In Memoriam - Obituaries and appreciations

Michel Husson, born 3 April 1949 in Lyons, died suddenly 18 July 2021.

Daniel Rayner O’Connor Lysaght, 30 January 1941 (Llanishen, Cardiff) - 2 July 2021 (Dublin). Founding member of the Irish section of the Fourth International, historian notably of the Limerick soviet of 1919.

Many tributes were paid to the Fourth Internationalist and and eminent medical researcher Gérard Chaouat. Here we publish two in translation. Others can be found (in French) on the ESSF site in a dedicated rubric.

The driving force of Mick Gosling’s life was the defence of working people’s rights and a commitment to socialism to achieve that.

“Dear Theo, dear friend and comrade, you have once again succeeded in your escape ... But this time we will no longer be able to welcome you and laugh with you and those close to you who have supported and loved you so much. “

“It is terribly hard to say goodbye to such a wonderful friend and comrade as Ernie, a real working class intellectual who combined amazing political and human qualities. It is of course a huge loss for Jess to whom we send our love and solidarity.”

Comrades from the NPA Grenoble pay tribute to Moroccan-born activist Lotfi Chawqui (1967-2020).

Rossana Rossanda, who died on 20 September 2020, played an important role in the Italian communist left, first within the Communist Party - from which she was expelled in 1969 - then as director of the newspaper Il Manifesto until 2012.It is said that for a long time in Il Manifesto, a historical communist newspaper, the following refrain was heard: “Is Valentino there?” Is Luigi writing? What does Rossana say?” This trio consisted of Valentino Parlato, Luigi Pintor and Rossana Rossanda. The last of the three left us yesterday at the age of 96, after a long life in the camp of the left and the communist ideals for which she fought. Always defeated in the end.

It was in 2017, so very late in the day, that I truly discovered the extent of the struggles waged by Gisèle Halimi. Having started to campaign on the eve of May 1968, I have always attached a great deal of interest to the leaders of major social movements. I knew that Gisèle Halimi had defended FLN activists during the Algerian war, nothing more. I had followed with enthusiasm the progress of the Bobigny trials in 1972 where young Marie-Claire, accused of having an abortion, was acquitted and that in Aix in 1978 where three rapists of two young Belgian campers, feminists and lesbians, were sentenced by the Court of Assizes of the Bouches du Rhône. For me, Gisèle Halimi, this beautiful “bon chic, bon genre” woman was an excellent advocate for the cause of women, but she was not one of those remarkable feminist activists who inspired me. But after having immersed myself in the book she wrote with Simone de Beauvoir on the case of Djamila Boupacha and the account of the multiple obstacles that she had had to overcome for two years to ensure her defence, I grasped the determination of this woman to denounce torture alongside other intellectuals, in disregard of her safety and that of her family, and more generally the radical nature of her commitment to the fight against all injustices.

Maurice Rajsfus was born in Aubervilliers (Seine St Denis) on 9 April 1928 and died in Antony (Hauts de Seine) on 13 June 2020. His parents were Polish Jews who had arrived in France in the 1920s. He last saw his parents at the age of 14 when they were arrested in the notorious rafle du Vélodrome d’Hiver.