Back ديفيد إيفون جونز Arabic David Ivon Jones Welsh دیوید ایوون جونز Persian Джонс, Дэвид Айвон Russian
David Ivon Jones | |
|---|---|
 Jones circa 1910 | |
| Born | 18 October 1883 Aberystwyth, Ceredigion, Wales |
| Died | 13 April 1924 (aged 40) |
| Resting place | Novodevichy Cemetery, Moscow |
| Other names | "The Delegate for Africa" |
| Occupation(s) | Journalist, grocer, trade unionist |
| Organization(s) | Industrial Workers of Africa (IWA). War on War League. |
| Known for | Opposition to apartheid. Translating many of Lenin's works into English. Founding member of the Communist Party of South Africa. Imprisoned for promoting both racial equality and communism |
| Notable work | The Bolsheviks are Coming (1919) |
| Political party | South African Labour Party (1911–1915), International Socialist League (1915–1921) South African Communist Party (1921–1924) Communist Party of Great Britain (CPGB) (unknown date) |
| Relatives | John Ivon Jones (grandfather) |
David Ivon Jones (18 October 1883 – 13 April 1924) was a Welsh communist, newspaper editor, and political prisoner, most famous as a leading opponent of South African racial segregation and for being one of the first white activists in South Africa to fight for equal rights for black South Africans.[1] Jones was also one of the founders of the Communist Party of South Africa, and in 1917 played a leading role in the formation of South Africa's first all-black trade union, the Industrial Workers of Africa (IWA). Later in life he became one of the first people to translate Vladimir Lenin's works into English.[2] He also started some of the first night-classes for African workers, and in 1919 was convicted and imprisoned for publishing a leaflet supporting both communism and racial equality,[3] in what was the first major court case against communism in South Africa's history.[4] He is credited as being the most influential South African socialist of his time.[5]
Upon first arriving in South Africa in 1910, Jones was a Christian liberal and became a supporter of the pro-segregationist party, the South African Labour Party (SALP), becoming their general secretary in 1914. However, shortly afterwards he resigned as the leader of the SALP in 1915, became a communist and an atheist, and spent the remainder of his life fighting against racial segregation, capitalism, and colonialism. In later life, he became a strong supporter of the Bolsheviks and their leader Vladimir Lenin, who in turn was impressed with Jones's reports of class and racial divisions in South Africa.
Jones was also a supporter of the Communist Party of Great Britain (CPGB) and is considered an iconic figure and hero by many socialist and anti-apartheid political parties, including the South African Communist Party, the Communist Party of Britain, and the African National Congress.[6]
- ^ Davies, Russell (15 June 2015). People, Places and Passions: A Social History of Wales and the Welsh. Vol. 1. University of Wales Press. p. 258. ISBN 9781783162383.
- ^ Visser, Wessel (2005). "Exporting Trade Unionism and Labour Politics: The British Influence on the Early South African Labour Movement". New Contree (49): 12. S2CID 150767409.
- ^ Stevenson, Graham (11 October 2011). "Jones, David Ivon". Encyclopedia of Communist Biographies. Archived from the original on 27 October 2020. Retrieved 9 April 2021.
- ^ Hirson, Baruch (1991). "Notes towards an intellectual history of the early communist party: The influence of David Ivon Jones". African Studies Seminar Series: 9 – via Wired Space.
- ^ Hirson, Baruch (1991). "Notes towards an intellectual history of the early communist party: The influence of David Ivon Jones". African Studies Seminar Series. University of Witwatersand: Institute for Advanced Social Research: 1 – via Wired Space.
- ^ "Tributes to Mandela and Aberystwyth civil rights campaigner". BBC. 6 December 2013. Retrieved 9 April 2021.