In this episode we speak to Pádraig Mannion. Pádraig has been a member of Official Sinn Féin and then The Workers’ Party since joining as a student in Galway in 1974, and has had several roles within the party, including on the Ard Comhairle / Central Executive Committee. He is also Secretary of the Peace and Neutrality Alliance (PANA).
We discuss Pádraig’s background and early involvement in student politics as a Student Union rep and later Education Officer with the USI; joining Official Sinn Féin, the political issues at that time, and his experience of the many elections and referendums since; wider campaigns such as the Resources Protection Campaign and international solidarity work; and also his involvement in publications from the party. We discuss how core issues such as housing, civil rights and separation of church and state have changed since Pádraig became involved in politics; and also the politics and development of The Workers’ Party, its electoral advances in the 1980s, the emergence of Democratic Left in the early 1990s, and the party’s continued political work since then.
This interview was recorded in June 2022. Many thanks to Pádraig for talking to us for this episode.
Pádraig mentions some pamphlets from the early 1970s in the course of the episode. The Resources Protection Campaign pamphlet on Navan is linked below:
And The Workers’ Party pamphlet, Tony O’Reilly’s Last Game, is also available in the archive thanks to Pádraig, from whom we originally received a copy:
You’ll also find a large number of periodicals and documents from Official Sinn Féin and The Workers’ Party on their respective pages.
The Irish Left Archive Podcast looks at Left politics in Ireland, talking to activists, writers, historians, politicians and others involved in Left organisations and movements about their experiences of participating in Left parties and campaigns. The podcast is hosted by Ciarán Swan and Aonghus Storey.
View this episode on our website: #41: Pádraig Mannion: Official Sinn Féin and The Workers' Party.