Walter Wolfgang: still speaking truth to power

Walter WolfgangI’ve never met Walter Wolfgang. But, after reading this fascinating booklet by Carol Turner, perhaps I don’t need to. He seems to become a kind of symbol through its pages. Not least pictorially, as in the iconic image of the moment he was evicted from the Labour party conference of 2005 which adorns the front cover. But the other photographs included are striking too – a series of images of Walter on the front line of demonstrations, speaking at events and often sporting a trademark camel-coloured coat against the cold.

Walter Wolfgang was born in Frankfurt am Main in Germany, and in 1937 was sent to boarding school in Britain, aged 13. His parents followed, but Walter had to leave school at 16 after his father was forced to liquidate his business because of Hitler’s compulsory acquisition of Jewish property and assets. He became a British citizen and joined the Labour Party in 1948. Continue reading

Labour must talk about Trident, Commons meeting told

A report from Labour CND

Our ‘Cutting Trident’ public meeting at the House of Commons on 4th December saw the overwhelming case made for Labour to pledge its opposition to replacing the Trident nuclear weapon system at the next General Election, and urged the party to open up to the debate in the coming months.

Labour figures speaking at the meeting made the case for scrapping Trident replacement on a number of grounds: moral, economic and military.

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