Peter Graham (1945 – 25 October 1971) was an

Irish republican Irish republicanism () is the political movement for an Irish republic, void of any British rule. Throughout its centuries of existence, it has encompassed various tactics and identities, simultaneously elective and militant and has been both w ...

and Marxist who worked as an electrician. Graham was a member of various left-wing movements, a founder of the Young Socialists, and some sources identify him as a leader in the militant

Saor Éire Saor Éire (; ) was a far-left political organisation in the Irish Free State established in September 1931 by communist-leaning members of the Irish Republican Army, with the backing of the IRA leadership. Notable among its founders was Pead ...

organisation. He was killed in his flat in Dublin in unclear circumstances in October 1971.

Early life

Graham was born in 1945 with father Joseph Graham and raised in

The Coombe, Dublin The Coombe (; ) is a historic street in the south inner city of Dublin, Ireland. It was originally a hollow or valley where a tributary of the River Poddle, the Coombe Stream or Commons Water, ran. The name is sometimes used for the broader area ...

.
Murder of a socialist
'' (12 Nov 1971)

This Week (Magazine) ''This Week'' was a nationally syndicated Sunday magazine supplement that was included in American newspapers between 1935 and 1969. In the early 1950s, it accompanied 37 Sunday newspapers. A decade later, at its peak in 1963, ''This Week'' ...

Graham was born into a Catholic family, but relinquished religion later in life.

Activism

Graham worked as an electrician for the

CIÉ , or CIÉ, is a statutory corporation of Ireland, answerable to the Irish Government and responsible for most public transport within the Republic of Ireland and jointly with its Northern Ireland counterpart, the Northern Ireland Transport Hold ...

and was a trade union activist in Ireland and London, England. Briefly a Labour Party member, Graham left in disillusionment and became a

Trotskyite Trotskyism (, ) is the political ideology and branch of Marxism developed by Russian revolutionary and intellectual Leon Trotsky along with some other members of the Left Opposition and the Fourth International. Trotsky described himself as an ...

joining the

Connolly Youth Movement The Connolly Youth Movement (CYM, ) is an all-Ireland communist youth organisation named after revolutionary socialist, James Connolly. From its founding in 1963 until 2021, CYM was affiliated with the Communist Party of Ireland. The CYM is Mar ...

and the Trotskyist Irish Workers Group (IWG) in 1967. After growing dissatisfied with the ideological stance of the IWG, Graham left and started the League for a Worker's Republic. He was also the chair of the Young Socialistsand a member of the

International Marxist Group The International Marxist Group (IMG) was a Trotskyist group in Britain between 1968 and 1982. It was the British Section of the Fourth International. It had around 1,000 members and supporters in the late 1970s. In 1980, it had 682 members; by ...

. After IWG collapsed, some members started the People's Democracy organisation, with some of them starting the

organisation. While sources identify Graham as a member of

, ''

This Week This Week may refer to: * ''This Week'' (1956 TV programme), a 1956–1992 British current affairs television programme broadcast on ITV * ''This Week'' (2003 TV programme), a weekly British political discussion television programme that aired on ...

'' magazine rejects that. He organised a meeting bringing

and others together in 1968. He was friends with D.R. O’Connor Lysaght, who both broke away from the

Death

On 25 October 1971 he was murdered in his own flat on

St Stephen's Green St Stephen's Green () is a garden square and public park located in the city centre of Dublin, Ireland. The current landscape of the park was designed by William Sheppard. It was officially re-opened to the public on Tuesday, 27 July 1880 by ...

, Dublin by rivals in

, who accused him of being a police informant. Graham was tortured with a hammer and shot in the neck. He was 26. While magazine ''This Week'' reported that Graham's friends attribute his death to a false accusation of being a police informant and also suggested his death was possibly linked to a gun smuggling operation.
Who Killed Peter Graham?
(12 Nov 1971)

'' Journalist

Charlie Bird Charles Brown Bird (9 September 1949 – 11 March 2024) was an Irish journalist and broadcaster. He was Chief News Correspondent with RTÉ News until January 2009. He took up the role of Washington Correspondent, but prematurely returned to hi ...

spoke at his funeral. Both Charlie Bird and

Tariq Ali Tariq Ali (;; born 21 October 1943) is a Pakistani-British political activist, writer, journalist, historian, filmmaker, and public intellectual. He is a member of the editorial committee of the ''New Left Review'' and ''Sin Permiso'', and co ...

raised a clenched fist at the cemetery. The

Provisional Irish Republican Army The Provisional Irish Republican Army (Provisional IRA), officially known as the Irish Republican Army (IRA; ) and informally known as the Provos, was an Irish republican paramilitary force that sought to end British rule in Northern Ireland ...

issued a statement thanking him for his support.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Graham, Peter 1944 births 1971 deaths People murdered in 1971 Irish Trotskyists Irish republicans People killed during The Troubles (Northern Ireland) People from Dublin (city) Irish electricians Former Roman Catholics