The President of the Workers’ Party, Michael Donnelly, has said that 100 years to the day after the execution of the socialist revolutionary James Connolly (May 12th) the same forces which demanded his killing continue to rule Ireland north and south.
Mr. Donnelly said that it was noteworthy that while the state paid lip service to Connolly and the other leaders of the 1916 Rising the successors to the Dublin business elite of 1916 who were so vociferous in demanding Connolly’s death are meeting in the city today to organise resistance against the most basic of protections for workers such as those at Clery’s.
Liberty Hall on the 1st anniversary of Connolly’s death
The Workers’ Party President said, “James Connolly fully recognised that changing the colour of the flag over Dublin Castle would mean nothing unless the fundamental nature of the state was utterly transformed and the profoundly unequal distribution of wealth was overturned. It was this revolutionary message that so horrified the Dublin Employer’s Federation and the newspapers of William Martin Murphy that they publicly called for the execution of the remaining 1916 leaders and Connolly in particular”.
WP President Michael Donnelly
Mr. Donnelly said that on the centenary of his execution Connolly was as relevant as ever and his philosophy and message was as clear and fresh as ever. “While the state and some historians portray Connolly as simply a fading figure from history he will continue as a beacon of hope and defiance for millions of workers in Ireland and worldwide. On this centenary of his execution the Workers’ Party pays due homage to James Connolly and we pledge ourselves to continuing the struggle to build the socialist republic he strove to create”.