Launch of the Betty Sinclair Branch, CPI
Comrades, I am proud to announce the formation of a new branch of our party for comrades in the greater mid-Ulster area. After many meetings and discussions with a variety of comrades, we have settled on a name for the branch. It will be the Betty Sinclair Branch, Communist Party of Ireland. In setting up this branch we are mindful of the contribution made by those who have gone before in our area. We particularly remember Comrades Stanley Headley and Jim Brown and will always be grateful for their wisdom and wit over the years. We chose this name to honour one of our greatest comrades. In this year, forty years since the formation of the Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association, we have watched the SDLP and Sinn Féin fall over themselves to claim credit for the formation of the civil rights movement. We hope by this act to redress some of that revision of history and give Betty the recognition she deserves. By using Betty Sinclair’s name we also show solidarity with the struggles of women in our society and further pledge to increase the participation of women in the wider labour movement. We will take our time; we will build a solid foundation in the mid-Ulster area. We will seek to have influence in all areas of struggle, whether it is political, industrial, or social. We will provide thoughtful guidance to those we have influence over; we will engage with like-minded people of the left; however, we will not fall into the sectarian trap of “divide and conquer.” We hope that the setting up of this branch will create a dynamic and comradely tension between us and comrades from other areas. Looking at the issues as they affect us locally, debating with other branches and reaching a position we can all support will help us to remain relevant, vibrant, and effective. We have much work to do. We have undertaken to look at drawing up a branch handbook, which can be used by other branches. We have people in influential positions in the trade union movement, and we will use all our energies in building the left in the unions but particularly—in the light of the merger—within Unite. We are to the fore in a number of trades councils and will continue to promote the movement in local communities. Whenever they attack our public services, the Betty Sinclair Branch will resist. Where workers are in struggle, the Betty Sinclair Branch will be with them. When fascism rears its ugly head, the Betty Sinclair Branch will honour the name. As communists, we accept struggle as our way of life. We are aware of the challenges we face and the opposition and discrimination we will encounter because we are communists. No other group on the left will face the vitriol of the establishment like the Communist Party, the reason being that we can deliver the kind of society that we talk about. Of course, as James Connolly reminds us, “the only true prophets are those who carve out the future which they announce.” |
| Home page > Launch of new branch |
| Baile > Seoladh na craoibhe nua |