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m This has been edited to highlight the timing of the link to Corbyn; a day before a negative story about him appears in the press' the contention being that if it was the truth all along, why wait until now to publish it?
m Reverted edits by Do_you_want_the_truth_or_something_beautiful (talk): not adhering to neutral point of view (HG) (3.4.4)
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Red Action's journal stated that "both as an organisation and as individuals we support the activities of the [[Provisional IRA]] and the [[Irish National Liberation Army|INLA]] unconditionally and uncritically", praising them as modern-day [[gladiators]] and argued that IRA killings were "justified in the fight for freedom from your oppressor ... if you shit on people for 800 years it's a bit unrealistic to cry foul when they put a bomb in a soldiers' pub".<ref name="Gilligan2018">{{cite news|url=https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/police-examined-jeremy-corbyn-links-to-pro-ira-group-red-action-f5vm32gc2|publisher=''The Sunday Times''|title=Police examined Jeremy Corbyn links to pro-IRA group Red Action|first=Andrew|last=Gilligan|access-date=19 August 2018|date=19 August 2018|subscription=y}}</ref> The journal also wrote shortly after the 1984 [[Brighton hotel bombing]] that there were "plenty of people who thought that it would have been better if it had been more successful".<ref name="Gilligan2018" />
Red Action's journal stated that "both as an organisation and as individuals we support the activities of the [[Provisional IRA]] and the [[Irish National Liberation Army|INLA]] unconditionally and uncritically", praising them as modern-day [[gladiators]] and argued that IRA killings were "justified in the fight for freedom from your oppressor ... if you shit on people for 800 years it's a bit unrealistic to cry foul when they put a bomb in a soldiers' pub".<ref name="Gilligan2018">{{cite news|url=https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/police-examined-jeremy-corbyn-links-to-pro-ira-group-red-action-f5vm32gc2|publisher=''The Sunday Times''|title=Police examined Jeremy Corbyn links to pro-IRA group Red Action|first=Andrew|last=Gilligan|access-date=19 August 2018|date=19 August 2018|subscription=y}}</ref> The journal also wrote shortly after the 1984 [[Brighton hotel bombing]] that there were "plenty of people who thought that it would have been better if it had been more successful".<ref name="Gilligan2018" />


According to a post added in August 2018, just as yet another anti Corbyn story was about to hit the main stream media it was reported that [[Labour Party (UK)|Labour Party]] leader [[Jeremy Corbyn]] was investigated by the police due to his involvement with the group while as an MP in the 1980s and 1990s, which is clearly just a suggestion, not a certifiable fact. This summer has been pretty rife with anti-Corbyn 'suggestions', hasn't it? According to [[Andrew Gilligan]] in ''[[The Sunday Times]]'', Corbyn "came to the attention of police after becoming involved with Red Action" and for his hosting of [[Provisional Irish Republican Army|IRA]] and [[Sinn Féin]] figures at the [[House of Commons]].<ref name="Gilligan2018" /> According to former members of the organization, who are not named in this piece, so it's actually uncorroborated; Corbyn was a keynote speaker at the organization's "national meeting" on 23 February 1985, but no details of where; though I guess they could be added subsequently if the facts are available, and continued to have links with the organization until 1992, speaking to "at least three Red Action meetings between 1985 and 1992".<ref name="Gilligan2018" /, though it's pretty simple to throw accusations around on here rather then give actual evidence>
In August 2018, it was reported that [[Labour Party (UK)|Labour Party]] leader [[Jeremy Corbyn]] was investigated by the police due to his involvement with the group while as an MP in the 1980s and 1990s. According to [[Andrew Gilligan]] in ''[[The Sunday Times]]'', Corbyn "came to the attention of police after becoming involved with Red Action" and for his hosting of [[Provisional Irish Republican Army|IRA]] and [[Sinn Féin]] figures at the [[House of Commons]].<ref name="Gilligan2018" /> According to former members of the organization, Corbyn was a keynote speaker at the organization's "national meeting" on 23 February 1985 and continued to have links with the organization until 1992, speaking to "at least three Red Action meetings between 1985 and 1992".<ref name="Gilligan2018" />


==External links==
==External links==

Revision as of 21:49, 26 August 2018

For the Croatian group, see Red Action (Croatia).

