Peace campaigner, Labour activist, Marxist
Veteran socialist and peace campaigner Tony Southall died on May 22 at the age of 59. Tony became known to most of his friends through his work for the Peace movement, the wider Labour movement, the IMG and the Fourth International.
In 1959, aged 16 Tony got involved with the Young Socialist and with CND and the Aldermaston marches.
He helped found Croydon Youth CND, then became chairman of Cambridge University CND. The involvement of young people in the campaign at that point played a crucial part in building a popular movement against the bomb.
At this time the committee of 100, led by Bertrand Russell was organizing sit down protests against the bomb which led to many arrests. Tony was added to the Committee of 100 and in 1961/62 he became full-time acting Secretary of the committee in 1961 and 1962.
In 1962 whilst a student at Cambridge Tony got involved with a Nottingham Trotskyist group called The Week which was the forerunner of the International Marxist Group.
Every weekend for nearly a year, Tony caught a milk float to Nottingham from Cambridge for discussions and political activity. His association with the Fourth International and his close friendship with Charlie van Gelderen, which was formed then, lasted for 40 years.
In 1963 Tony came to Glasgow as a lecturer and throughout the ‘60s became a core member of the Labour and Peace movement.
He was very handsome, charming and self assured but above all excelled as an organiser of campaigns and other activists. Otago St quickly became the nerve centre for left activists in Glasgow and Tony became widely known throughout Scottish socialist circles.
He toured across Scotland giving talks on Marxism to Red Circles, and was the central builder of the IMG in Scotland in the ‘60s.
Tony remained an activist in the Labour Party throughout this period. Janey Buchan reminds us how when the Scottish Labour Party tried to hold a beauty contest, they asked branches to nominate their best looking member.
Woodside Labour Party nominated Tony for Beauty Queen. His nomination was then supported by several other branches. Strangely the Scottish Labour Party has never again held such a contest.
In the mid ‘60s Tony was a founder member of the Vietnam Solidarity Campaign and a key organiser of the anti Vietnam War movement. Tariq Ali recalls how, unlike many in Glasgow IMG, Tony was always sober and brilliantly organized and when in Scotland he relied on him to ensure he got up to attend meetings or demos.
In the early ‘70s Tony and his family went to teach in Africa. Tony continued to work on the Africa Commission of the Fourth International contributing to the struggle against Colonialism and Apartheid. Tony wrote many articles for the Fourth International and New Left Review under the pseudonym John Blair – had he used his Christian name the articles would have been attributed to Tony Blair.
On returning to Glasgow Tony resumed his work with CND and the Labour Party and joined the ISG. He founded Scottish Labour CND and through tireless work ensured that the Scottish Labour Party remained committed to Nuclear disarmament.
Norman Lochart recalls staying with Tony in 1992, that Tony combined a deep appreciation of jazz and classical music as well as art and film with a rigorous examination of the issues he analysed politically such as events in or individual politicians manoeuvring here in Scotland. He was often surprised by his knowledge of football or the characters and plot of the TV soap opera Coronation Street.!
An impressive example of his determination was that he commuted by wheelchair from South side of Glasgow across the river Clyde and was eventually forced to take early medical retirement in 1993 after his wheelchair ‘couped’ in rush hour traffic in mid winter.
The loss to formal teaching was Scottish CND’s gain as it established offices nearby. This enabled Tony to be even more the living embodiment of the United Front in practice as his home was a centre for people of different parties as well as all ethnic groups and religions who agreed to campaign against the threat of nuclear barbarism.
Tony then became Joint secretary of Scottish CND.
When he lost power to his hands he continued to write letters and organize protests using a computer with voice recognition. He continued to participate in the Faslane demos and recently pointed out this is the 40th anniversary of his first Faslane march.
Despite deteriorating health Tony participated in the demonstrations against Afghanistan and spoke at a major peace conference in January. He also participated in the ISG pre conference discussions.
Tony remained politically involved to the end. He urged nurses to Ban the Bomb and insisted on getting a Palestinian flag for his hospital bed.
I counted Tony as a comrade and friend for 30 years. I will remember a stalwart fighter and organiser for Peace and Justice.