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Martin Smith (activist)

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Martin James Smith (born October 1963[1]) is a British political activist and former National Secretary of the Socialist Workers Party (SWP), a position he held from 2004 until January 2011, and who left the party in 2013 following an internal controversy.

Political and organisational activity

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Early involvement and SWP leadership

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Smith joined the SWP in the 1980s and eventually became a member of the Central Committee. He served as National Secretary of the SWP from 2004 until January 2011.[2] At the National Conference in January 2011, he left the post in favour of Charlie Kimber.[2]

Campaigns and activism

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He was involved in disrupting talks at Acas in May 2010 between British Airways and the Unite trade union, an action he defended on Channel 4 News.[3] He has also been involved at a senior level in the party's campaigns, including Unite Against Fascism and Love Music Hate Racism.[4][5][6] In September 2010, he was convicted of assaulting a police officer during a protest in October 2009 against British National Party leader Nick Griffin's appearance on Question Time. He was sentenced to a 12-month community order.[7]

SWP crisis and departure

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In 2013, the SWP faced an internal crisis after leaked minutes of a party disputes committee were reported in the press, including by The Independent, concerning allegations that a senior member, referred to as "Comrade Delta", had committed rape and sexual assault.[8] Subsequent reporting identified "Comrade Delta" as Martin Smith.[9][10][11] According to Alex Callinicos and Dave Renton, internal disagreement over the case led to the departure of several hundred members.[12][13] According to The Guardian, Smith left the SWP in 2013 following the allegations.[14]

Publishing roles

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Smith is a former director of Sherborne Publications Limited,[1] the company that publishes the Socialist Worker, and of Love Music Hate Racism.[15]

Selected publications

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  • John Coltrane: Jazz, racism and resistance, the extended version. Redwords, 2003. ISBN 9781872208220
  • Frank Sinatra: When ole blue eyes was a red. London: Bookmarks Publications, 2005. ISBN 9781905192021
  • Why "British jobs for British workers" won't solve the crisis: Why we need jobs for all. London: Bookmarks Publications, 2009. ISBN 9781905192489

References

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  1. 1 2 MR MARTIN JAMES SMITH directorsintheuk.co.uk, 21 March 2014. Retrieved 21 March 2014.
  2. 1 2 Manson, Peter (6 January 2011). "Another one bites the dust". Weekly Worker. No. 847. Archived from the original on 30 April 2015. Retrieved 28 April 2020.
  3. ↑ "BA's Willie Walsh 'trying to divide Unite'". Channel 4 News. 23 May 2010. Archived from the original on 28 February 2019. Retrieved 28 April 2020.
  4. ↑ Geoghegan, Kev (25 April 2008). "New bands team up to fight racism". Newsbeat. BBC Radio 1. Archived from the original on 28 February 2019. Retrieved 28 April 2020.
  5. ↑ Billet, Alexander (16 August 2012). "The music of racist hate". SocialistWorker.org. International Socialist Organization. Archived from the original on 11 February 2020. Retrieved 27 February 2019.
  6. ↑ Smith, Viv (9 November 2010). "Thousands march against racism". Socialist Worker (UK). No. 2227. Socialist Workers Party. Archived from the original on 30 April 2019. Retrieved 28 April 2020.
  7. ↑ Martin Smith – 'I will appeal and clear my name' Archived 11 January 2014 at the Wayback MachineSocialist Worker, 9 September 2010. Retrieved 21 March 2014.
  8. ↑ Taylor, Jerome (17 January 2013). "Ranks of the Socialist Workers Party are split over handling of rape allegation". The Independent. Retrieved 9 April 2026.
  9. ↑ Tobin, Katie (22 June 2021). "Why left-wing groups aren't exempt from sexual assault". Huck. Retrieved 9 April 2026.
  10. ↑ Hunter, William (13 June 2020). "Students warned to avoid anti-racist organisation linked to systemic cover-up of sexual abuse". Varsity. Retrieved 14 April 2026.
  11. ↑ Downes, Julia (31 December 2017). ""It's Not the Abuse That Kills You, It's the Silence": The silencing of sexual violence activism in social justice movements in the UK Left". Justice, Power and Resistance. 1 (2). p. 3. ISSN 2398-2764. Elsewhere in the UK 'Comrade Delta' (Martin Smith, the former National Secretary and member of the Central Committee in the Socialist Workers Party, or SWP), faced allegations of serious sexual assault by two women, [...].
  12. ↑ Callinicos, Alex (26 June 2014). Callinicos, Alex (ed.). "Thunder on the left". International Socialism (143). London. Archived from the original on 28 February 2020. Retrieved 28 April 2020.
  13. ↑ Renton, David (22 May 2016). "Why I don't buy Socialist Worker". lives; running. Retrieved 22 May 2016.
  14. ↑ Malik, Shiv; Cohen, Nick (9 March 2013). "Socialist Workers Party leadership under fire over rape kangaroo court". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 5 January 2020. Retrieved 28 April 2020.
  15. ↑ Companies House
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