| | by admin | | posted on 2nd March 2023 in War and Peace in Lincolnshire | | views 1148 | |
CND member and Quaker, Ray Longmore has written a short memoir of his time campaigning for nuclear disarmament. Here's the full text with an introduction by YQN:
Ray grew up grew up in Lincolnshire during the 1960s. It was some 20 years later in January 1980 that he heard of a peaceful demonstration taking place in front of Lincoln’s war memorial. The reason for the ‘demo’ was in opposition to the the recent decision by the UK Government to allow the deployment of 160 American Tomahawk cruise missiles on British soil.
He went along and afterwards:
“There began a 12 year association with this brilliant organisation of spirited individuals determined to challenge the prevailing orthodoxy that nuclear weapons have kept the peace since 1945. The doctrine of deterrence was MAD (mutually assured destruction), the balance of terror we were all expected to live with, regardless of the risks.”Ray Longmore
Growing up in Lincolnshire in the 1960s with its open fields and big skies there is no escaping the military, regimented elements of life here. With RAF bases scattered all about the sight of a Vulcan nuclear-capable bomber flying over our little house was not uncommon.
As kid it was thrilling sight - that sleek triangular shape, the resonant roar from its engine - little did l know then the sadness and rage that this would later awaken in me. Beautiful and deadly.
It was some 20 years later in January 1980 whilst having coffee with friends in a Lincoln cafe that l heard of a peaceful demonstration taking place in front of Lincoln’s war memorial.
The cause?
The recent decision by the U.K. Government to allow the deployment of 160 American Tomahawk cruise missiles on British soil.
A small group of people had set up a table urging shoppers to sign their petition calling on the government to reverse the decision. The argument being that these missiles were tactical war fighting weapons under American control and a dangerous escalation in the arms race.
I signed the petition and I was then invited to an action meeting the following week in a private house. This was a meeting of the local branch of the campaign for nuclear disarmament.
From there began a 12 year association with this brilliant organisation of spirited individuals determined to challenge the prevailing orthodoxy that nuclear weapons have kept the peace since 1945. The doctrine of deterrence was MAD (mutually assured destruction), the balance of terror we were all expected to live with, regardless of the risks.
Now we had our government planning to spend tens of billions of pounds to upgrade the Polaris ‘deterrent’ with the new TRIDENT submarine -launched nuclear missile system, with a ten fold increase in destructive power. Here was a blatant one-sided escalation in the arms race!
So began in the County a long campaign to highlight the dangers of nuclear war. We were determined to challenge the value of civil defence, especially here in Bomber County, and counter Government propaganda ( Protect & Survive) that we would survive a nuclear strike.
And of course we have the constant defaming of the CND. For instance that we were funded by the USSR. Rubbish!
All local CND groups were self funded and we certainly didn’t get any money from national CND. Our money came from membership fees, donations and the weekly market stall we ran. We were also accused of being communists or fellow travellers or pacifists.
Again largely rubbish. Party politics was discouraged within the organisation, we emphasised the humanitarian moral case for nuclear disarmament. Whilst our core supporters were mostly left leaning, we also enjoyed support from Quakers, Christians, students, social workers, medical people and artists, including folk looking for work. All of us were simply appalled and alarmed by the new dangers created by the senseless escalation in on the arms race.
To bolster our support there were other CND groups formed throughout the county e.g. Louth, Spalding and Grantham. In fact 10 groups in all.
There was also a very lively group called LASHAM ! acronym of Lincolnshire and South Humberside against missiles. And it was this group together with Lincoln CND that organised the first major local demonstration and march to RAF Waddington on the 31st of May 1981. More than 500 people took part in this good humoured, peaceful march. Colourful banners, face painting and gentle drumming bemused the police escort ! On our return to the South Common we heard inspiring speeches from National CND Secretary Bruce Kent, Roger Spiller from LASHAM and clergyman Rodney Annis.
