GFTU BGCM Minutes 2017

often had the corrupt trade union shop steward mumbling around in the

background, the sort of Peter Sellers “I’m all right, Jack” character. You do not

even have, I think, that sort of visibility in our mainstream culture today, but, as

we have heard today, the unions have a proud place swimming in the very

heart of that main culture of our society and as our society contracts and has

been contracting, certain since the Coalition Government, I think we become

collectively more important as one of the remaining pillars of the civil society

that actually holds everything together. When we think about the causes we

fought for in recent years. We heard Grunwick name checked earlier today

and you could go on and on and on. How many times were the unions the

ones at the forefront of the struggle when nobody wanted to get involved.

That is a sort of vision thing and education plays a part. It is not knowing just

how to do something, but why we do it that is at the nub of trade union and

working class education and that is why I think the GFTU and our constituent

unions have a great role in doing this and I am going to give you an example of

education as a democratic engagement. I am not going to labour it for too long

for you. If you look at the first graphic that the GFTU used when it was

founded, then it is something that was illustrated by Walter Crane. How many

of you have heard of Walter Crane? (Show of hands) That is pretty good.

Wow! A stars all round. Crane is somebody who traversed all those things we

have heard about today. The world of elite culture, the fact he was a painter, he

produced in the arts and crafts style oil paintings etc., children’s books, what

better popular culture, especially in Victorian England, which defines childhood

as we still understand it that he also worked for the Labour Movement and, as

far as I can find out, he worked for free. A simple decoding of the union

banners you will see around you still have today many of his themes – the idea

of internationalism, peace, plenty, enlightenment stemming from the French

Revolution, they are all there. Crane was somebody who was aware and the

trade union leaders of his time were aware that he swung in that mainstream.

There was not a distinction between the artist, the intellectual or the worker.

They fed into each other and they improved the lot for all.

55