Post by RedFlag32 on May 14, 2007 12:09:21 GMT
Karl Marx library fights Communist 'take-over' bid
By Sara Newman
Published: 12 May 2007
from the Independent
http://enjoyment. independent. co.uk/books/ news/article2534 054.ece
As the man who exhorted the workers of the world to unite, Karl Marx might
take a dim view of the events unfolding in the London library that bears
his name.
The Marx Memorial Library in central London, set up in 1933 in response to
the Nazi book burnings in Germany, is at the centre of a row that pays
testimony to the enduring ability of communists to indulge in internecine
warfare.
Long after Britain's Marxists ceased to wield any mainstream political
influence, rival factions are at loggerheads over who should control the
library, located in a Georgian mansion in Clerkenwell and worth millions.
The handsome townhouse attracts scholars from across the world and
describes itself as a library dedicated to "all aspects of the science of
Marxism and the history of socialism and the working class movement".
But in a sign of the decline in comradely relations, the library's
management committee made the first expulsion in its history amid
complaints that it was facing a takeover by the Communist Party of Great
Britain. In a confidential memo obtained by The Independent, the committee
said it had expelled Mike Squires, a CPGB member, for being part of a
group intent on assuming control the library.
Mary Rosser, the library chairman, said defending itself to the Charity
Commission against accusations of misconduct by "the Mike Squires Group"
had cost it £20,000 and it was in danger of losing its charitable status
if the alleged CPGB entryists succeeded. The library said its small staff
had been "intimidated and over-stretched" by dealing with the activities
of the group.
The memo said: "[Dr Squires] was held to have formed a group - entitled
the Mike Squires Group - which has used the medium of a political party,
the CPGB, to attempt to mobilise members to join the charity and vote ...
in line with the agenda of the CPGB."
Dr Squires, who was formally expelled from the library for allegedly
misrepresenting its policies in a letter to the Morning Star newspaper,
has strongly denied any wrongdoing. He said there was not "a single shred
of evidence to support this [£20,000] figure or of the existence of 'the
Mike Squires Group'." He claimed that all he had done was to seek new
members for the library. He said: "I never denied that I met with other
comrades to discuss the library. If a Tory wanted to join I'd say 'good'.
No one wants it as an arm of the CPGB. It should be there for everyone who
has an interest in Marxism."
Other members suggested it was this function which is at risk. Gary
Morton, a member of the library and the CPGB, said: "The future is
troubling because every year there is an excess of expenditure over income
so it's just a matter of how long it will be until the shutters have to be
put up."
By Sara Newman
Published: 12 May 2007
from the Independent
http://enjoyment. independent. co.uk/books/ news/article2534 054.ece
As the man who exhorted the workers of the world to unite, Karl Marx might
take a dim view of the events unfolding in the London library that bears
his name.
The Marx Memorial Library in central London, set up in 1933 in response to
the Nazi book burnings in Germany, is at the centre of a row that pays
testimony to the enduring ability of communists to indulge in internecine
warfare.
Long after Britain's Marxists ceased to wield any mainstream political
influence, rival factions are at loggerheads over who should control the
library, located in a Georgian mansion in Clerkenwell and worth millions.
The handsome townhouse attracts scholars from across the world and
describes itself as a library dedicated to "all aspects of the science of
Marxism and the history of socialism and the working class movement".
But in a sign of the decline in comradely relations, the library's
management committee made the first expulsion in its history amid
complaints that it was facing a takeover by the Communist Party of Great
Britain. In a confidential memo obtained by The Independent, the committee
said it had expelled Mike Squires, a CPGB member, for being part of a
group intent on assuming control the library.
Mary Rosser, the library chairman, said defending itself to the Charity
Commission against accusations of misconduct by "the Mike Squires Group"
had cost it £20,000 and it was in danger of losing its charitable status
if the alleged CPGB entryists succeeded. The library said its small staff
had been "intimidated and over-stretched" by dealing with the activities
of the group.
The memo said: "[Dr Squires] was held to have formed a group - entitled
the Mike Squires Group - which has used the medium of a political party,
the CPGB, to attempt to mobilise members to join the charity and vote ...
in line with the agenda of the CPGB."
Dr Squires, who was formally expelled from the library for allegedly
misrepresenting its policies in a letter to the Morning Star newspaper,
has strongly denied any wrongdoing. He said there was not "a single shred
of evidence to support this [£20,000] figure or of the existence of 'the
Mike Squires Group'." He claimed that all he had done was to seek new
members for the library. He said: "I never denied that I met with other
comrades to discuss the library. If a Tory wanted to join I'd say 'good'.
No one wants it as an arm of the CPGB. It should be there for everyone who
has an interest in Marxism."
Other members suggested it was this function which is at risk. Gary
Morton, a member of the library and the CPGB, said: "The future is
troubling because every year there is an excess of expenditure over income
so it's just a matter of how long it will be until the shutters have to be
put up."