“The real Patriots are people like us who are now thinking in real and world terms. We either curb the arms race or the arms race will destroy us “ said Bruce Kent.
We were then entertained with live music from local bands including the aptly named Sinking Ships and Rob Smith’s The Cigarettes.
Bruce Kent would return to Lincoln three times during the next 10 years. Such a witty and well informed advocate for nuclear disarmament ; I had the pleasure of taking Bruce for a beer once after a lively public meeting in St Mary Le Wigford church. Over half of bitter l expressed my desire to set up a veggie cafe & bookshop. “ do it “ said the genial disarmer. Sadly at the time my friend Jenny and l couldn’t find suitable affordable premises.
Lincoln CND had 10 to 12 ‘officer’ posts in those days with Joan Hart secretary and Ric Metcalfe chairperson (after Norman Goodchild). Other members would help out when requested. The Society of Friends (Quakers) to their eternal credit hosted most of our public meetings, over many years. Public meetings were held Monthly and included guest speakers like Professor Mike Pentz from Scientists Against Nuclear Arms, Dr Paul Rogers weapons specialist and Ken Coates from the Bertrand Russell Peace Foundation.
We were also proud to welcome women speakers from various peace camps including Greenham Common.
Another important feature of our work was non-violent direct action (NVDA). This included Hiroshima day vigils in front of the war memorial on High Street Lincoln, ‘ghosting’ which dramatically gave an impression of the effects of nuclear weapons on humans, pavement chalk painting, Street theatre - showing the stupidity of the government policy of protect and survive - as well as leafleting and the restrained use of the megaphone!
Public debates and discussions as well as talks to local organisations were common. Our chair in the early days Ric Metcalfe went up against the Gainsborough’s Tory MP Edward Lee ( now Sir Edward ) on Radio Lincolnshire. I didn’t catch the broadcast but l do remember Ric saying that Leigh had adopted a very patronising tone … “ l think you are mistaken there Ric ….” A bit of damp squid event, with little heat and no light!
Whilst from my home in Danes Terrace, Ric and l were once interviewed by a Yorkshire TV crew on the nuclear threat. We got 3 minutes ‘ air time ‘ that took the crew over three hours to set up ! Disappointing again, but we felt we had to take every opportunity that came our way to try and get our message across to the people.
A vivid memory was on the occasion our intrepid co-chair Jenny James with me by her side, put the case for nuclear disarmament to county councillors in the main chamber of County Hall. To deafening silence Jenny passionately and calmly put the strong moral case for the UK renouncing nuclear weapons as a first step to complete world disarmament. At least we got our unwelcome message across to the Tory Fathers without interruption!
It was Jenny’s husband Derek who built our robust CND exhibition stand and a good deal of care was spent filling it with good copy, graphic images and graphs which we planned to exhibit in Lincoln’s Central library. Unsurprisingly chief librarian Mr Carroll was totally opposed to displaying our exhibition, so this meant we had to lobby very hard to get permission. This we eventually did after agreeing to certain silly conditions, including that it must remain unattended!
Our only regular source of income came from our weekly market stall selling second hand books, vinyl, cassette tapes, kitchen Equipment, in fact anything useful!
One of my jobs was to coordinate a rota and arrange storage and transport. Each Wednesday was a place where CND people could meet each other and chat to members of the public. Many interesting discussions took place there without, l might say, any friction or complaint from the general public. The goods were stored in my flat and transported to and from the market each week by members with cars.The stall lasted for six years from 1981 to 1987, only lost when due to a misunderstanding one of our helpers, a Lincoln animal rights activist, got into a heatedargument with a nearby stallholder (KC Marketing) which sold eggs from cages and batteries. Lincoln Markets department used this as an excuse to triple the rent from £3.47 to £10 per week. This we could not afford.
One of the biggest donations we ever received came from CND member Dr Dorothy Rowe. The well-known clinical psychologist and author of Living with the Bomb, The Successful Self, Depression: The Way Out of our Prison, and other books.
