Raymond Leslie Stevenson (December 17, 1919 – August 24, 2004) was a Canadian

writer A writer is a person who uses written words in different writing styles, genres and techniques to communicate ideas, to inspire feelings and emotions, or to entertain. Writers may develop different forms of writing such as novels, short sto ...

and

political activist A political movement is a collective attempt by a group of people to change government policy or social values. Political movements are usually in opposition to an element of the status quo, and are often associated with a certain ideology. Some ...

. He was an executive member of the International Council for Friendship and Solidarity with Soviet People and Associate and Editor of ''Northstar Compass'' – the organization's print publication. Stevenson worked on ''Northstar Compass'' for over thirteen years. Stevenson was an executive member of the

World Peace Congress The World Peace Congress, founded by Professor Rajani Kannepalli Kanth in 2007, is a non-governmental organization dedicated to constructing an institutional basis for world peace, unmediated by state, government or politics. The Congress holds ...

and a

trade union A trade union (British English) or labor union (American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers whose purpose is to maintain or improve the conditions of their employment, such as attaining better wages ...

organizer. Stevenson was a member of the

Communist Party of Canada The Communist Party of Canada is a federal political party in Canada. Founded in 1921 under conditions of illegality, it is the second oldest active political party in Canada, after the Liberal Party of Canada. Although it does not currentl ...

from 1940 to 1998, serving for many years on its Central Committee and many of its Commissions.

Biography

Early life and military service

Stevenson was born near

Virden, Manitoba Virden is a town in southwestern Manitoba, Canada. Oil was first discovered in 1951, and Virden has since come to be known as the "Oil Capital of Manitoba". History Virden has its roots as a farming community known as Gopher Creek. However, it ...

. He began working in the gold mines of north-eastern

Manitoba Manitoba is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population ...

in 1938 but moved to

Kirkland Lake Kirkland Lake is a town and municipality in Timiskaming District, Ontario, Timiskaming District of Northeastern Ontario. The 2021 population, according to Statistics Canada, was 7,750. The community name was based on a nearby lake which in turn ...

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

, after being fired for being an "undesirable element". In Ontario, he worked for Upper Canada Mines and joined Local 240 of the militant Mine, Mill, and Smelters Union and participated in its 1941–1942

recognition strike Strike action, also called labor strike, labour strike in British English, or simply strike, is a work stoppage caused by the mass refusal of employees to work. A strike usually takes place in response to employee grievances. Strikes became co ...

. He served in the

Canadian Army The Canadian Army () is the command (military formation), command responsible for the operational readiness of the conventional ground forces of the Canadian Armed Forces. It maintains regular forces units at bases across Canada, and is also re ...

from 1942 to 1946, as a

first lieutenant First lieutenant is a commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces; in some forces, it is an appointment. The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations, but in most forces it is sub-divided into a se ...

. Due to his affiliations, he was not permitted to serve overseas during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. Though Stevenson requested that he be sent overseas several times, his requests were denied. He learned through "a clandestine source in army intelligence," that he "would not be shipped overseas for political reasons." "There was a long delay in sending us through nowiki/>officer training">officer_training.html" ;"title="nowiki/>officer training">nowiki/>officer trainingwhile HQ was making up its mind what to do with some of us," recalled Stevenson. Ultimately, he was assigned to develop a curriculum for soldiers facing overseas deployment, educating them on the nature of fascism. While warned not to teach the communist Party line (politics), party line, he was allowed to choose fellow communist Sam Walsh as an aide and was eventually promoted to the rank of

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

Political career and activism

He was active in the Communist Party's Dominion Communist-Labor Total War Committee, which campaigned for a "yes" vote in the 1942 referendum on

conscription Conscription, also known as the draft in the United States and Israel, is the practice in which the compulsory enlistment in a national service, mainly a military service, is enforced by law. Conscription dates back to antiquity and it conti ...

, i.e. in favour of its introduction (see

Conscription Crisis of 1944 The Conscription Crisis of 1944 was a political and military crisis following the introduction of forced military service for men in Canada during World War II. It was similar to the Conscription Crisis of 1917, but not as politically damaging. ...

). Stevenson was a candidate for the Communist Party of Ontario (known as the

Labor-Progressive Party The Labor-Progressive Party (LPP; ) was the legal Front organization, front of the Communist Party of Canada and its provincial wings from 1943 to 1959. It was established amid World War II after a number of prominent Communist Party members w ...

) in the 1945 Ontario provincial election. Following the war, Stevenson became the educational director for the Workers Co-op in northern Ontario and was also a political organizer for the Labor-Progressive Party, running for the party in

Timmins Timmins ( ) is a city in northeastern Ontario, Canada, located on the Mattagami River. The city is the fourth-largest city in the Northeastern Ontario region with a population of 41,145 at the 2021 Canadian census and an estimated population of ...

in the 1949 federal election. Soon after joining mining firm

Inco Vale Canada Limited (formerly Vale Inco, CVRD Inco and Inco Limited; for corporate branding purposes simply known as "Vale" and pronounced in English) is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Brazilian mining company Vale. Vale's nickel mining and ...

, he was, in 1951, elected to the executive of Local 598 in

Sudbury Sudbury may refer to: Places Australia * Sudbury Reef, Queensland Canada * Greater Sudbury, Ontario ** Sudbury (federal electoral district) ** Sudbury (provincial electoral district) ** Sudbury Airport ** Sudbury Basin, a meteorite impact cra ...

. He served on the Canadian executive board of Mine, Mill until 1961, when he became editor of the ''Mine Mill Herald''. In 1967, Mine Mill was taken over by the United Steel Workers of America and Stevenson served as editor of the USWA's ''Information'' until 1972. From 1972 until 1978 he was the

public relations Public relations (PR) is the practice of managing and disseminating information from an individual or an organization (such as a business, government agency, or a nonprofit organization) to the public in order to influence their perception. Pu ...

director for USWA Canada. Stevenson left the USWA in 1978 when he accepted a position as the Canadian Secretary for the World Peace Council in

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

, he subsequently served as the WPC's Trade Union Secretary and helped establish the International Union Committee for Peace and Disarmament in 1980. He was also active with the

Canadian Peace Congress The Canadian Peace Congress ( abbr. CPCon) is an anti-imperialist group founded in 1949 by Canadian minister James Gareth Endicott in response to the new dangers to peace posed because of the Cold War. It described itself as "a place where peopl ...

. Stevenson opposed what he viewed as the

's tendency towards revisionism. After concluding that the CPC was no longer a

Marxist Marxism is a political philosophy and method of socioeconomic analysis. It uses a dialectical and materialist interpretation of historical development, better known as historical materialism, to analyse class relations, social conflic ...

party, he resigned from it, after more than 60 years of membership. He was a founding editor of the anti-revisionist magazine ''Northstar Compass'' in 1991 until 1995. In his final years, he was an executive member of the International Council for Friendship and Solidarity with Soviet People.

Death

Stevenson died on August 24, 2004, at St. Michael’s Hospital in

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

after a long illness, at the age of 84. His ashes were scattered in his native Manitoba at the site of his first school. He was survived by his wife Lil Greene. Stevenson left $5,000 to ''Northstar Compass''; the publication used it to start the "Ray Stevenson Sustaining Fund", taking donations to keep the publication going.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stevenson, Ray 1919 births 2004 deaths Trade unionists from Manitoba Anti-revisionists Labor-Progressive Party candidates in the 1949 Canadian federal election Ontario candidates for Member of Parliament People from Virden, Manitoba International Union of Mine, Mill and Smelter Workers people

Biography

Early life and military service

Political career and activism

Death

See also

References