Newsletter of the National Clarion Cycling Club 1895 (North Lancs Union)
November 2011
THE BATTLE OF CABLE STREET
Sunday 4th October 1936
THE DAY WHEN CLARION CYCLISTS
HELPED TO STOP THE FASCISTS
Know your history; learn your history; understand your history; but most important of all, never forget your history.
The Battle of Cable Street
when the Government and the police said
yes to fascism, but the people said NO. During the 1930’s the British Union of Fascists provoked many clashes in cities across Britain but the high point in the struggle against them took place in the East End of London on the 4th October 1936. On that day Sir Oswald Mosley, leader of the BUF planned to commemorate the fourth anniversary of the founding his Party by leading a provocative march through the East End of London, the home to almost 120,000 Jews. The main political parties, newspapers and religious organisations told people to stay at home and to not make trouble, in other words to surrender their streets to the cowards and thugs. The government refused to listen to the pleas of the threaten community and ordered the police to force a free passage for the fascists. The response of Communists, socialists, trade unionists and many other bodies with popular local support, including the London Sections of the National Clarion Cycling Club, was to called for a mass mobilisation in order to stop Mosley and his Blackshirts thugs from attacking innocent members of the Jewish community. Hundreds of thousands took to the streets of the East End barricading them with anything they could find, four anti-fascist tram drivers abandoned their vehicles so the police horses could not get through to clear the way. With his planned route into the East End blocked Mosley attempted to lead his fascist down Cable Street, but as soon as the police cleared one barricade they were confront with another and then another. Irish dockers, First World War veterans and Jewish tailors fought side by side to stop the police and the fascists. Instead of dividing the local community Mosley’s provocation had united them against a common enemy. The police were outfought and the fascists were sent packing with shouts of No Pasaran ringing in the ears.
‘I was there’ Pat Devine ~ Lancashire District Organiser,
Communist Party and Clarion member. What a memory! What a fight! The Mosley Fascist blackguards flushed with seeming victory attending their attacks upon defenceless Jewish girls and old men decided to invade the East End…The aim to perpetrate an English pogrom upon the Jews. The Labour Party, led by Herbert Morrison and the Daily Herald, appealed to the people of East London and the Jews to stay off the streets. The London District Committee of the Communist Party met and decided that, no matter what the cost, Mosley should not get free passage. It was decided to rouse London’s millions to action. All organisations, including the Jewish people and their organisations were asked for financial support. They gave most generously. Our slogan for rallying the people was that coined by the immortal defenders of Madrid (which included Clarion cyclist Ray Cox) “They shall not pass” A million leaflets were issued, hundreds of posters printed…..Loudspeaker vans toured the city calling the people to action. Enthusiasm and indignation were at fever pitch. On October 4th London’s police, reinforced by police from all over the country, were there to preserve law and order by defending the fascists from the wrath of the people! The people were there too ~ 500,000 thousand of them ready for anything. I will never forget that day. The police charged, with the Fascists cowering behind them. The workers broke in face of the swinging batons of the policemen, but they rallied and fought back. I was in Cable Street directing operations. We threw up barricades by tearing up the streets, overturning lorries….anything to hold them up. Hand to hand fighting went on for hours. The police were exhausted. The workers determined. The Fascists afraid. THEY DID NOT PASS.
Know your History ~ continued The 75th Anniversary of the Battle of Cable Street
On Friday 30th September a large group of Clarion cyclists gathered at Olympia in London for the final leg of the Club’s Anti-fascista Ride to Cable Street. Led by Comrades Derek Gadd and Dan Jones they were guided across the city to Tower Hamlets Town Hall where the received a rousing welcome by supporters from the International Brigade Memorial Trust and the residents of Cable Street. A short ceremony then took place in front of the Cable Street mural, where Max Levitas, a 96 year old veteran of ‘The Battle’ welcomed the cyclists and spoke with great passion and pride about the day 75 years ago when the fascists, and the police who protected them, were chased from the streets of the East End. Charles Jepson urged everyone to follow the example of Max and his comrades and stamp on fascism wherever and whenever it raised its head. Mayor Luftar Rahman thanked the cyclists their efforts stressing that it was due to the continuing fight against the evils of fascism that members of the ethnic community were now able to take up positions of public office. IBMT Secretary and Clarion member Jim Jump recalled that many of those who had fought fascism in Cable Street went on to fight fascism in Spain with the International Brigade including Max’s brother Maurice who fought at Teruel and Belcite on the Aragon front before being captured.