Dorothy dropped off a beautiful Sony music Centre, which was so bulky it covered half the stall space! It was sold the first day it was displayed on the stall for the tidy sum of £30.
Over the years we were campaigning I have memory of only a few incidents when local people had been hostile to our aims: That is unilateral nuclear disarmament for the UK, as a stepping to world nuclear disarmament - in other words disarmers who meant it. I do think most people who disagreed with us never the less respected our moral position, at least when sober!
Drink did play it’s part when a member of Lincoln CND was once assaulted during a silent vigil at the war memorial in Lincoln’s High Street. It happened when a young man staggered out of The Roebuck ( a pub long gone, sited opposite the memorial) to punch poor Mike Kemshall in the face. To his great credit Mike remained impassive, nursed his bruises and continued to witness
Another memorable incident, in many ways far more disturbing, took place at RAF Scampton in August 1981 when Lincoln CND members joined with a Christian fellowship group and held a silent witness at the main gates. After this finished some of us entered an adjoining field and held hands to form the Peace sign.
In the calm of this event we heard the roar of an aircraft overhead and I was shocked to observe a Vulcan bomber appearing to circle us more than once, and then clearly swoop down with the bomb doors wide open ! They were cries of disbelief and horror at this shocking incident. Lincoln CND and various clergymen present at the scene made complaints to the base commander and the MOD.
The local press heard about the incident and covered it well.
One Sunday morning a few days after the event I received an excited telephone call from Bruce Kent National CND secretary who told me that we had made the front page of the Catholic Herald. (See press clipping)
An MOD internal enquiry followed and after three months or so I got another phone call this time from Tony Shaw, a senior reporter on The Lincolnshire Echo, telling me the enquiry found no fault and no attempt at intimidation. So we had invented the whole disgusting scenario ? No big bird of death had come down to tickle us? Shameful!
“So Ray, do you think the inquiry is a whitewash? “ Prompted Tony Shaw.
Yes of course, says l.
More letters in the press mostly supportive this time.
Lincoln CND was represented at CND National Council and East Midlands CND meetings in Nottingham.
In 1982 Alex Cormack and myself travelled to Brussels for a European Nuclear Disarmament conference. We wanted to add our voice to the campaign to free Europe from nuclear weapons, as the fear was this would be the ‘theatre’ for the start of a possible Third World War between America and Russia.
And with so much sabre rattling coming from both Margaret Thatcher and Ronald Reagan, both flexing their military muscles at the time, our local membership soared to over 250 persons ( 450 across the county ) and nationally CND membership was in excess of 300,000!
By now our chairperson had become a prominent City of Lincoln counsellor and he helped to persuade the labour controlled Lincoln City Council to declare our city a nuclear free zone on the 21st of December 1982. Mainly a welcome symbolic act it did bar nuclear weapons or waste from entering the city boundaries.
From this point the city council commissioned a report by scientists against nuclear arms on the effects of a nuclear bomb strike on the city, and surrounding RAF bases. This report received wide press coverage publicising the devastating consequences.
Also at this time the nuclear Free zone subcommittee looked at a proposal to build a peace sculpture in the city centre to celebrate the coming International year of peace, in 1986. A number of meetings took place in the Arboretum base of Lincoln Community Arts, with a good many designs considered including one from local architect Sam Scorer. Sadly nothing came of it.
Wendy Bullar the founder of Lincoln Community Arts was a big supporter and helped to promote the cause. For example during the build up to our annual Peace Festival we would get assistance with poster making and materials . One year we were all working in the local community centre on a gigantic, multi-coloured inflatable plaything for children when The Daily Mirror investigative journalist Paul Foot ( nephew of former Labour Leader Michael Foot) popped in and was clearly amused by the proceedings!
