Civil Rights and Trade Unions

Understanding the Campaign for Social Justice and the early civil rights movement in Northern Ireland is crucial as it highlights the roots of sectarian conflict, the struggle for equality, and the broader context of civil rights movements across the world.

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• The Campaign for Social Justice (CSJ) was one of the first significant movements to advocate against the systemic discrimination faced by the Catholic nationalist community in Northern Ireland. It was founded in January 1964 by Conn and Patricia McCluskey, a husband-and-wife duo, along with other activists.
• The CSJ was primarily focused on exposing and challenging the widespread inequalities in housing, employment, and local government that disadvantaged Catholics.
• In its founding statement, Why Justice Can Not Be Done, the CSJ made its mission clear: to highlight and document factual examples of the discrimination experienced by Catholics, particularly in areas like public housing and the distribution of local government resources.
• The CSJ was not aligned with any nationalist political party; instead, it was dedicated to bringing attention to the injustices without promoting a united Ireland.
• The organisation aimed to gather evidence of unfair practices, which could then be used to pressure the British government and the international community into taking action.
• The CSJ's work was crucial in laying the groundwork for the broader civil rights movement that would emerge in Northern Ireland in the late 1960s.
• By documenting Catholics' daily experiences of discrimination, the CSJ provided a factual basis for the civil rights campaign's demands for equal treatment for Catholics in all areas of public life.

Civil Rights

• Civil rights are the basic guarantees that people in a democratic society are treated equally, regardless of their religion, race, gender, or political views.
• These rights typically include the right to free speech, the right to vote, and the right to protest peacefully.
• In the context of Northern Ireland during the 1960s and 1970s, the civil rights movement emerged as Catholics sought equal treatment, particularly in the areas of voting rights, housing, and employment, where they were significantly disadvantaged compared to Protestants.
• The movement grew out of the frustration with the institutionalised discrimination that Catholics faced, and it was heavily inspired by the civil rights struggles taking place in other parts of the world, particularly the United States.
• The movement demanded reforms such as the end of gerrymandering, which ensured Protestant dominance in local councils, and the repeal of the Special Powers Act, which allowed for the detention of individuals without trial.

The Campaign for Social Justice's Role

• The Campaign for Social Justice (CSJ) was not aligned with any political nationalist movement but focused solely on highlighting the systemic discrimination against Catholics.
• In February 1964, the CSJ issued a detailed report titled The Plain Truth, which provided a factual account of discrimination in housing, employment, and local government across Northern Ireland.
• The report cited specific examples of how Catholics were systematically excluded from opportunities and positions of power.
• The CSJ's report included powerful statements such as, "There is practically no representation of the minority on the Boards of Public Bodies, consequently virtually all the 'plum' jobs from Consulting Surgeons to Town Clerks go to Conservatives and Unionists."
• The report highlighted the fact that employment opportunities were routinely denied to Catholics, leading many to emigrate in search of better opportunities, thus maintaining Protestant dominance in Northern Ireland.
• The CSJ also sought to garner support from the British public by emphasising the financial cost of maintaining Northern Ireland's discriminatory practices.
• They argued that the British taxpayer was unknowingly funding a system of oppression, with Northern Ireland receiving an annual grant of over £46 million.
• The CSJ urged British citizens to question their Members of Parliament about the situation in Northern Ireland, hoping to pressure the British government into addressing the injustices.

British Government and Labour Party Involvement

• When the CSJ presented its findings to the British Parliament, a number of Labour MPs, including the party leader Harold Wilson, supported them.
• Wilson's interest in Northern Ireland's internal affairs became more pronounced when he became Prime Minister following the Labour Party's victory in the 1964 general election.
• Wilson's government was sympathetic to the plight of Catholics in Northern Ireland and hoped to engage with the issues raised by the CSJ.
• However, Wilson was also cautious about becoming too involved in the internal politics of Northern Ireland, recognising the sensitivity of the situation.
• In 1965, a group of Labour MPs went a step further by forming the Campaign for Democracy in Ulster (CDU), which sought to push the unionist government in Northern Ireland to address Catholic concerns.
• The CDU's formation was a response to the perceived inadequacies of O'Neill's government in dealing with the grievances of the Catholic population.
• Gerry Fitt, who was elected as Westminster MP for West Belfast, became a vocal advocate for Catholic rights, regularly speaking out against the discrimination they faced.
• Despite these efforts, O'Neill's government remained reluctant to implement meaningful reforms, insisting that it was an internal matter for Northern Ireland to resolve.

Trade Unions and Civil Rights

• Between 1964 and 1965, the Northern Ireland Committee of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU) played a significant role in the civil rights movement.
• The ICTU, alongside the CSJ, lobbied Prime Minister Terence O'Neill to repeal the property qualification that limited voting rights in local elections and to introduce the principle of one man, one vote.
• They also called for the abolition of the Special Powers Act, which they saw as a tool for suppressing political dissent, particularly within the Catholic community.
• The ICTU made it clear that their demands were focused on achieving fairness in government policy rather than pursuing nationalist aims.
• To distance themselves from more radical nationalist groups, the ICTU and CSJ campaigned under the slogan "British rights for British citizens."
• This was a strategic move aimed at appealing to a broader audience, including those who might have been sympathetic to the unionist cause but recognised the injustices faced by Catholics.
• When O'Neill's government refused to implement these reforms, the ICTU held a conference in 1965 to publicly condemn the government's failure to introduce meaningful change.
  • Despite their efforts, the ICTU and the CSJ struggled to achieve immediate success. However, their actions were crucial in raising awareness of the civil rights issues in Northern Ireland, laying the groundwork for the broader civil rights movement that would gain momentum later in the 1960s.
  • Their campaigns highlighted the deep-seated inequalities in Northern Irish society and the need for comprehensive reform to address these issues.