An alliance of people spied on by Britain's political secret police
Online meeting to celebrate and learn from the significant victory of the ‘Shrewsbury 24’ in quashing their almost 50-year-old convictions.Speakers:
Ricky Tomlinson (Shrewsbury Picket and jailed trade unionist)
John McDonnell (Labour MP)
Dave Smith (Blacklist Support Group)
Piers Marquis and Annabel Timan (Doughty Street Chambers barristers)
The Shrewsbury 24 were pickets wrongfully arrested and convicted for their participation in the national building workers’ strike of 1972.
For years afterwards, many were subjected to blacklisting and struggled to find work.It’s now known that blacklists were maintained with the illegal collusion of every constabulary’s Special Branch.
The Shrewsbury 24’s campaign for justice was spied on by officers from the Metropolitan Police’s Special Demonstration Squad.
On Tuesday 23rd March 2021, the Court of Appeal made the following judgement in the case of our clients Ricky Tomlinson, Arthur Murray and the Shrewsbury 24:
“It follows that under Ground 1, the convictions of all the appellants are unsafe.
Their appeals are allowed and all the verdicts in relation to them are quashed.” (pt.99)
The convictions of the Shrewsbury 24 have been quashed. As they walked from court they were – as they have always been – innocent men.
We say they are victims of police corruption, of a political trial, and of a Conservative Government – who at the time were looking to take revenge against the trade union movement.
Join us online on Wednesday 31 March at 6.30pm to analyse and discuss the historical lessons to learn from this courageous struggle.
Speakers:
Ricky Tomlinson (Shrewsbury Picket and jailed Trade Unionist)
John McDonnell (Labour MP)
Dave Smith (Blacklist Support Group)
Piers Marquis and Annabel Timan (Doughty Street Chambers barristers)
The event is free and online. Register for tickets.