Comrade Paul Gurnett raises the clenched fist of solidarity
Max Levitas, 96 years old and still fighting fascism
The Clarion’s pledge to fight fascism
East Enders still dedicated to fighting fascism. Rosa Goodman (on the right) whose husband Arthur was a member of Stepney Clarion in 1936 but because he was only 14 years old he was not allowed to join the main demonstration as it was too dangerous for a young lad, instead he acted as a messenger
THE ANTI-FASCISTA CYCLE RIDE On Monday 19th September seven members of the Club assembled by the International Brigade memorial in Edinburgh’s Princes Street East Gardens at the start of a cycle ride that would take them to Glasgow, Belfast, Dublin, Cardiff and finally London in time for the 75th Anniversary of the historic Battle of Cable Street and the Annual General Meeting of the International Brigade Memorial Trust. The ride had three objectives: to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the raising of the International Brigades in October 1936. To honour the memory of those Clarion cyclists who fought and fell defending the Spanish Republic from Franco and his fascist hordes and; to promote the International Brigade Memorial Trust which does so much excellent work to keep alive the memory of the brave young men and women who without hesitation answered the call of the Spanish people. (see: www.international-brigades.org.uk) The cyclists, supported by the Club’s Clarion Van, planned to visit as many International Brigade memorials as practicable en-route to London, and by holding short ceremonies of remembrance at each site generate publicity and support for the on-going struggle against the forces of fascism. Fellow cyclists regularly joined the group in order to guide them to the sites of memorials ~ every cyclist who rode with us even for a short distance contributed to the struggle in a most meaningful way. Our departure from Edinburgh was filmed for Scottish television and we received good press coverage throughout the trip. The memorials varied from small plaques to magnificent monuments carved in stone and it is very pleasing to report that thanks to the work of local supporters of the IBMT the number of memorials to these brave volunteers is steadily growing. Small communities such as Blantyre and Renton in Scotland have recently erected a stunning memorials and by doing so set an example that towns and cities without memorials ought to be proud to follow. Over 2,500 volunteers from Britain and Ireland fought in Spain, over 500 died fighting in the belief that if fascism could be stopped in Spain a wider European war would be averted. To-date there are just over 90 memorial in their honour. Did someone from your community fight in Spain? Does your town have a memorial? If not, why not? The IBMT can not provide memorials but it can and will support you.
‘Not to a fanfare of trumpets, Nor even the skirl of the pipes.
Not for the off’r of a shilling, Nor to see their name in lights. Their call was a cry of anguish, From the hearts of the people of Spain’.
(from the Edinburgh Memorial)
The route from Princes Street Gardens enabled the cyclists to visit memorials at Blantyre, Rutherglen, Glasgow, Belfast, Dublin, Llanelli, Swansea, Cardiff, Bristol, Reading and finally Tower Hamlets. The Vice-Provost of Glasgow saw the group off from the statue of La Pasionaria on the banks of the Clyde. The Mayor of Belfast welcomed the group to City Hall and spoke at a ceremony the following morning by the monument in Writer’s Square. The Lord Mayor of Dublin attended at Liberty Hall. Cor Cochion Choir sang at our ceremony in Cardiff and the Red Notes Socialist Choir greeted the riders in Bristol. At Reading the local support group presented each rider with a memorial book about the town’s volunteers and our Trade Union comrades from UNISON came to join our group photograph. The group had grown to over twenty by the time we finally cycled into Cable Street where the raised fist salutes, banners and shouts of solidarity confirmed the anti-fascist movement remains alive, is well and ever ready for the fight. On behalf of those who took part in the ride I would like to thank all the supporters who helped to make our trip so memorable and so worthwhile ‘no contribution is ever too small, everyone has his or her own part to play’. ‘To meet a stranger and make a friend’ is a philosophy that has underpinned the Clarion Cycling Club for over 100 years, on our ride we met many strangers and the ride was all the better for such meetings.
The Clarion cyclists who we honoured with our ride and whose bodies still lie in the rich soil of Spain are: Ray Cox: fell Bordilla, Dec 1936. Tom Oldershaw: fell Aragon, March 1938. Roy Watts: fell Ebro, Sept 1938
Selection of pictures from the Anti-fascista ride.
The memorial in Edinburgh to those who went to Spain from The Lothians and Fife. Glasgow: ‘Better to die on your feet than to live forever on your knees’ Belfast answered the Call from Spain
A new and impressive memorial to the volunteers from Blantyre, near Glasgow. A real Socialist welcome at Cardiff’s memorial from our comrades in the Cor Cochion Choir Reading’s inspirational memorial to three volunteers who fell in Spain. A mother and her dead child symbolic of the people of Spain mourning over the death of the young Republic.
