Comments on: No Borders 1925!

By: Poumtastic 2 « Poumista

Poumtastic 2 « Poumista — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 12:19:29 +0000

[...] No Borders 1935: on Emma Goldman and South Wales. [...]

By: Linda G. Richard

Linda G. Richard — Sat, 21 Mar 2009 23:30:04 +0000

Excellent stuff!!!! It’s so nice to read anything at all about Emma Goldman – much less find a film.

By: Dave

Dave — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 10:11:35 +0000

Emma Goldman is Welsh! Tell the Wales on Sunday! LOL

By: C.A.N.

C.A.N. — Sun, 01 Mar 2009 01:08:23 +0000

You can also read the article Emma Goldman - The Queen of Anarchy: The Carmarthenshire Connection by Dr Huw Walters written in 2003 on the same subject. Emma is often misquoted with the line

"If I can't dance, it's not my revolution!"

which was derived from

"I did not believe that a Cause which stood for a beautiful ideal, for anarchism, for release and freedom from convention and prejudice, should demand the denial of life and joy. I insisted that our Cause could not expect me to become a nun and that the movement would not be turned into a cloister. If it meant that, I did not want it. "I want freedom, the right to self-expression, everybody's right to beautiful, radiant things." Anarchism meant that to me, and I would live it in spite of the whole world — prisons, persecution, everything. Yes, even in spite of the condemnation of my own closest comrades I would live my beautiful ideal."

By: anarchol

anarchol — Sat, 28 Feb 2009 21:51:20 +0000

The South Wales Freedom Group brought Emma Goldman to Wales at least three times after her marriage to James Colton. First for just two nights in 1925, then 8 years later in 1933 when she toured for six days, returning for another three day tour in 1936 a few months before Colton’s death in the August of that year.

On 21st and 22nd November 1925 Goldman speaks twice in Neath, once on birth control both under the auspices of the local Trades and Labour Council.

Between 16th and 22nd February 1933 she toured South Wales delivering four lectures, including “Crime and Punishment” and “The Spirit of Destruction and Construction.”

Between 25th and 27th March 1936 she gave three lectures in miners in at Mountain Ash, Ystradgynlais and Aberdare. Topics included “Mussolini & Hitler” and on “The Two Communisms” This tour was sponsored by the National Council of Labour Colleges, the first time they had provided a hearing for anarchism and a critique of Soviet Russia.

All of her lectures were reported to be have been well received, surprisingly so in the case of the 1936 tour, given the sponsor.