Militant Left comrades were saddened to learn of the death of John Quigley after a short illness.
For decades, John was a committed comrade in the Committee for a Workers’ International (CWI), striving for working-class unity and socialism in his native Derry.
John grew up during the city’s momentous civil rights struggle, the Battle of the Bogside, and the subsequent bloody conflict. As a teenager, he was present at the civil rights march that became known as Bloody Sunday, when 14 civilians were killed by the Parachute Regiment.
In the 1970s, John was involved in Derry’s vibrant punk scene and sang in a band. After leaving school, he trained and worked as a car mechanic before returning to education and working in various roles, including in the care sector.
During the 1980s, he joined the Labour and Trade Union Group/Young Socialists and became a supporter of the Militant Irish Monthly Marxist newspaper. Through his experiences of capitalism, repression, injustice and discrimination in the city, John concluded that only the united mass struggle of working-class people could bring real and lasting socialist change.
The political environment in Derry was exceptionally difficult for Marxists. In the late 1960s, Derry was at the forefront of the civil rights struggle. The Derry Young Socialists, including Militant supporters, were the most radical. But brutal state repression led many young working-class Catholics to conclude that armed struggle was the only option. As the conflict deepened, the mass movement was pushed aside by escalating violence involving the British state, armed republican organisations, and loyalist paramilitaries.
In this context, John and other CWI comrades in Derry consistently argued for the unity of Catholic and Protestant workers against repression, discrimination, and sectarianism, while opposing the divisive methods of the paramilitaries. Maintaining this position required courage, determination, and the firm conviction of Marxist ideas.
Throughout the 1980s, 1990s and early 2000s, John was active in numerous campaigns involving working-class communities. He was a familiar presence selling socialist newspapers, distributing leaflets, and helping to build support for class unity and socialist ideas across the city.
John was involved in campaigns against the first Gulf War and later in protest at military build up to and the invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan. He also helped establish local branches of Youth Against Sectarianism and Youth Against Racism in Europe during the 1990s. Youth Against Sectarianism caught the mood of a generation of youth yearning for an end to bloody conflict and for a better future for all. Travelling regularly from Belfast to Derry to help with the local YAS campaign, I still remember John’s delight at seeing large meetings of Catholic and Protestant Derry school students come together under its banner.
John also participated in socialist election campaigns in Derry over many years and frequently travelled to support comrades elsewhere, including taking part in protests organised by Militant activists in trades councils against sectarian killings and other outrages.
Many comrades who visited Derry for campaigns, meetings and political events will remember the hospitality shown by John and his partner, Geraldine. Their home regularly hosted branch meetings and discussions. John also attended conferences and events over many years, contributing to the wider work of the organisation in his own quiet and unassuming manner. Comrades particularly remember his distinctive Derry sense of humour.
Modest and self-effacing, John never sought the spotlight but worked steadily to build the forces and influence of socialism. Comrades recognised that dedicated activists like John are essential to building and sustaining a socialist organisation.
We salute the role John played over many decades in difficult circumstances. We remember his commitment, his sacrifices, and his contribution to the struggle for working-class unity and socialism in Derry and beyond.
We extend our sincere condolences and solidarity to John’s wife, Geraldine, their children, Damian, Kathleen and Maeve, and wider family.