He had been invited to Lincoln by one of Wendy’s team to expose a notorious bedsit landlord who crammed vulnerable adults in over-crowded conditions . The giant plastic yellow, blue and red plaything proved to be a great draw for children during the festival as they would climb, jump and slide over it - sadly after too many little heads got banged we decided for safety reasons to cut it up!
No such fate befell the brilliant rainbow coloured hot air balloon that arrived from Nottingham CND!
This object of wonder was inflated on the festival site in the Arboretum to cheers of delight ! Two lucky raffle ticket winners would be flown over the cathedral and back, well that was the plan. Unfortunately the beautiful mature trees in the park got in the way and we were forced to make the ascent from the West Common, where it successfully completed its mission ; as well as promoting the cause!
Having lived on a large council estate off Burton Road, worked in a factory, in retail and then in motor insurance l was well aware of what D H Lawrence once referred to as “ the impudence of class, money and religion “ in England.
I just love the adjective ‘impudence’ here. So witty, so understated yet to the point!
Such Divisions were obvious in Lincoln, the Haves mostly resided uphill ( particularly near the Cathedral) whilst the Have-Nots lived mainly in tidy, little terraces either in the South or more conveniently in the East End ; close to the great heavy engineering works that once employed many thousands of the local men and women.
CND was often dismissed by the right wing media as a nest of middle class bleeding hearts, or old hippies trying to relive their youth ! I didn’t fall into either category. As a working class lad from a council estate who went to art school as a mature student on a full grant ( including maintenance at a time when they existed ! ) l was so grateful to ‘escape ‘ the drudgery of an dull office job!
Within the ranks of Lincoln CND, yes, we had social workers, graduates and lecturers but also garnered support from shop assistants, dental technicians, single parents and those looking for work too!
Women were well represented within our group. It is clear women played a massive role in strengthening the campaign to free the U.K. from nuclear weapons.
Of the dozen or so activists who did most of the work 9 were women.
Here is list of our activists and rotating roles:
| Joan Hart | our first secretary, newsletter production |
| Helen Holtam | chair and market stall |
| Nick Holtam | Christian theologian, assisted at vigils & direct actions |
| Janice Tant | stall volunteer, jumble sale organiser |
| Jenny James | chair and public speaking |
| Margaret de Bruin | secretary and market stall |
| Jo Harding | stall work and transport |
| Ron Harding | newsletter editor and production |
| Ric Metcalfe | CND chair, Nuclear Free Zone committee |
| Nigel Horner | chair, peace festival, public speaking, market stall transport |
| Ray Longmore | secretary, press & publicity, reluctant demagogue, stall manager |
| Phil Robinson | secretary, peace festival worker decorations co-ordinator |
| Norman Goodchild | our first chair |
| Rev John Dennis | .parliamentary monitor, market stall transport |
| Graham Kerr | East Midlands rep & national council member |
| Alex Cormack | peace festival worker, public speaking |
| Alex Ogden | Music organiser, peace festival worker |
| Dave Would & Peter Spiers | graphic designers for our logo, badges and posters and leaflets |
And a big thank you all members who stepped up to assist over our active years!
Being a Cathedral City with a very long Christian tradition it was time to approach the Bishop of Lincoln.
I remember well, the time myself and fellow activist Alex Cormack visited Simon Phipps, the Bishop of Lincoln.
Arranged by his personal assistant on the understanding this was to be a private meeting without a press statement we asked, what would Jesus have to say on retaining and threatening to use nuclear weapons. Well, Bishop Simon showed visible signs of discomfort.
Well, that doesn’t imply they are hell-bent on blowing us all up!
Interestingly, two years later in 1982 his views had mellowed when he chaired a conference described as an educational day for Christians, on the nuclear issue. He was reported as moving towards unilateralism, after hearing impartial evidence from both sides of the argument. the Bishop also laid into some Tory Peers when responding to complex issues:
“....Making mindless noises in the House of Lords absolutely sickens me when anyone mentions trade unions or the Russians”
True Christian support came in the form of Nicholas Holtam and John Dennis. Nick at that time lectured at Lincoln Theological College ( Chad Varah House ), a CND member who was always happy to help out and say a few appropriate words at the end the silent vigils on Hiroshima Day (6th August) in front of the War Memorial or in the City Square.
