This article is from the Irish Anarchist Paper =
Workers Solidarity, No 50 Spring 1997
Anarchism's Greatest Hits NO.4
Jack White
Captain Jack White is known as the man who =
drilled the Irish Citizen Army during the =
1913 lock-out. His later anarchism has been =
hidden from history by the writers of =
history books.
White belonged to the Anglo-Irish landowning =
class. James Robert - always known as Jack, =
was born in Co Antrim, at Whitehall, =
Broughshane, just outside Ballymena. As a =
young man he followed his father into the =
British army, where he saw action against =
the Boers in South Africa. =
It is said that at the battle of Doorknop he =
was one of the first to go over the top. =
Looking back he saw one 17 year old youth =
shivering with fright in the trench. An =
officer cried "shoot him". White is said to =
have covered the officer with his pistol and =
replied "Do so and I'll shoot you". Not =
exactly the attitude wanted among the =
officer classes of the army! =
Soon after this he dropped out of the army. =
Arriving back in Ireland he found Sir Edward =
Carson's bigoted crusade against Home Rule =
was in full swing. This was the time when =
the original UVF was created to threaten war =
against the British government if Ireland =
was granted any measure of self-rule. =
Jack organised one of the first Protestant =
meetings, in Ballymoney, to rally Protestant =
opinion against the Unionist Party and =
against what he described as its "bigotry =
and stagnation", that associated Northern =
Protestants with conservatism. Another =
speaker at that meeting, and coming from the =
same sort of social background, was Sir =
Roger Casement.
As a result of the Ballymoney meeting Jack =
was invited to Dublin. Here he met James =
Connolly and was converted to socialism. =
Very impressed by the great struggle to win =
union recognition and resist the attacks of =
William Martin Murphy and his confederates, =
he offered his services to the ITGWU at =
Liberty Hall. He spoke on union platforms =
with such famous names as Francis Sheehy =
Skeffington, Big Bill Haywood of the =
Industrial Workers of the World, and James =
Connolly. =
He put forward the idea of a workers militia =
to protect picket lines from assaults by =
both scabs and the blackguards of the Dublin =
Metropolitan Police. This proposal to =
create a Citizen Army, drilled by him, was =
enthusiastically accepted. Its very =
appearance, as White recollected, "put =
manners on the police". =
He later put his services at the disposal of =
the Volunteers, believing that a stand had =
to be taken against British rule by a large =
body of armed people. He went to Derry =
where there was a brigade of Volunteers who =
were largely ex-British Army like himself. =
But he was shaken by the sectarian attitudes =
he found. When he tried to reason with them =
and make the case for workers' unity they =
dismissed his case=A0as merely sticking up for =
his own, i.e. Protestants. =
When Connolly was sentenced to death after =
the 1916 rising White rushed to South Wales =
and tried to bring the miners out on strike =
to save his life. For his attempts he was =
given three months imprisonment.
He came home to find himself in a political =
wilderness. The unionists regarded him as a =
Shinner. The nationalists regarded him as =
an Orangeman! He moved towards the newly =
founded Communist Party which, with the =
first reports from Russia, seemed offer hope =
to humanity. But he had his doubts about =
them and never joined. Indeed for a time in =
London he worked with Sylvia Pankhurst's =
anti-parliamentary communist group, the =
Workers Socialist Federation.
In 1934 a special convention was held in =
Athlone which was attended by 200 former IRA =
volunteers together with a number of =
prominent socialists, Communists and trade =
unionists. It resolved that a Republican =
Congress be formed. This was a movement, =
based on workers and small farmers, that was =
well to the left of the IRA. White joined =
immediately and organised a Dublin branch =
composed solely of ex-British servicemen. =
One notable result of this was a contingent =
of British ex-servicemen marching behind the =
Congress banner through cheering crowds of =
Dubliners on a demonstration against war and =
poverty.
