Lynn Walsh: Six expelled in Blackburn

[Militant No. 682, 13th January 1984, p. 1]

“It was an ugly meeting and a very ugly decision!” This was just one of the angry comments of party activists after Monday’s decision by Blackburn Labour Party to expel six Militant supporters.

The comrades defended themselves against a barrage of fabricated stories, smears and outright lies and argued very effectively, forcefully rebutting all the allegations. In the minds of many regular General Management Committee delegates, the six won the argument and would have won the vote with the usual GMC attendance.

But Monday’s meeting was packed with “dead” votes, with about 25 to 30 people who had never been seen before.

One of the six said: “it was like trying to reason with political zombies. They just weren’t interested. They weren’t even listening, and at the end they just rubber stamped a decision that had already been taken the meeting before”.

5 minutes to reply

After giving the six comrades who appeared a mere five minutes (with a brief opportunity to answer questions), to reply to all the allegations and lies in the so-called “Gregory report”, the GMC voted by between 42 and 54 votes to between 28 and 40 votes for the expulsions.

Ironically, Micky Thornton who was “reprieved”, made perhaps the most biting and damning remarks on the political dishonesty, bullying tactics, and the dirty manoeuvres of the right wing. Even they didn’t have the gall to expel a comrade with a record of 50 years of activity in the labour movement!

There has been an excellent response to the local campaign against the witch-hunt, which has brought marvellous support for Militant from trade union activists who are disgusted at the reactionary politics of the right wing councillors who dominate Blackburn Labour Party. But the seven were not entirely surprised by the outcome.

Local support for Militant has increased dramatically since the witch-hunt began over a year ago but there has not yet been enough time to overcome the legacy of the past.

But Blackburn Militant supporters are confident that the trade unionists and young people now increasingly active in the local party will rapidly change its character. Dead votes can swing a meeting or two, but they won’t build an active, campaigning party, and they won’t go out to win workers and young people to socialism.

If the right wing and the “neo-Stalinists” helping them to organise their manoeuvres think that local support for Militant will be undermined by six expulsions they are very mistaken. The battle is far from over!

The six will continue their activity in the labour movement, and they will still be organising local Militant Readers’ Meetings and Marxist Discussion Groups for local activists.

The six will also appeal to the National Executive against their expulsions, which have been carried through in an arbitrary, undemocratic manner. They will undoubtedly gain the active support of Labour party and union branches up and down the country, who are not prepared to sit back and allow socialists to be purged from the party for their ideas.