Much later Nick would become Priest-in-charge at St Martins in the Fields in London and finally the Bishop of Salisbury for 10 years, until his retirement in July 2021.
Another fine Christian in my book ( and proud CND badge wearer ) was the Reverend John Dennis, the vicar of St Swithin’s church and chair of the management committee of St Swithin’s Community Centre (Croft Street) Lincoln ( the centre would soon become my place of work for the next 20years ).
John and his wife lived in the vicarage next to the Centre and only a few two minutes walk from my flat in Thomas Street.
John was an exuberant personality, who was much loved in the East End because of his natural kindness and empathy, particularly for the marginalised. From the early years of CND John had stood against nuclear weapons and he would readily share his views from the pulpit ! “Let us never forget the dire messages from the hibakusha - the victims of the Hiroshima & Nagasaki bombings on the 6th & 9th August 1945 - never again “. Oh, and another thing John was an excellent cook, as those who had the pleasure to be invited ‘round for a meal can testify.
However, John had one rather unnerving tendency. A clergyman who drove his little Morris Minor skilfully but very, very fast ! John was once asked to pick up Monsignor Bruce Kent from Lincoln railway station for a public meeting on The Russian Threat: fact or fiction. The meeting went very well indeed, with many new faces of all ages in the 80 strong audience, absorbed by Bruce’s witty analysis of the facts. Afterwards with tea cup in hand Bruce whispered..... “ l won’t allow myself to be driven again by that man !” So l had to quickly find another driver to take our eminent guest back to the station to catch his London train home. John of course never knew the reason why he lost his return fare.
The War Game
Peter Watkin’s BBC documentary style drama on the devastation of a nuclear war. Originally intended to be broadcast on the 6th October 1965 it was pulled by Auntie on the following grounds:
“ the effect of the film has been judged by the BBC to be too horrifyingly for the medium of broadcasting....”
We obtained a copy and showed the film in Lincoln College of Art.
Nigel Horner from the group introduced this grim and deeply honest account of the end of days to a full capacity audience. CND interest afterwards was very good and we recruited many new members!
Deterrent spotted on Bradford Pool
We were always looking at novel ideas to help bring to the public’s attention the dangers of nuclear madness.
In 1983 CND members constructed, with wicker, wire and papier-mâché, a 10 foot Trident submarine.
Painted funeral black, emblazoned with the message 'Cancel Trident Now' we launched her in the Brayford Pool with some aplomb. To our great surprise it remained afloat for many days! Great publicity.
Glastonbury or Bust!
As keen cyclists Myself l was persuaded by two friends to join them on a sponsored ride to the 1983 Glastonbury music festival. A healthy getaway we thought with the opportunity to see some great bands too!
Phew!
Val, Kate and l were only able to complete the run by making overnight stays at kindly CND supporter’s homes. UIt was fun, albeit we only managed raised a few pounds from our impecunious backers.
Lifting the Crowd
Listening to the charismatic historian E P Thompson speaking in Trafalgar Square with tens of thousands people, waiving there banners ( No to NATO ; No missiles East or West ; Bread not Bombs !) murmuring support, absolute joy!
Thompson’s tall, elegant physique topped with his big silver barnet made a deep impression.... “ feel your own strength! , feel your own strength !”, he repeated brandishing his megaphone.
Freezing in Molesworth
February 6th 1986. The RAF/USAF air base designated for 64 cruise missiles . A Lincoln mini-bus transported us to Cambridgeshire packed with thick blankets and walking boots, flasks of hot coffee and veggie sandwiches!