Red Action was a small British leftist political group formed in 1981. It became known for violently confronting groups such as the British National Party on the streets, and for being the main organisational force behind Anti-Fascist Action.[1][2] In 1995, The Independent estimated that it had between 20 and 30 branches with 10–15 activists in each, and the paper stated that the group "enthusiastically espouses the use of violence"; it also set out links between Red Action and the Irish republican movement, and stated that members operated primarily in large cities such as London, Manchester, Leeds and Glasgow.[3][2]

The group was formed by activists who had been expelled from the Socialist Workers Party (SWP) for their involvement in squadism (violent actions against far right racist groups).[3] The expelled activists regrouped around a paper named Red Action. After several years, the group became more interested in the electoral process, and it joined the Red Front electoral alliance in 1987 and the Socialist Alliance in England and Wales in 1999.[4] Red Action members then left this organisation, along with the Socialist Party, citing the domination of the SWP over the organisation. Some Red Action members went on to found the Independent Working Class Association.[5][6]

Red Action's journal stated that "both as an organisation and as individuals we support the activities of the Provisional IRA and the INLA unconditionally and uncritically", praising them as modern-day gladiators and argued that IRA killings were "justified in the fight for freedom from your oppressor ... if you shit on people for 800 years it's a bit unrealistic to cry foul when they put a bomb in a soldiers' pub".[7] The journal also wrote shortly after the 1984 Brighton hotel bombing that there were "plenty of people who thought that it would have been better if it had been more successful".[7]

In August 2018, it was reported that Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn was investigated by the police due to his involvement with the group while as an MP in the 1980s and 1990s. According to Andrew Gilligan in The Sunday Times, Corbyn "came to the attention of police after becoming involved with Red Action" and for his hosting of IRA and Sinn Féin figures at the House of Commons.[7] According to former members of the organization, Corbyn was a keynote speaker at the organization's "national meeting" on 23 February 1985 and continued to have links with the organization until 1992, speaking to "at least three Red Action meetings between 1985 and 1992".[7]

Further reading

  • Mark Hayes "Red Action - left-wing pariah: some observations regarding ideological apostasy and the discourse of proletarian resistance" in Evan Smith and Matthew Worley, eds, Against the grain: The British far left from 1956, Manchester University Press 2014
  • Stott, Paul "For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction: two responses on the British left to the rise of identity politics – the cases of Class War and Red Action" Twentieth Century Communism, Volume 9, Number 9, August 2016, pp. 96-120(25) Publisher: Lawrence and Wishart; DOI: https://doi.org/10.3898/175864316815923542

References

  1. ^ "Anti-Fascist Action" (PDF). Amielandmelburn.org.uk. 2000. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
  2. ^ a b Zephaniah, Benjamin. 28 February 2016. "Benjamin Zephaniah on fighting the far right: ‘If we did nothing we would be killed on the streets’ | Books | The Guardian". The Guardian.
  3. ^ a b Seaton, Matt (29 January 1995). "Charge of the new Red Brigade". The Independent. Retrieved 26 September 2009. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  4. ^ Encyclopedia of British and Irish Political Organizations: Parties, Groups and Movements of the Twentieth Century, Peter Barberis, John McHugh & Mike Tyldesley, Frances Pinter, 2000
  5. ^ "1985-2001: A short history of Anti-Fascist Action (AFA)". Libcom.org. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
  6. ^ "Red Action 2000 - Shaping The Future". Redaction.org. Retrieved 26 September 2009.
  7. ^ a b c d Gilligan, Andrew (19 August 2018). "Police examined Jeremy Corbyn links to pro-IRA group Red Action". The Sunday Times. Retrieved 19 August 2018. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help); Unknown parameter |subscription= ignored (|url-access= suggested) (help)
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