|
|
Tony Benn 1925-2014: tireless, inspirational fighter for peace, justice and equality
un articulo por Lindsey German, Stop the War Coalition
Tony Benn's legacy will be his undying commitment
to the fight for justice and equality, and his
opposition to the endless war and militarism that
are such a blight on today's world.
click on photo to enlarge
The loss of Tony Benn is a loss for our whole
movement. He was a good friend to the Stop the War
Coalition, of which he remained president to the
end. One of his last speeches was at the Stop the
War international conference on 30 November 2013.
He was a socialist, someone with a deep commitment
to social change, who was principled to the end.
Tony was from a privileged and highly political
background, the son and grandson of Liberal and
then Labour politicians. He would have become
Viscount Stansgate in the early 60s if he had not
fought a long legal battle to renounce his peerage
and to continue as an MP in the House of Commons.
This he did, first in Bristol then in
Chesterfield. He became an important minister in
the Wilson Labour governments, standing for deputy
leader in 1981 after Labour’s defeat by Thatcher.
Almost uniquely for someone in his position, he
moved to the left as he got older. As an MP he
campaigned over a range of issues, supported the
miners during their year long strike in 1984-5,
was committed to equality and women’s rights, was
an internationalist who opposed empire and
apartheid, and a socialist. But in my opinion his
most important work came after he left parliament
as he quipped ‘to spend more time on politics’.
This was after the death of his remarkable wife
Caroline, a fine socialist campaigner and author.
He dedicated the rest of his life to campaigning
and was absolutely tireless in doing so.
He travelled round the country speaking at
meetings large and small, always to a delighted
reception. He opposed the wars in Afghanistan and
Iraq, and was right there last year when we
campaigned successfully against war on Syria. He
fought the BBC when it refused to broadcast the
Disasters Emergency Fund appeal for Gaza" during
the Cast Lead bombing by Israel in 2009. He helped
found the People's Assembly and he was completely
committed to united work. He disliked sectarians
and couldn’t understand why some on the left spent
their time attacking one another.
He loved young people and would spend hours
talking to them after meetings, when great queues
would form to talk to him and ask him to speak at
other meetings. He carried with him a little stool
to sit on (he loved gadgets of all kinds), a flask
of tea and a cheese sandwich.
He never left Labour, but was critical of much of
its politics and always encouraged people to be
involved in activity as their starting point in
politics.
(This article is continued in the discussionboard)
|
|
DISCUSSION
No hay pregunta ligada a este article.
* * * * *
Comentario más reciente:
(The following is continued from the main article listed above.)
He was also a good friend to me personally, always supportive, always willing to speak at meetings and demos, always polite and political. I often visited him at his house in Holland Park and then in the flat round the corner he moved into when it became too much for him. We would sometimes go for a pizza, where he always chatted to the waiters. Everywhere you went with Tony, people came up and spoke to him. Doormen, taxi drivers, shopkeepers and just people in the street wanted to shake his hand.
He was loved by millions for his straightforward talking and for his opinions, which chimed more with theirs than the mainstream politicians. In recent years when I spoke alongside him he received rapturous applause. Last year's People's Assembly gave him a standing ovation, and he will be on everyone's minds when we gather tomorrow. His legacy will be a commitment to organise, fight injustice and campaign for an equal society. . ... continuación.
|
|
por ámbito de acción
por fecha