Cycling Socialists Sylvia Pankhurst and the Clarion Cycling Club Just 17 years after its formation in Ashbourne, the National Clarion Cycling Club’s membership had grown to over 7,000. This made the Club one of the largest membership organisations in the country apart from the Trade Unions. At the 1912 Easter Meet the Committee informed members that: the National Club has a sound constitution……and is prepared to form a Cabinet and the run country when called upon to do so’ and they meant it! Sadly just two years later Robert Blatchford, editor of The Clarion newspaper, effectively split the Cycling Club when he gave his support to British militarism in the approaching war with Germany. Having advocated that Clarion readers should think for themselves; now they were told to abandon all rational thought and fight for King and Country against their German brothers in a class war. Similarly the Great War was to split the Suffragette Movement which had been campaigning to secure the vote for women in Parliamentary elections. At the outbreak of hostilities in 1914 Mrs Pankhurst and her eldest daughter Christabel immediately called off their increasingly violent campaign and ‘taking the King’s shilling’ (£2,000 actually) threw their weight behind the government’s war effort. Overnight the ‘Votes for Women’ banners were replaced with slogans such as ‘We demand to the right serve’. The Movement’s newspaper ‘The Suffragette’ was renamed ‘The Britannia’ and demanded that women who were now doing men’s jobs (for less pay) should be given badges stating: ‘On War Service’.
Sylvia Pankhurst, Christable’s younger sister (and a member of Manchester Clarion Cycling Club) was totally opposed to the war and refusing to support her mother’s changed stance she was expelled from the Women’s Social and Political Union. She responded by launching a rival Socialist newspaper called ‘The Worker’s Dreadnought’ which took a strong anti-war stance. She also founded the East London Federation of Suffragettes, a remarkable women’s organisation which campaigned throughout the war not only for women’s suffrage but for social change to be brought about by linking gender with the class struggle. In March 1931 she wrote an article: ‘Pedalling Days’ about joining the Clarion Cycling Club in 1896: I was 14 years of age when my sister Christabel and I joined the Manchester Clarion C C. For the next two years we rode with the Club almost every Sunday….We had a host of friends in the Club. Haylock, the Captain, and almost every member of the Club helped me at some time or other in mending punctures and in pushing me up the last little bit of the steepest hills. As the youngest member of the Club, I doubtless got special consideration. The “Clarionettes” as they called themselves, were merry people; their joyous cries of “Boots!” and “Spurs!” rang through the country lanes. The Clarion people carried a leaven of Socialist conversation and argument into rural districts then wholly untouched by any Socialist or Labour propaganda. Week in, and week out, the Clarion Clubs took hundred of people of all ages away from the grime and ugliness of the manufacturing districts to the green loveliness of the country, giving them fresh air, exercise and good fellowship at a minimum cost. Footnote: her bike was made from gas piping by a family friend.
AT THE FRONT Bolton Wood St. Clarion Choir
Singing for Socialism
Our comrades at Bolton Wood St Clarion Choir continue to strengthen the Club’s historic link with Socialism. They recently sang outside the gates of Menworth Hill, an illegal American spy station near Harrogate. They also took part in the Diggers Festival in Wigan. Over the weekend of November 26th/27th they, along with 40 other Socialist Choirs, will be singing in Bradford Cathedral at the Raise Yours Banners Festival. Please give your support. See: www.raiseyourbanners.org
Events in 2011 The Club had stalls at the York CTC Cycle Show(sic) and at the South Yorkshire Festival, this Trade Union. event held at Wortley Hall simply gets better and better and we will continue to give our support to the Worker’s Stately Home. The CTC event however has become a sad shadow of its former self. It would have been a most depressing weekend save for the fact that we managed to sell over £350 worth of political literature.
In stark contrast the Communication Worker’s Union’s annual cyclo-sportive held at Alvescot Lodge in the Cotswolds goes from strength to strength. This year’s event held in early September saw a good turn out of Clarion riders who rode rather slowly from pub to pub, in the best tradition of our Club. This is an excellent event and every member should to try and support our Trade Union brothers and sisters in their fight for a fairer Society; a Society where those who produce the wealth are able to determine how that wealth is to be shared. This is the kind of Society that the founders of the Clarion Cycling Club dreamt of. Every single penny this event raises goes to provide practical support to trade unionists in other countries who do not have access to the freedoms and resources that we take for granted.
