Thompson Harry (Leicester)

Harry Thompson (Leicester)

 

Born 26th April 1907, Harry Thompson was a miner and active in the General Strike in the North East, where he first made contact with the Communist Party.

 

Unemployment forced him to move finding work in Birmingham and Coventry before moving to Leicester, where he worked in several different factories, eventually becoming shop steward for the Transport and General Workers Union and a leading activist in the Leicester Communist Party.

 

He became leader of the Mowmacre Tenants Association and when a 27% rent increase was proposed by the Tory controlled council in 1961, his stentorian interruptions brought the City Council meeting to a halt. He was also involved in protests about the removal of rent collectors.

 

He was a delegate to the Trades Council and a member of its executive in the early 1970s and was active in the tenants’ movement up until his death in October 1993.

 

Source: http://www.nednewitt.webspace.virginmedia.com/whoswho/