Sam Nolan

Born in Dublin, Nolan became active in the Irish Workers' League soon after World War II,Roy Johnston, Century of Endeavour, p.118 and was a member of its executive committee by 1952.Mick Treacy, The Communist Party of Ireland 1921 - 2011, p.249 In 1957, he became a member of the executive of the new Unemployed Protest Committee,Mike Milotte, Communism in Modern Ireland, p.228 and was initially considered the most prominent figure in the movement.Roy Johnston, Century of Endeavour, p.154 At the 1957 Irish general election, he was asked to stand for the committee in Dublin South-Central, but refused, believing that anti-communist feeling following the Soviet invasion of Hungary made him an unsuitable candidate. Instead, the movement stood Jack Murphy, who was elected.

During the 1960s, Nolan was prominent in the Dublin Housing Action Committee, while he also remained active in the Irish Workers' League. He stood as a candidate at the 1969 Irish general election in Dublin Central, but took only 242 votes and was not elected."[https://electionsireland.org/result.cfm?election=1969&cons=85 Dublin Central]", ElectionsIreland.org In 1970, the Workers' League merged with the Communist Party of Northern Ireland to form the Communist Party of Ireland (CPI), and Nolan was elected as its first Deputy General Secretary.Nicolae Ceaușescu, Romania on the way of building up the multilaterally developed socialist society, p.235

In January 1976, Nolan resigned from the CPI alongside Joe Deasy, Paddy Carmody, George Jeffares, Mick O'Reilly and others, in protest at the party's change of line on the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia,D. R. O'Connor Lysaght, [http://www.workersrepublic.org/Pages/Ireland/Communism/cpihistory6.html The Communist Party of Ireland: A Critical History]" which they opposed. They subsequently formed the Eurocommunist Irish Marxist Society, although this was short-lived, and Nolan soon joined the Labour Party,Peter Barberis et al, Encyclopedia of British and Irish Political Organizations, pp.224-225 where he was a founder of Labour Left. He was elected to the Labour Party's Administrative Council, and became a full-time organiser for the Union of Construction, Allied Trades and Technicians.Saothar, Vols.16-20, p.111

Nolan was elected as the Secretary of the Dublin Council of Trade Unions in 1979,Séamus Cody, John O'Dowd and Peter Rigney, The Parliament of labour: 100 years of the Dublin Council of Trade Unions, p.252 holding the post into the 2010s."[http://homepage.eircom.net/~breadandroses/nolan.htm Sam Nolan]", Bread and Roses Productions

In his personal life, Nolan was the partner of academic Helena Sheehan."[http://www.independent.ie/lifestyle/i-went-to-tripoli-just-to-give-a-lecture-and-flew-into-a-sevenday-nightmare-26710525.html I went to Tripoli just to give a lecture -- and flew into a seven-day nightmare]", Irish Independent, 5 March 2011{{Cite book|title=Navigating the Zeitgeist|last=Sheehan|first=Helena|publisher=Monthly Review Press|year=2019|location=New York}}

A biography of Nolan was written by Brian Kenny and published in 2010.{{Cite book|title=Sam Nolan: A Long March on the Left|last=Kenny|first=Brian|publisher=Personal History Publishing|year=2010|location=Dublin}}

Nolan died on 14 April 2024, at the age of 93.{{cite web|url=https://www.rte.ie/news/business/2024/0418/1444208-president-pays-tribute-to-trade-union-activist-sam-nolan/|title=President Higgins pays tribute to 'outstanding' trade union activist Sam Nolan|date=18 April 2024|publisher=RTÉ News|access-date=27 April 2024|first=|last=}}

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{{s-bef|before = Paddy Carmody}}

{{s-ttl|title = Secretary of the Dublin Council of Trade Unions

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Category:1930 births

Category:2024 deaths

Category:Irish activists

Category:Irish communists

Category:Trade unionists from Dublin (city)