Tribute to Jim Arnison

The North West Region of the SLP regrets to report the death of our comrade Jim Arnison, who passed away in hospital on Sunday 19th August 2007 after a short illness.

Jim was a founding member of the SLP and author of several books including:

'The MIllion Pound Strike' (The story of the Roberts Arundel Strike, 1968),

'The Shrewsbury Three' (An account of the Conspiracy Trials of building workers' pickets after the 1972 strike)

'Leo McGree'  (A biography)

'Decades'    (An autobiography).

'A Hundred Years of Labour'.

Here is what Jim said about his book ‘A Hundred Years of Labour’:

“The young people of today, striving to understand events of the past, face torrents of words, spoken and written in the main by charlatans, media word spinners, career politicians with an empty view, and those whose profession is even older than that of prostitution and, by comparison, not as honourable.

If this small contribution helps any young student of our history towards a more in depth study of past events it will have served its purpose.”

From 1964 to 1990 Jim was the Northern Correspondent of the Morning Star and prior to that worked for eighteen years in the building industry.

His vast experience and knowledge of working class struggle was invaluable to the many people who were entering working class politics for the first time with the establishment of the SLP, and his patience, wit and courage will be badly missed.

North West Regional President Billy Kelly commented:

“Jim fought a lifetime for the advancement of the working class of which he was a proud member. His advice and encouragement was always readily available to many participants in the class struggle and in the many battles fought and faithfully recorded in his well informed articles for the Morning Star and in his books and other writings.

I know he would sometimes work well into the night to get his thoughts down on paper and up to his exceptionally high standard.

His name was top of the list in our phone book and not just because it started with an A but because if you needed advice, help or encouragement he would often be the first port of call, and if you tried to thank him he would say, ‘Don’t be daft, that’s what comrades are for.’

Jim has fought his last battle and has earned a good rest, but his spirit and his example will live on in the many of us that benefited from priceless time spent with a truly great comrade, socialist and human being.”

We salute Jim Arnison, loyal comrade of the working class, and we send our deepest sympathy to his family for their loss.

Ends.