14 of us took part with the 7000 other protesters in a mass sit-down blockade at the main gates. For 12 hours we withstood the bitter cold and ice. We thought we had stopped work inside the base but in fact, as we learned later, most workers had stayed inside the camp overnight!
But it wasn’t all politics and gentle confrontation.
After all, didn’t we believe in the positive power of the people? I was very aware that constantly harping on about imminent disaster wasn’t enough, we also needed be more positive and indeed celebrate life ! To this end we created two initiatives that brought CND members, supporters and hopefully the community together:
Christmas 1981 saw the arrival of Lincoln’s alternative Christmas market. Away from the usual commercialism and hype we thought it would be a good idea to showcase local creativity, with stallholders selling handmade ceramics, jewellery, clothing and much more. What began as a three hour event in the Quaker Friends Meeting House would blossom into an all day event with live music and a bustling vegetarian Cafe, when l organised it at *Croft Street community centre ( St Swithin’s).
Today the Market is now run by Lincoln Amnesty group from the Methodist Church in The Bail and is well worth popping along . Great Food too.
l managed the Centre from the mid 1980’s to September 2012.
Earlier in the same year we obtained permission from the city of Lincoln Council to organise our first Free Peace Festival in the Arboretum in Monks Road. The council had at first thought such a festival would cause a traffic and security headache ; however we managed persuaded them that the event would be properly supervised with all activity finished by 5 pm, or there abouts.
And of course we pledged to leave the park clean and tidy.
A City Council grant of £300 towards the Festival costs was gratefully received.
Live Music was provided by popular local bands and singers, and this was a great help attracting lots of young people!
As well as there were arts and craft stalls and we welcomed campaigning groups like Oxfam, Friends of the Earth, Greenpeace, the Nomad Trust ( a local charity supporting the homeless ), HIV/AIDS support and many more. A ice cream van and veggie food too!
Children’s activities and games added to the fun, friendly atmosphere.
Attracting a crowd of some 200 people, later rising to over 500, it was a great success and became an annual event in the city and county calendar for the next 15 years!
Lincoln’s mini Glastonbury for a day.
In the build up to the Festival Day we would run free weekly decoration & banner making workshops from Croft Street Community assisted by Ted Ashton and Nick Morris from START- a voluntary arts based project at the Centre.
Whilst CND activist Phil Robinson would bring adults from his Social Education Centre to paint and help build structures - they were absolutely brilliant, and looked looked forward to coming each year!
I have always been interested In film and theatre, and appeared in a few shows at the time. In one piece, directed by the persuasive Mary East, l played the deranged general in Jean Cocteau’s surreal little mine play “Wedding on the Eiffel Tower”.
Wearing a braided, red military tunic I mischievously added jokey medals to a genuine ribbons bar. The play was very well received and great fun, particularly when Paul North corpsed the cast wearing vampire teeth!
In the 1986 Peace Festival l resurrected The General with his dangling Medals of our peace symbol, hamburger, human skeleton and US dollar bill shapes. Gently provocative l thought, to raise a few smiles. Unawares, a few days later a picture of me would be appear in the Lincolnshire Echo, along with, l might say, a very good write up on the festival!
However, the picture of me in military costume prompted Maj. W F V Harries of Market Rasen to write in to condemn me as “Disgraceful “, for what he saw as mocking military ribbons and the memory of all our boys who died to safe our freedoms.
I wrote back to point out l was mocking the military mind both East & West.
But it prompted me to pen a bit of comic doggerel on the dissolute general, and it went something like this:
“I’m a military man and I’m proud of it, ⁃ proud of it ! I’m a military man not shy of it ⁃ Not shy of it I’ve seen action near and far Never been hit because, l, lead from Behind the Bar ! I’m so smart, I shimmer in the dark Young folk smile delighted at my talk Especially when I tell them The size of my cruise missile ! Oh, I’m a military man I’m proud of it ! I am a military man Not shy of it ! I’ve seen action near and far Never been hit because, I lead from Behind the Bar ! Hic ! Make mine a treble Corky ! Hic,hic !”
