On 3rd September 2006, Solidarity was founded at a meeting in Glasgow called by MSPs Rosemary Byrne and Tommy Sheridan and attended by 600 socialists from across Scotland.
The meeting brought together trades unionists, campaigners and working class activists from Scotland’s diverse communities in a spirit of comradeship and optimism for the future of the left in Scotland.
The first of the many speakers was Steve Arnott, former Regional Organiser of the SSP in the Highlands and Islands Region who stirred the audience with a fighting speech about taking the movement to new heights across the country from Stranraer to Orkney.
The meeting was then divided into sections of speakers on themes. The first part “A Workers Movement” saw trade union activists speak about the need for a movement that will give a voice to workers and reflect the desire in the trades union movement for an alternative to New Labour. Billy Coates, a firefighter from Paisley, Tricia McLeish, a council worker from Glasgow, Jim Walls a TGWU convenor from New Cumnock and Janice Godrich, National President of the PCS outlined the need for a movement based in workplaces, fighting to restore hard fought for rights of workers. Jim Walls received a huge ovation for bringing to the meeting over 100 membership forms from open cast miners and their families.
“A Campaigning Movement” saw representatives of diverse campaigns align with the mood of the meeting. Rose Gentle was welcomed with a rousing reception and finished an emotional speech with a standing ovation for the announcement that her campaign “Military Families Against the War” would be standing in key seats in the election against Tony Blair’s warmongers. Osama Saeed of MAB spoke on the state terrorism being waged against young Muslims in the UK by our government. Angela McCormick of the Stop the War Coalition described the anti-war movement as the “mothership” that needs to be returned to when addressing almost every issue we face today. Ruth Black, Manager of Glasgow’s LGBT community reminded the audience that young gay men in Scotland were not all “Colin & Justin”, well-educated, living a middle class lifestyle in the West End. She highlighted the bullying and violence that shames Scotland and prevents young people from playing a full part in society. Paddy Hill of the Birmingham Six could not attend but John McManus of MOJO read out a message of Solidarity from him in perhaps the most moving moment of the day.
Another musical break the followed with David Ferrard’s political folk/pop songs and Glasgow’s top rapper Eastborn performing his classic “Carry Cots to Tower Blocks” in spoken word without music.
“A Grass Roots Movement” featured speakers who highlighted the diversity of the new movement with Gary Fraser, a former SSP member from East Lothian, Sinead Daly, CWI and SSP EC member, Assam Mohammad of Glasgow’s Lebanese community and Gill Hubbard, a leading activist in G8 Alternatives.
Anne McLeod from Inverness and Graeme McIver, former SSP Organiser in the South of Scotland then moved the founding statement of the new movement and that was followed by an open floor, where new members got the chance to contribute to the debate and tell the meeting why they were here to join Solidarity. Again the diversity of the movement was highlighted with contributions from young and old, black and white and even a retired Bishop, the Most Rev. Bill Mackie from Edinburgh.
Rosemary Byrne called the meeting back together and called for a vote to endorse the founding statement and name of the party which was carried unanimously.
The highlight of the meeting came with an emotional speech from Tommy Sheridan. Tommy ridiculed the idea that there was no room for two socialist parties in Scotland and declared he did not share the SSP’s “poverty of ambition”.
“They can fight over the 3% of voters if they want, Solidarity will be chasing 53% to join Hugo Chavez in Venezuela and the Peoples Republic of Cuba in a new international socialist alliance.”
The MSP received a standing ovation and led the meeting in song to finish with “The Internationale”.
Overall it was a spectacular start to a new movement, full of optimism and real working class solidarity.
Events Calendar
The rally kicked off with live music from legendary folk musician 