Goodbye BarcelonaG
is a passionate new musical celebrating the International Brigades. It’s the story of Sam, who joins the Brigades and goes to Spain to help fight the fascists in 1936, and Rebecca his mother who goes there to find him. We follow their passionate journey as they fight for freedom, alongside the people of Spain. It will run from 24th November to 23rd December at the Arcola Theatre, 27 Ashwin St. London E8 3DL. For tickets contact: www.arcolatheatre.com
Barcelona is about the incredible things people can do when they feel compelled to act, and when they can no longer bear to just watch while other people’s lives are being destroyed.
Christmas Presents for Clarionettes
This excellent song book is a tribute to those men and women who fought fascism in Spain. It was inspired by the walk over the Pyrenees in April 2006. Copies of this 36 page book of songs and poems can be obtained from: Ciaran Crossey 45-47 Donegal St. Belfast BT1. Price £5 including postage.
This book written by two radical socialists is a most amusing & informative view of history as told through pubs signs. The authors have basically been on a mammoth pub crawl searching out pubs named in honour of the “common people” e.g. Watt Tyler, Moll Cutpurse, Robert Kett, John Wilkes and about 200 others. Published by Janus £16.99
Cor Cochion Caerdydd, the Red Choir of Cardiff have used their voices to campaign for peace, justice & freedom for over 25 years. This CD of 21 songs including Bandiera Rossa; the Valley of Jarama and Jamie Foyers makes a truly great present. Price £14 including postage. from: wendya.lewis@sky.com
‘Lanterne Rouge’ 2012 EASTER MEET (AND DRINK) Prior to the Clarion’s 20th Easter Meet held at Shrewsbury in 1914. Tom Groom wrote the following for his ‘Cyclorama’ piece in The Clarion newspaper: Over the tramlines; past the factory gates; past silent warehouses; through slumdom, through villadom, through the straggling village that divides the country from the town; and then with the back of the hand and the sole of your foot to the smoke and grim of mill and workshop quicken up the pace along the highway to Shrewsbury and the Clarion Meet. This is better. One can breathe now. Clear away from mucky towns; clear away from the pent up streets; the sun high in the morning sky; larks singing over the fields; a score or more wheels humming a merry tune; a thousand or more Clarionettes to greet at the meet. Tom was writing in an age of hard toil in the factories and the mines of the industrial revolution, an age of unimaginable social depravity in the slum of our major towns. Yet through all this gloom the Clarion Cycling Club brought hope of a better future and who, even a century later can argue with their ideals: to have the freedom of the highways; to enjoy the pleasure of sharing your cup with a stranger or to hold dear to the desire to make the world a better place. The Club’s Easter Meet (April 6th to 9th) is NOT being held in Shrewsbury but it is being held close by at Church Aston near Newport in Shropshire. The Meet Organisers: Sid and Pippa Sherriff are opening up the home and garden to accommodate us there is also a budget hotel near at hand. This is an excellent area for cycling and routes have already been planned for a short ride on the afternoon of Good Friday, day rides on both Saturday and Sunday then a morning ride on Easter Monday. There will of course be plenty of pub stops which sadly whilst curtailing the mileage will give us plenty of opportunities to ‘Bounderise’ in the best traditions of the Clarion of old. If you are interested in attending please contact, in the first instant, Pippa or Sid on 01952 811164 as we need to sort out the accommodation. The number of the Newport Premier Inn is 0871 527 8812. The evenings will definitely be entertaining, trust me!
2nd National Classic Lightweight Cycle Rally The first Classic Lightweight Rally took place last May at the Club’s HQ of Oakhill College in Lancashire and everyone who attended agreed the weekend was a huge success. For next May’s Rally to be held over the weekend of the 11th to 13th we have found an excellent site at Belton in the Isle of Axholme close to Goole and just 2 miles from Junction 3 on the M180. There will be two rides each day one of approximately 40/50 miles the other about 20 miles. There is camping on the site for tents, camper vans and caravans, there is also a good range of bed and breakfast accommodation close by. We plan to hold a cycle jumble and display of classic bikes on the Saturday morning. Do you need a lightweight classic to attend? DEFINITELY NOT. What is a lightweight classic? Ask ten experts and you are likely to get ten different answers. There is however a great website that should help: www.classiclightweights.co.uk If you would like further details please contact: Paul Reid on 016973 43089 or email info@nclcr.co.uk
‘and what if I don’t pay my subs’? Sadly you will be removed from the mailing list so please pay your annual subscription of just £2 to the Secretary by the end of January. Thank you.