David Tony Gilbert
Encyclopedia
David "Tony" Gilbert known to his contemporaries as "Tony," was a British political activist. He is best remembered as the head of the left wing political organization Liberation (formerly the Movement for Colonial Freedom
), during the 1980s and 1990s.
, London
to a large Jewish family in 1914. As a young man, Gilbert served as an apprentice in the fur industry, working as a nailer.
In the early 1930s the diminutive Gilbert was the victim of anti-semitic
violence when he was attacked on the streets by members of the British Union of Fascists
. Gilbert woke up from his beating in the hospital, more fervent than ever in his opposition to fascism
.
During the Spanish Civil War
, Gilbert joined the International Brigades
and went to Spain
, serving as a courier for Loyalist forces fighting in defense of the Second Spanish Republic
. During his Spanish activity, he shared responsibility for the capture of his unit by rebel forces when an incorrect decision was made at a fork in the road and the unit was marched into a trap. Gilbert apparently avoided being shot shortly after being captured, when a car full of American journalists arrived at the scene. He was imprisoned as a prisoner of war
from March 1938 until the end of the war later that year.
At the start of World War II
, Gilbert worked in Yorkshire
as a coal miner before returning to London and joining the army.
After the war Gilbert worked on the railway, where he became active in the National Union of Railwaymen
. During the war he had been awakened to the interrelated problems of racism
and colonialism
and he became politically active in East London as a public speaker on these matters.
In 1953 Gilbert married Shelia Murch, with whom he had two daughters. Unfortunately the tension of family life and the demands of his developing political career and beliefs, caused the couple to separate in 1963.
(MCF) was established, an anti-colonial political group which held consultative status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council, with Gilbert involved as an active member of the leadership of this organisation from its inception.
The MCF was closely associated with the left wing of the Labour Party and attempted to unite small British groups and individuals in a campaign against the political and economic domination of colonial subjects of the British empire
. The MCF included a standing committee to address issues relating to racism in Britain as well as a Trade Union Committee aimed to foster the union movement in the colonial countries. The MCF was funded by membership dues, including those of individuals and affiliated organisations, and was sponsored by as many as 100 Members of Parliament.
In October 1970 the Movement for Colonial Freedom changed its name to Liberation at the behest of its president, Fenner Brockway. Gilbert eventually became the General Secretary of the organisation, serving in that capacity throughout the 1980s until his death in 1992.
On 17 June 1974 Gilbert organized a march for the Central Council of liberation. A member of the march, Warwick university student, Kevin Gately, aged 21, fell under the crowd and later died. Gilbert later said that Mr Gately had in effect been murdered by the police.
Gilbert was also an active member of the Communist Party of Great Britain
(CPGB), Stoke Newington Branch, and was also on the Hackey Borough Council Communist Party Committee. During his time with Liberation and the Communist Party he met and then married his second wife, Kay Beauchamp
, herself a life-long CPGB activist.
He is buried at Highgate Cemetery
in North London, along with Karl Marx
.
Movement for Colonial Freedom
The Movement for Colonial Freedom was a UK based political civil rights advocacy group founded in the United Kingdom in 1954. It had the support of many MPs including Harold Wilson, Barbara Castle with Tony Benn as treasurer. It had support also amongst celebrities such as Benjamin Britten and in...
), during the 1980s and 1990s.
Early years
Tony Gilbert was born in PoplarPoplar
Populus is a genus of 25–35 species of deciduous flowering plants in the family Salicaceae, native to most of the Northern Hemisphere. English names variously applied to different species include poplar , aspen, and cottonwood....
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
to a large Jewish family in 1914. As a young man, Gilbert served as an apprentice in the fur industry, working as a nailer.
In the early 1930s the diminutive Gilbert was the victim of anti-semitic
Anti-Semitism
Antisemitism is suspicion of, hatred toward, or discrimination against Jews for reasons connected to their Jewish heritage. According to a 2005 U.S...
violence when he was attacked on the streets by members of the British Union of Fascists
British Union of Fascists
The British Union was a political party in the United Kingdom formed in 1932 by Sir Oswald Mosley as the British Union of Fascists, in 1936 it changed its name to the British Union of Fascists and National Socialists and then in 1937 to simply the British Union...
. Gilbert woke up from his beating in the hospital, more fervent than ever in his opposition to fascism
Fascism
Fascism is a radical authoritarian nationalist political ideology. Fascists seek to rejuvenate their nation based on commitment to the national community as an organic entity, in which individuals are bound together in national identity by suprapersonal connections of ancestry, culture, and blood...
.
During the Spanish Civil War
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil WarAlso known as The Crusade among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War among Carlists, and The Rebellion or Uprising among Republicans. was a major conflict fought in Spain from 17 July 1936 to 1 April 1939...
, Gilbert joined the International Brigades
International Brigades
The International Brigades were military units made up of volunteers from different countries, who traveled to Spain to defend the Second Spanish Republic in the Spanish Civil War between 1936 and 1939....
and went to Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, serving as a courier for Loyalist forces fighting in defense of the Second Spanish Republic
Second Spanish Republic
The Second Spanish Republic was the government of Spain between April 14 1931, and its destruction by a military rebellion, led by General Francisco Franco....
. During his Spanish activity, he shared responsibility for the capture of his unit by rebel forces when an incorrect decision was made at a fork in the road and the unit was marched into a trap. Gilbert apparently avoided being shot shortly after being captured, when a car full of American journalists arrived at the scene. He was imprisoned as a prisoner of war
Prisoner of war
A prisoner of war or enemy prisoner of war is a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict...
from March 1938 until the end of the war later that year.
