Bill Hunter (Trotskyist)
Encyclopedia
Bill Hunter is a veteran Trotskyist leader in Britain
and a member of the International Socialist League.
career as a member of the Independent Labour Party
during World War II
, when he was a part of the circle around the Free Expression discussion magazine in that group. With the decline of the ILP, Hunter became a Trotskyist and joined the Revolutionary Communist Party (UK, 1944)
in which he played a leading role in its final period.
With the collapse of the RCP, Hunter joined the Gerry Healy
-led group known as The Club
, although he had not belonged to Healy's faction within the RCP. He remained a member - usually a leading member - of Healy's groups until the collapse of the organisation.
When Healy's Workers Revolutionary Party split in 1985, Hunter joined the Cliff Slaughter
's anti-Healy faction, around what was soon renamed the Workers Press newspaper
. Within this group, he become attracted to the faction of international Trotskyism
led by Nahuel Moreno
. In 1988, he and Martin Ralph
led a small split to form the International Socialist League as a section of Moreno's organisation.
Bill Hunter has written several books, including Forgotten Hero: The Life and Times of Edward Rushton
about the blind Liverpool
-born anti-slavery campaigner, and the two part autobiography Lifelong Apprenticeship: The Life and Times of a Revolutionary.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and a member of the International Socialist League.
Life
Hunter began his revolutionaryRevolutionary
A revolutionary is a person who either actively participates in, or advocates revolution. Also, when used as an adjective, the term revolutionary refers to something that has a major, sudden impact on society or on some aspect of human endeavor.-Definition:...
career as a member of the Independent Labour Party
Independent Labour Party
The Independent Labour Party was a socialist political party in Britain established in 1893. The ILP was affiliated to the Labour Party from 1906 to 1932, when it voted to leave...
during 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...
, when he was a part of the circle around the Free Expression discussion magazine in that group. With the decline of the ILP, Hunter became a Trotskyist and joined the Revolutionary Communist Party (UK, 1944)
Revolutionary Communist Party (UK, 1944)
The Revolutionary Communist Party was a British Trotskyist group, formed in 1944 and active until 1949, which published the newspaper Socialist Appeal, a theoretical journal Workers International News and an entrist paper for its Labour Party work The Militant .- Collapse of the RSL and founding of...
in which he played a leading role in its final period.
With the collapse of the RCP, Hunter joined the Gerry Healy
Gerry Healy
Thomas Gerard Healy, known as Gerry Healy , was a political activist, a co-founder of the International Committee of the Fourth International, and, according to former prominent U.S. supporter David North, the leader of the Trotskyist movement in Great Britain between 1950 – 1985...
-led group known as The Club
The Club (Trotskyist)
The Club was a Trotskyist group in the United Kingdom. It operated inside the Labour Party and was the official section of the Fourth International from 1950 until 1953 when, after the FI split, it became part of the International Committee of the Fourth International...
, although he had not belonged to Healy's faction within the RCP. He remained a member - usually a leading member - of Healy's groups until the collapse of the organisation.
When Healy's Workers Revolutionary Party split in 1985, Hunter joined the Cliff Slaughter
Cliff Slaughter
-Life:During the Second World War, Cliff Slaughter worked in a coal mine as one of the Bevin Boys. While there, he was injured when kicked by a pit pony.He later became a lecturer and writer on sociology and Marxism...
's anti-Healy faction, around what was soon renamed the Workers Press newspaper
Newspaper
A newspaper is a scheduled publication containing news of current events, informative articles, diverse features and advertising. It usually is printed on relatively inexpensive, low-grade paper such as newsprint. By 2007, there were 6580 daily newspapers in the world selling 395 million copies a...
. Within this group, he become attracted to the faction of international Trotskyism
Trotskyism
Trotskyism is the theory of Marxism as advocated by Leon Trotsky. Trotsky considered himself an orthodox Marxist and Bolshevik-Leninist, arguing for the establishment of a vanguard party of the working-class...
led by Nahuel Moreno
Nahuel Moreno
Nahuel Moreno was a Trotskyist leader from Argentina. Moreno was active in the Trotskyist movement from before World War II until his death....
. In 1988, he and Martin Ralph
Martin Ralph
Martin Ralph is an Australian sprint canoer who competed in the mid 1980s. At the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, he was eliminated in the repechages of the K-2 500 m event. Subsequently, he began to coach with the VIS and independently...
led a small split to form the International Socialist League as a section of Moreno's organisation.
Bill Hunter has written several books, including Forgotten Hero: The Life and Times of Edward Rushton
Edward Rushton
Edward Rushton was a British poet and writer.-Early life:Edward Rushton was born in Liverpool on November 13, 1756. He was enrolled at the Liverpool Free School from the age of 6 until the age of 9. He left school and by the age of 11 and became an apprentice with Messrs...
about the blind Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
-born anti-slavery campaigner, and the two part autobiography Lifelong Apprenticeship: The Life and Times of a Revolutionary.