1987 was mostly a bad news for peace-mongers apart from the County win against nuclear dumping.
In January 1986 the local evening newspaper The Lincolnshire Echo broke the story that four sites in our area, including Fulbeck Grange - a disused airfield - were being considered for the dumping of radioactive nuclear waste.
Secret exploratory tests had already been undertaken by NIREX , the government sponsored disposal agency, which found all four sites were potentially suitable. Well, the news caused a political earthquake!
The residents of Fulbeck and surrounding villages quickly linked up with the farming community to organise demonstrations and to lobby both the local and county councils, to voice their outrage. So within a few weeks - hundreds of householders fearing house and land values would tumble , farmers worried they that wouldn't be able to sell their crops - all were alarmed at the possibility of facing financial ruin and the destruction of their livelihoods in beautiful South Lincolnshire.
Well, l did allow myself a wry, little smile at this classic NIMBY situation: Here we had every politician from parish councillor to local MPs backing the campaign to stop in its tracks the exploration of nuke waste sites anywhere in Lincolnshire. “ Naff of Nirex “, became a memorable slogan chalked on walls around the county ! But what was lacking in the debate was the realisation that nuclear power and nuclear weapons feed off each other. Elements used to creat electricity are also used to build nuclear bombs, and therein lies the moral dilemma. And then of course there is the grave problem of the highly radioactive waste. Dump it where ? Lincolnshire ? Under the sea ....? To make matters worse in April 1986 we first hear of the appalling Chernobyl disaster in the Ukraine.....another dire warning of the insanity of thinking nuclear energy would be the clean, safe fuel of the future. Wrong.
Nonetheless, Lincoln CND members as well as activists from Greenpeace and Friends of the Earth backed the efforts of LAND (Lincolnshire and South Humberside Against Nuclear Dumping) and took part in their demos, including a 2,000 people march from Fulbeck to the old airfield site. It was on 1st May 1987 that the Tory Government finally admitted defeat and ’ dumped ‘ its plans to build a nuclear waste site anywhere in the county. No reason was ever given.
Margaret Thatcher was still in power and continuing to demonise the Soviet Union along with her protege - the most dangerous man on the planet, the former Hollywood B movie star - Ronald Reagan, who had become US President January 1981.
He of ‘Stars War’ fame. The crazy notion of building a protective shield over America using a vast array of space launched particle beam weapons making nukes obsolete.
The UK General Election that year was a bitter blow for the Peace Movement. On the back of a third election defeat Neil Kinnock’s Labour Party needed to find something to blame.
They chose Nuclear Disarmament.
So they ditched their commitment to independently scrap all nuclear weapons and remove US cruise missiles.
Clearly done to try and win back support but really an unprincipled act of betrayal that the votes could see through.
To repeat, weapons of mass murder is no defence but makes us all targets,
A golden opportunity lost
To be the first Nuclear State to help lead the world out of our nuclear nightmare.
It would take another ten years before Labour was returned to government.
And now hear that the US operated air base at Lakenheath in Suffolk, already known as a nuclear weapons storage site is now earmarked not p for a multi-million pound upgrade.
As if that isn’t provocative enough, after 14years there is strong likelihood that American nuclear weapons are coming back!
National CND has announced a protest demonstration outside the base for Saturday 17th August 2022.
As l have have said before we didn’t align ourselves with any political party on principle but if organisations wished to affiliate to show support and make donations that was mostly welcomed. The Ecology Party ( latterly The Green Party) has always been strongly unilateralist and The Labour Party adopted a policy of unilateral nuclear disarmament at it’s 1982 annual conference. I, along with many, thought our best hope for a nuclear -free Britain was the election of a strong Labour government.
