Obituaries

The 19 people whose deaths the League's press marked between 1975 and 1981, from Chiang Kai-shek to the Leicester comrade Gary Thornton and the catering workers' organiser Jo Tosti: comrades of the movement and enemies of it, in Socialist Press and Trotskyism Today. In order of death.

Found by searching the full machine-read text of every article on this site, not only those headed as obituaries, and reading each candidate. Reports of killings that do not dwell on the person are left out. Where the machine text garbles a headline, the headline is given here corrected; the page keeps the machine reading. Dates of death are from the obituary itself where it gives one, otherwise from the record. The obituaries of every Red Mole archive are together at archives.redmole.org/obituaries/.

• James P. Cannondied 21 August 1974
  James P. Cannon 1890-1974: In Defence of a Great Revolutionary (Part One) in Trotskyism Today no. 4, 14 January 1976 · a two-part appreciation
  James P. Cannon 1890-1974: In Defence of a Great Revolutionary (Part Two) in Trotskyism Today no. 5, 11 February 1976
• Chiang Kai-shekdied 5 April 1975
  Chiang Dead in Socialist Press no. 6, 17 April 1975 · a hostile obituary
• Francisco Francodied 20 November 1975
  Wilson and Mao Mourn Franco in Socialist Press no. 22, 26 November 1975 · a hostile obituary, against the Labour government's condolences
• Ulrike Meinhofdied 9 May 1976
  ULRIKE MEINHOF Murdered bystate in Socialist Press no. 34, 19 May 1976 · died in Stammheim prison, officially a suicide; the page opens with the end of an article on Italy
• Zhu Dedied 6 July 1976
  Chinese Leader Dead in Socialist Press no. 38, 14 July 1976 · Chu Teh in the paper's spelling, veteran of the Chinese revolution, died at ninety
• Vic Featherdied 28 July 1976
  Death of a "fixer" in Socialist Press no. 40, 11 August 1976 · general secretary of the TUC 1969-73; a hostile obituary, "a Trotskyist obituary", which follows the end of the previous article on the page
• Harry Finchdied 15 August 1976
  [Finch died on: Sunday 15th August, aged 54…] in Socialist Press no. 41, 25 August 1976 · aged 54, a member of the Trotskyist movement
• Anthony Edendied 14 January 1977
  Eden: an old-style imperialist in Socialist Press no. 51, 19 January 1977 · a hostile obituary of the former Tory prime minister
• Anthony Croslanddied 19 February 1977
  [Those who have joined the socialist movement since…] in Socialist Press no. 54, 2 March 1977 · a hostile obituary of the Labour Foreign Secretary, under the head "Reformism"
• Steve Bikodied 12 September 1977
  Biko: One More Murder in Programme of Repression in Socialist Press no. 71, 12 October 1977 · killed in South African police custody
• Jomo Kenyattadied 22 August 1978
  KENYATTA: imperialism's favourite nationalist in Socialist Press no. 115, 6 September 1978 · a hostile obituary
• Ramón Mercaderdied 18 October 1978
  Trotsky's Murderer Dies in Havana in Socialist Press no. 123, 1 November 1978 · Trotsky's murderer, died in Havana at 64
• Joseph Hansendied 18 January 1979
  Hansen: his life reflected crisis of the Fourth International in Socialist Press no. 143, 28 March 1979 · a critical political obituary of the SWP leader
• George Woodcockdied 30 October 1979
  A Master of the Squalid Compromise in Socialist Press no. 174, 7 November 1979 · general secretary of the TUC 1960-69, died at 75; a hostile obituary
• George Meanydied 10 January 1980
  Meany: the bosses' favourite in Socialist Press no. 188, 27 February 1980 · president of the AFL-CIO; a hostile obituary
• Oswald Mosleydied 3 December 1980
  Mosley: the Fascist Baronet in Socialist Press no. 227, 10 December 1980 · by Alan Clinton; a hostile obituary
• Tom Litterickdied January 1981 (reported 14 January)
  [On Tom Litterick] in Socialist Press no. 230, 14 January 1981 · former Labour MP for Selly Oak; the page's headline is misread in the machine text
• Gary Thorntondied March 1981, aged 19
  Gary Thornton: comrade and class fighter in Socialist Press no. 241, 1 April 1981 · chairman of the WSL's Leicester branch; the paper prints "Thursday March 25"
• Jo Tostidied spring 1981 (reported 30 April)
  Jo Tosti: class fighter and Trotskyist in Socialist Press no. 245, 30 April 1981 · hotel and catering workers' organiser, sacked at the Linton Lodge Hotel, Oxford, in 1976

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