decision-making. Our collective future depends on it.