FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
2 October 2005
Irish Republican Socialist Committees of North America
Costello Commemoration Statement
The Irish Republican Socialist Committees of North America sends its
greetings and solidarity to all those gathered today at the grave of
Seamus Costello, the founder of the Irish Republican Socialist
Movement. As part of that movement, we recognise the emormous legacy
that he left to all of us.
Seamus Costello was one of the greatest leaders of political struggle
to ever emerge in Ireland. His greatness lay in his ability to
“inspire not only the dream but the confidence of its achievement, and
the commitment to work towards that end,” as Bernadette Devlin
McAliskey described it. From his earliest days as an activist, his
talent for leading and inspiring others was apparent. He was only
seventeen years old when his leadership of an Irish Republican Army
unit earned him the nickname of “The Boy General.”
Seamus Costello, like James Connolly before him, stood for the unity
of the national liberation struggle and the class struggle. Neither
man could conceive of an Ireland liberated from British imperialism
truly being free without it also being liberated from the shackles of
capitalism which kept the Irish working class in the condition of wage
slaves for domestic and foreign capital. Not for them was a capitalist
republic. Connolly’s daughter Nora spoke at Costello’s funeral and
described him as “the greatest follower of my father’s teachings in
this generation.”
When he founded the Irish Republican Socialist Party and the Irish
National Liberation Army on 8 December 1974, it was because he saw no
other vehicles capable of leading the struggle for national and class
liberation. The Official Republican Movement had become mired in
reformism, while the Provisional Republican Movement at the time were
largely right-wing militarists.
Costello tried to work within the ORM, but his efforts were blocked by
its leadership and he was finally forced out. It was then that he
brought together republican socialists (many of whom were also
ex-Officials) and trade unionists to form the Irish Republican
Socialist Movement.
The IRSM was quickly baptised in blood by the Official IRA. Three
members of the IRSM would be killed before a truce was reached, but
that didn’t stop the OIRA from assassinating Costello on 5 October
1977. The Officials were an example of just how wrong former
revolutionaries could go when they went down a path of reformism. An
Official IRA gunman may have pulled the trigger, but the gun was
loaded by British imperialism and its lackey of Irish capitalism –
all of whom feared Costello and what he represented.
The death of Seamus Costello was not only a loss to the IRSM, it was a
loss to the Irish working class and the struggle as a whole, just as
Connolly’s death was in 1916. However, for all that was lost without
his leadership, his powerful legacy remains an inspiration for anyone
who claims the label of republican socialist.
Seamus Costello was no dilettante or armchair supporter of the
struggle. From the age of sixteen until his death at thirty-eight,
nearly every moment of his life was spent in political or military
struggle, fighting on behalf of the Irish working class. While
interned in a prison camp, he spent his time studying and used his
new-found knowledge to organise lectures to educate his fellow
prisoners. As an elected councillor, he used his position to involve
the working class directly in council business and inspired them to
take the task of liberation into their own hands. His only allegiance
was to the working class.
If we truly wish to honour the memory of Seamus Costello, first
chairperson of the IRSP and first chief of staff of the INLA, then we
must follow his example and devote ourselves fully to building the
only fitting memorial to Connolly, Costello, and all the men and women
who devoted their lives, and sometimes sacrificed them, to the
struggle –� namely a thirty-two county socialist republic on the
island of Ireland. There can be no better memorial and Seamus no
doubt would have agreed.
Only the Irish working class can build a better tomorrow for itself
and in doing so provide an example for the working class
internationally, to inspire it to wake from its slumber induced by
capitalist ideology, break its chains, and establish a new world order
where people come before profit. Our task is to follow in the
footsteps of Costello and continue to build the IRSP into a serious
revolutionary party armed with the correct ideology to see the
struggle through to a successful end. As Costello continues to
inspire us, so must we inspire our fellow workers. Liberation is in
our hands as a class. That is the enduring legacy of Seamus Costello.
Onward to the socialist republic, comrades!
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Irish Republican Socialist Committees of North America
PO Box 8266
Austin TX 78713-8266
USA
irscna@irsm.org
http://www.irscna.org/
http://www.irsm.org/irsm.html