However, after Labour suffered another general election defeat in 1987 the party under Neil Kinnock ( he was long-standing member of CND) dropped it’s anti-nuclear policy, thinking it was now a vote loser.
A cynical and total betrayal of principle in my view.
Ironically it was a time the USA and USSR both agreed deep cuts in their nuclear arsenals, ushering in the beginning of the end of the arms race!
So as the Berlin Wall came tumbling down in November 1989 it took a mere two years for the total collapse of the USSR.
By Christmas 1991 a disheartened Mikhail Gorbachev had resigned and Boris Yeltsin becomes the first ever democratically elected President of Russia.
Now, l thought here was golden opportunity to include a fledgling democratic Russia in a new non-nuclear security alliance!
With the Warsaw Pact dissolved what was the rationale to retain NATO ? Instead, NATO would look to expand, even refusing Russia’s request to join the alliance, and in so doing sowing the seeds of more distrust that would eventually lead to the dictatorship of Vladimir Putin and the appalling consequences we now see.
One of Lincoln CNDs last actions was to organise a vigil in the Lincoln city square to oppose Prime Minister Tony Blair’s misguided support for the George Bush / US, invasion of Iraq. However, the enthusiasm for our Peace Festival kept us together until 1996, after this time local interest in the cause had waned, and a number of our key activists had either left Lincoln or moved on. For example two of our most hard working members, Jenny and Janice, moved to women’s aid and refuge work.
For myself l now concentrated on running and developing Croft Street Community, and found many of the skills learned as a peace campaigner neatly transferred there - eg fundraising, helping to organise events and administration!
The human qualities that had kept the CND group alive for 15 years were simple enough to say ( harder to maintain )
1. Belief in the Cause. 2. Energy 3. Trust 4. Camaraderie
Whilst fear of annihilation was at the heart of my involvement with CND there remains a deep anger at the inaction. ( we get the politicians we deserve ?) in not facing up to the escalating danger of war and environmental disaster.
Weapons are not the enemy but complacency and indolence are
Here’s a little bit of my doggerel on the subject : “ when you come to the end of a nuclear day Nothing means more than when you turn and say Thank you for desert and burnt up brush Nice crispy thing that were once like us ! For gone is the green of grasses in Spring Gone is the song of the little starling Gone is the glow of the Sun in your eyes Gone forever the blue lit skies And why did it happen you ask of me That is the question l’m sure you agree Look to yourselves and perhaps you’ll see See the violence of apathy “
On Reflection
The CND was a very significant part of my life throughout the 1980s and early 1990s
Was it worth it?
Well, to the extent that the movement didn’t manage to persuade the public sufficiently to demand the changes we wanted, of course very disappointing.
That is, to be the first nuclear power to scrap weapons of mass murder to give that desperately needed lead away from global disaster. Sadly it wasn’t to be.
But, it we did play a vital part in seeing massive cuts in warheads between east and west. We did win the argument with cold, scientific facts that the government’s civil defence strategy to survive nuclear war was cruel, dangerous nonsense.
The movement also brilliantly exposed the sinister links between nuclear power and nuclear weapons production, as well as highlighting the very tragic connection of poverty with the Arms Trade.
With Britain of course being a big global player in this disgusting trade in death.
A case in point:
The shameful April 1982 Falklands War. Many of the weapons we did sell to Argentina were used in the killing of the 255 British soldiers in that unnecessary conflict. Britain’s nuclear weapons did nothing to deter Argentina’s Junta and General Galtieri !
So, was it worth all the campaigning?
Yes, it was.
I have no regrets. And I am sure most of my fellow activists would feel much the same.
A cause worth dying for ? certainly not
certainly not!
“While l breaths, hope”
Today, looking at the massive global environmental changes we now all face, nukes may appear small fry but for me they remain the ugly, corrosive tip of all that’s wrong with our world
So...
“What’s so funny about Peace, Love and Understanding ?” Brinsley Schwarz 1970’s band
