GRAHAM TAYLOR traces the birth, growth and continuing struggles of Quakerism’s ‘extreme left’ and its ethical ideas. 'Quakerism was born in the midst of revolution – the bloody English Revolution of the 17th century.’...
A Novel Account of the Left’s Long Struggle
MATTHEW BROWN reviews two recent books on the early Labour movement – a hefty historical novel focused on the ILP; and a slim pamphlet on the 1924 government....
ILP Profiles: Minnie Pallister – The Extraordinary Life of a Forgotten Rebel
Pioneering south Wales ILPer Minnie Pallister was one of the most important feminists, pacifists, socialists and journalists of the 20th century. But her life and legacy have been largely forgotten in recent decades. Author ALUN BURGE aims to put that right....
The Case for Co-operation
The left needs an economic re-set, a more radical aspiration of empowerment, says CHRIS WILSON. Can co-operatives help put the ‘social’ back into socialism?...
Edward Carpenter & the Future of Freedom
How would society change if no-one needed to work to stay alive? That was the question Edward Carpenter set out to answer almost 130 years ago in an essay titled ‘Transitions to Freedom’. Would it hail a new collectivist phase? And would that then lead to full individual and social liberty?...
Keir Hardie & the Sacred Cause
A new book on the ILP’s founder and first leader explores the religious underpinnings of his socialist faith. It contains important lessons for the left today, says CHRIS WILSON....
‘A Century of Labour’: Party, Power & Promise
Labour MP Jon Cruddas has written a sweeping history of the party over the last 100 years, assessing its record, its leaders and the ideas that underpin it. IAN BULLOCK follows the ups and downs....
ILP Profiles: Joe Cragie – The Untold Tale of the Salters’ ‘Chief Citizen’
Joe Cragie was a founder member of Bermondsey ILP, rising from poverty to prominence as leader of the council. He played a crucial role in the socialist successes of Ada and Alfred Salter, but until now has remained hidden from history. GRAHAM TAYLOR uncovers his story....
Joe Cragie’s Memoir
Bermondsey ILPer Joe Cragie’s handwritten memoir was discovered by his family, Matthew and Marion Rowley, and transcribed by Graham Taylor. We reproduce it here as a supplement to Graham’s profile of Cragie and assessment of his role in supporting Ada and Alfred Salter’s Bermondsey Revolution....
The ILP: Past & Present – centenary edition
First published in 1993, the original edition of Barry Winter’s pamphlet provides a lively, frank and well-illustrated account of the ILP’s history – from its grass-roots origins in the 1890s to its role in the 1990s as a principled left pressure group within the Labour Party. Although it’s now sold out, you can still...
Christian Socialism: Out There & Active
CHRIS WILSON surveys today’s exponents of an old left tradition still helping to promote the importance of ethical values in driving progressive change....
A Legacy for the Future: The Case for Christian Socialism
If progressive politics is not ethical, how will it ever be attractive, asks CHRIS WILSON, for whom the Christian socialist tradition provides both inspiration and hope....