John Douglas launches 1913 stamp commemoration set
Thursday 29 August 2013MANDATE General Secretary and ICTU President John Douglas was on hand today to launch three stamps featuring prominent trade union figures, James Connolly, Constance Markiewicz and Jim Larkin to mark the 1913 Lockout centenary.
The James Connolly stamp has the first ITGWU head quarters building in the background, while the Constance Markiewicz stamp is set against a photograph of children outside tenement buildings in Chancery Lane (now Bride Street).
The ITGWU leader, Jim Larkin is set against a photograph of the Bloody Sunday riot which took place in O’Connell Street just outside the GPO. The riot was sparked when James Larkin was arrested at the Imperial Hotel on Sackville Street (now known as O’Connell Street).
Speaking at the launch, Mr Douglas said, “It is a privilege to launch these stamps on such an important anniversary for the trade union movement.
“The 1913 Lockout is not just an event in our history books. It changed the course of Irish history and as workers, we should always admire the courage and dedication, not only of the three leaders commemorated in these stamps, but also the thousands of workers and trade union activists who participated in the struggle.”
Also on hand at the launch was Minister for Communications Pat Rabbitte, the General Secretary of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions David Begg, the President of SIPTU, Jack O’Connor and the General Secretary of the Communications Workers Union, Steve Fitzpatrick.
David Begg, General Secretary of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions said he thought the stamps “capture pictorially the difficult day-to-day experiences of ordinary workers and their families at that time and their heroic determination to achieve decent treatment and fairness at work and, ultimately, radical social change and advancement”.
He added: “Critical to events of one hundred years ago was the right of workers to organise and to collectively bargain – an issue that has yet to be resolved, along with the timeless pursuit of decent work.”
Speaking at the launch Minister Rabbitte said the stamps “will raise awareness locally, nationally and internationally of an event of considerable economic and political significance. He said he was sure An Post would be producing many more commemoration stamps:
“I have no doubt but that we have more to look forward to in this decade of commemorations.”
The stamps feature photographs from the ‘Darkest Dublin’ photographic collection.
