The British Peace Movement and Socialist Change

Abstract

In the post-war period the largest, and arguably the most significant, mobilisation of radical forces in Britain has taken place around the issue of nuclear disarmament. From the late-1950s to the mid-1960s, and again from the late-1970s to the time of writing, the peace movement has been a dominant force and has succeeded in bringing together a diverse coalition in opposition to British possession of nuclear weapons. This paper has two primary purposes: first, to examine the politics of the peace movement of 1958 to 1965 and to analyse the reasons for its ultimate failure; second, to argue, on the basis of the experience of that period, that for the peace movement to succeed in the future there must be a linkage at a number of levels between the movement for peace and the movement for specifically socialist change. The focus is thus upon the various political strategies adopted by the earlier movement, but always within the context of the implications this experience has for the contemporary movement.