At the start of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, Gilbert worked in Yorkshire
Yorkshire
Yorkshire is a historic county of northern England and the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its great size in comparison to other English counties, functions have been increasingly undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have also been subject to periodic reform...
as a coal miner before returning to London and joining the army.
After the war Gilbert worked on the railway, where he became active in the National Union of Railwaymen
National Union of Railwaymen
The National Union of Railwaymen was a trade union of railway workers in the United Kingdom. It an industrial union founded in 1913 by the merger of the Amalgamated Society of Railway Servants , the United Pointsmen and Signalmen's Society and the General Railway Workers' Union .The NUR...
. During the war he had been awakened to the interrelated problems of racism
Racism
Racism is the belief that inherent different traits in human racial groups justify discrimination. In the modern English language, the term "racism" is used predominantly as a pejorative epithet. It is applied especially to the practice or advocacy of racial discrimination of a pernicious nature...
and colonialism
Colonialism
Colonialism is the establishment, maintenance, acquisition and expansion of colonies in one territory by people from another territory. It is a process whereby the metropole claims sovereignty over the colony and the social structure, government, and economics of the colony are changed by...
and he became politically active in East London as a public speaker on these matters.
In 1953 Gilbert married Shelia Murch, with whom he had two daughters. Unfortunately the tension of family life and the demands of his developing political career and beliefs, caused the couple to separate in 1963.
Political career
In 1954 the Movement for Colonial FreedomMovement for Colonial Freedom
The Movement for Colonial Freedom was a UK based political civil rights advocacy group founded in the United Kingdom in 1954. It had the support of many MPs including Harold Wilson, Barbara Castle with Tony Benn as treasurer. It had support also amongst celebrities such as Benjamin Britten and in...
(MCF) was established, an anti-colonial political group which held consultative status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council, with Gilbert involved as an active member of the leadership of this organisation from its inception.
The MCF was closely associated with the left wing of the Labour Party and attempted to unite small British groups and individuals in a campaign against the political and economic domination of colonial subjects of the British empire
British Empire
The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height, it was the...
. The MCF included a standing committee to address issues relating to racism in Britain as well as a Trade Union Committee aimed to foster the union movement in the colonial countries. The MCF was funded by membership dues, including those of individuals and affiliated organisations, and was sponsored by as many as 100 Members of Parliament.
In October 1970 the Movement for Colonial Freedom changed its name to Liberation at the behest of its president, Fenner Brockway. Gilbert eventually became the General Secretary of the organisation, serving in that capacity throughout the 1980s until his death in 1992.
On 17 June 1974 Gilbert organized a march for the Central Council of liberation. A member of the march, Warwick university student, Kevin Gately, aged 21, fell under the crowd and later died. Gilbert later said that Mr Gately had in effect been murdered by the police.
Gilbert was also an active member of the Communist Party of Great Britain
Communist Party of Great Britain
The Communist Party of Great Britain was the largest communist party in Great Britain, although it never became a mass party like those in France and Italy. It existed from 1920 to 1991.-Formation:...
(CPGB), Stoke Newington Branch, and was also on the Hackey Borough Council Communist Party Committee. During his time with Liberation and the Communist Party he met and then married his second wife, Kay Beauchamp
Kay Beauchamp
Kay Beauchamp was a leading light in the Communist Party of Great Britain in the 1920s. She helped found the Daily Worker and was a local councillor in Finsbury.-Biography:...
, herself a life-long CPGB activist.
Death and legacy
Tony Gilbert died in 1992, with his wife, Kay Beauchamp, dying that same year. The couple's papers now reside in the British National Archives.He is buried at Highgate Cemetery
Highgate Cemetery
Highgate Cemetery is a cemetery located in north London, England. It is designated Grade I on the English Heritage Register of Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest in England. It is divided into two parts, named the East and West cemetery....
in North London, along with Karl Marx
Karl Marx
Karl Heinrich Marx was a German philosopher, economist, sociologist, historian, journalist, and revolutionary socialist. His ideas played a significant role in the development of social science and the socialist political movement...
.
Works
- Danger: Racialists at Work. London: Liberation, 1974.
- Only One Died: An Account of the Scarman Inquiry into the Events of 15th June 1974, in Red Lion Square, when Kevin Gately Died Opposing Racism and Fascism. London: Kay Beauchamp, 1975.
- The Queen v. Desmond Trotter: An Account of the Trial in Dominica. London: Liberation, 1976.
- Israel — Where To? Constant War or Peace? London: Liberation, 1982.
- Ethiopia: An African Giant Awakens. With Kay Beauchamp. London: Liberation, 1983.
- Global Interference: The Consistent Pattern of American Foreign Policy. With Pierre Joris. London: Liberation, 1984.
- Pakistan: Regime of Terror. London: Liberation, 1985.
- Star Wars. London: Liberation, 1985.
- Eradicate Racism, a Murderous Crime. With Jim Thakoordin. London: Liberation, 1985.
- Treachery at Munich. London: Liberation, 1988.
External links
- "Kay Beauchamp (1899-1992) Papers," in Archive of the Communist Party of Great Britain (CPGB). nationalarchives.gov.uk/ Retrieved October 11, 2010. Includes Tony Gilbert Papers.
- Rachel Kemsley (archivist), Liberation (Movement for Colonial Freedom) Administrative/Biographical History, School of African and Oriental Studies, University of London, July 2002.
- Guardian Archive, 17 June 1974: Dead student fell under crowd