Tribute to Tomás Mac Giolla

By Cllr Brid Smith

Tomás Mac Giolla former Workers Party TD
for West Dublin was laid to rest in Palmerstown Cemetary on yesterday.

The funeral was marked by the Workers Party
with a tribute to Tomás in the Ballyfermot Civic Centre on Monday 8 February.  Hundreds
of Workers Party members, former comrades and local people came together and
celebrated the contribution of this fine socialist to Irish politics. Some of
those attending were the key people who led the split from Sinn Fein the
Workers Party in the early 1990’s to form Democratic Left.

Sean Garland of the Workers Party Ard
Comhairle said of that split that it was the most depressing part of Tomás
political life when those who left the WP “settled for fine suits and Mercedes
cars.” Former Democratic Left members including Eamonn Gilmore and Liz McManus were at the funeral.

I met Tomás Mac Giolla in 1994 when the
Anti Nazi League was established in Ireland to oppose the Holocaust revisionist
David Irving speaking in Irish universities and peddling his filthy lies.
Alongside many academics, trade unionists, journalists and members of the
Jewish community, Tomás Mac Giolla gave full support to the ANL. When Esther
Brownstein, an Auschwitz concentration camp survivor, came to Dublin to speak at a public meeting against
holocaust revisionism, Tomás who was Lord Mayor of Dublin, gave her a civic
reception in the Mansion House. This event attracted huge publicity and put our
fight against the Nazi Irving into the public spotlight. Liberty Hall was
packed with over 700 people to hear Esther and this helped enormously to send Irving packing. All his appearances in Irish Universities were cancelled.

Tomás Mac Giolla was an honest gentleman
with a huge commitment to the Irish working class. He spent all his adult life
building and working in a party that made a major impact in the trade unions
and in the local and general elections. Unfortunately the Workers Party belief
in the Stalinist model of “socialism” would lead to huge disillusionment among
the left and ultimately to the splits and decline of the Party.

While still in his full health Tomás was a
great supporter of the Campaign Against the Bin Tax and marched with us in
Ballyfermot on many occasions. He spoke at public meetings in the area and
supported the campaign to save respite services in Cherryorchard hospital and
many other local issues.

He was a very popular TD in West Dublin and the huge turnout of people from Ballyfermot at his funeral was testimony to
his commitment to the people of this area. The final tribute to Tomás was a
wonderful rendition of the Internationale – the song of the workers of the
world.