The Congress is best known for bringing 200 =
Belfast Protestant workers to the republican =
Wolfe Tone Commemoration that year and for =
the scandalous attack on them by Sean =
McBride's IRA men who were determined that =
no 'red' banners would be seen at their =
Catholic day out in Bodenstown. =
One of the men carrying the second banner - =
on which was embroidered James Connolly =
Club, Belfast - The United Irishmen of 1934 =
- was John Straney, a milk roundsman from =
loyalist Ballymacarret who was later killed =
while fighting Franco's army at the Battle =
of the Ebro in 1939.
Congress later split between those who stood =
for class independence, those who fought =
only for the Workers Republic, and those - =
led by the Communists - who firstly wanted =
an alliance with Fianna Fail to reunite the =
country. After the bulk of the first group =
walked out (many of them demoralised and =
ending up in the Labour Party) White =
remained in the depleted organisation. But =
their reduced size did not reduce the hatred =
the rich had for them. In April 1936 the =
Congress contingent taking part in the =
annual Easter Commemoration was subjected to =
attack by blueshirt gangs all along the =
route.
The main target of the mob was White. =
Patrick Byrne, the joint secretary with =
Frank Ryan of the Congress, describes him as =
a "tall, well built man with a clipped army =
moustache" who "used his blackthorn stick to =
advantage in close encounters with his =
attackers". Inside the cemetery he was =
badly injured by a blow of an iron cross =
ripped from a grave. Byrne and a young =
poet, Tom O'Brien, who also fought in Spain =
managed to get White away. =
The outbreak of the Spanish Civil War saw =
General O'Duffy's blueshirts sending a =
contingent to help Franco. The Communist =
Party and leading republicans organised the =
Connolly Column to fight the Spanish =
fascists. Incidentaly the Irish =
International Brigade was yet one more =
example of how Catholics and Protestants =
fought together in a common class cause. =
White was thrilled with the collectivisation =
in Spain, and also with the volunteer =
militias. He learned with amazement that =
this was the work of the anarchists. =
In addition to his work with the Connolly =
Column at the front, he trained militia =
members in the use of firearms. He also =
trained women in the villages on the way to =
Saragossa in the use of pistol for defence. =
What he could not stomach was that the =
Irish, like all the International =
Brigadeers, were being increasingly =
manipulated by the Communist Party. He had =
never accepted the CP, he had just not seen =
an alternative. Now he saw that alternative =
and it was anarchism. =
There was a clash between White and Frank =
Ryan, who accused White of being a =
'Trotskyite' and a traitor. White =
relinquished his International Brigade =
command and offered his services to the =
anarchist CNT union. White was asked to =
work, with the legendary Emma Goldman, for =
the CNT in London. In the course of a few =
months in Spain he had become a convinced =
anarchist. =
It was at this time that he wrote the =
pamphlet The Meaning of Anarchism. He =
joined the group producing Freedom (the =
anarchist paper - still published in London =
- whose founders included Peter Kropotkin), =
and was one of the organisers of the regular =
meetings at the National Trade Union Club =
against Italian fascism and in support of =
the Spanish anarchists.
At this time White worked with a Liverpool- Irish anarchist, Matt Kavanagh, on a survey =
of Irish labour history in relation to =
anarchism. In 1940 White died. His body =
was hardly cold when the family, ashamed of =
Jack's revolutionary politics, destroyed all =
his papers, including a study of the Cork =
Harbour 'soviet' of 1921. =
His importance lies not in what he wrote, =
for all that survives is one short pamphlet, =
nor in any particular position he took. His =
importance lies in the link he provides =
between Irish working class history of the =
past and our anarchist vision today. All =
through his life he tried to organise =
ordinary people to defend their own =
interests and to realise the power they had =
if only they would use it. That is the job =
we have to continue and complete.
Alan MacSimoin
------------------------------------------------ This article is from the Irish Anarchist Paper =
Workers Solidarity, No 50 Spring 1997
The whole issue and previous issues can be found at http://www.geocities.com/Athens/2724/anpubdx.html
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