Robert Dorman (1859 – August 1937) was an Irish

socialist Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the ...

activist Activism (or Advocacy) consists of efforts to promote, impede, direct or intervene in social, political, economic or environmental reform with the desire to make changes in society toward a perceived greater good. Forms of activism range fr ...

. Dorman was born in

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 ...

and served with the

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in British Columbia and with the

Young Men's Christian Association YMCA, sometimes regionally called the Y, is a worldwide youth organization based in Geneva, Switzerland, with more than 64 million beneficiaries in 120 countries. It was founded on 6 June 1844 by George Williams (philanthropist), Georg ...

, later working in insurance."Northern politician's tragic death", ''

Irish News Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

'', 25 August 1937 Around 1885, he was living in

Derry Derry, officially Londonderry (), is the second-largest city in Northern Ireland and the fifth-largest city on the island of Ireland. The name ''Derry'' is an anglicisation of the Old Irish name (modern Irish: ) meaning 'oak grove'. Th ...

and was already regarded as one of the most prominent socialists in the city. During the mid-1890s, almost alone, he revived outdoor meetings in Dublin. On May Day 1894 Robert Dorman and others including

William Field (Irish politician) __NOTOC__ William Field (June 1843 – 29 April 1935) was an Irish butcher from Dublin, and a nationalist politician. From 1892 to 1918 he was Member of Parliament (MP) for Dublin St Patrick's, taking his seat in the House of Commons of the ...

, J. E. Kenny and

Alexander Blane Alexander Blane ( 1850–7 February 1917) was an Irish nationalist politician and Member of Parliament (MP) for South Armagh, 1885–92. He was a supporter of Charles Stewart Parnell during the Split in the Irish Parliamentary Party, and later a p ...

, spoke from the platform at the Dublin labour demonstration in Phoenix Park Dublin. Dorman proposed a long resolution which demanded manhood suffrage; the

eight-hour day The eight-hour day movement (also known as the 40-hour week movement or the short-time movement) was a social movement to regulate the length of a working day, preventing excesses and abuses. An eight-hour work day has its origins in the 1 ...

; promotion of trade unionism; assimilation of the borough and parliamentary franchise; labour representation in parliament and on local boards; and payment of MPs by the state. Dorman, in calling for an eight-hour day, stressed the educative and ethical value of such a reform: Dorman had 13 children by two different wives, all of whom lived into adulthood. Dorman announced the formation of the Irish section of the

Independent Labour Party The Independent Labour Party (ILP) was a British political party of the left, established in 1893 at a conference in Bradford, after local and national dissatisfaction with the Liberal Party (UK), Liberals' apparent reluctance to endorse worki ...

in November 1894, at an open aired meeting in Dublin in which he spoke alongside

Keir Hardie James Keir Hardie (15 August 185626 September 1915) was a Scottish trade unionist and politician. He was a founder of the Labour Party, and served as its first parliamentary leader from 1906 to 1908. Hardie was born in Newhouse, Lanarkshire. ...

. He later moved back to Dublin and there, he co-signed the letter which invited

James Connolly James Connolly ( ga, Séamas Ó Conghaile; 5 June 1868 – 12 May 1916) was an Irish republican, socialist and trade union leader. Born to Irish parents in the Cowgate area of Edinburgh, Scotland, Connolly left school for working life at the ...

to become the organiser of the Dublin Socialist Society. Dorman seconded the proposal to re-form the Dublin Socialist Club as the

Irish Socialist Republican Party The Irish Socialist Republican Party was a small, but pivotal Irish political party founded in 1896 by James Connolly. Its aim was to establish an Irish workers' republic. The party split in 1904 following months of internal political rows. Hi ...

(ISRP),Donal Nevin, ''James Connolly: A Full Life'', p.60 and spoke alongside Connolly at the party's official launch, on the Dublin Custom House steps. He moved to

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later in the year, but was unable to establish a branch of the party there, and resigned from the ISRP in June 1897. Dorman remained a

Christian socialist Christian socialism is a religious and political philosophy that blends Christianity and socialism, endorsing left-wing politics and socialist economics on the basis of the Bible and the teachings of Jesus. Many Christian socialists believe cap ...

, and continued to give public speeches when he moved to

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingd ...

in 1912. He was a

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and was accepted into the Society of Friends in 1901. When the

Belfast Labour Party The Belfast Labour Party was a political party in Belfast, Ireland from 1892 until 1924. It was founded in 1892 by a conference of Belfast Independent Labour activists and trade unionists. Labour ran the Unionist Party close in Belfast North ...

was established, he became active in it and when, in 1924, it was reconstituted as the

Northern Ireland Labour Party The Northern Ireland Labour Party (NILP) was a political party in Northern Ireland which operated from 1924 until 1987. Origins The roots of the NILP can be traced back to the formation of the Belfast Labour Party in 1892. William Walker stoo ...

(NILP), he was elected as its first vice-president. Later in the year, he stood to succeed

Joseph Davison Sir Joseph Davison (1868 – 15 July 1948) was a prominent Northern Irish Unionist politician. He was knighted in the Honours for the Opening of the Parliament of Northern Ireland in 1921. In 1923, Davison stood as the Ulster Unionist Party ca ...

alderman An alderman is a member of a municipal assembly or council in many jurisdictions founded upon English law. The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking member of a borough or county council, a council member chosen by the elected members them ...

for the Court ward on the

Belfast Corporation Belfast City Council ( ga, Comhairle Cathrach Bhéal Feirste) is the local authority with responsibility for part of the city of Belfast, the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland. The Council serves an estimated population of (), the l ...

, but he was defeated by

independent Unionist Independent Unionist has been a label sometimes used by candidates in elections in the United Kingdom, indicating a support for British unionism (not to be confused with trade unionism). It is most popularly associated with candidates in elect ...

John William Nixon John William Nixon, MBE (1880 – 11 May 1949), was a unionist politician and police leader in Northern Ireland who was alleged to be responsible for several sectarian atrocities, including the McMahon killings and the Arnon Street killings ...

. The ''

Manchester Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and '' The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the G ...

'' reported that several women supporting Nixon were arrested on the day of the election, on charges of

personation Personation (rather than ''im''personation) is a primarily- legal term, meaning 'to assume the identity of another person with intent to deceive'. It is often used for the kind of voter fraud where an individual votes in an election, whilst pre ...

. In 1925, Dorman was elected as the first NILP member of the

Senate of Northern Ireland The Senate of Northern Ireland was the upper house of the Parliament of Northern Ireland created by the Government of Ireland Act 1920. It was abolished with the passing of the Northern Ireland Constitution Act 1973. Powers In practice the Sen ...

. He served until 1933, when he lost his seat due to the reduced number of NILP members in the Commons. He stood again in 1935, following the death of George Clark, but was defeated by the

Ulster Unionist Party The Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) is a unionist political party in Northern Ireland. The party was founded in 1905, emerging from the Irish Unionist Alliance in Ulster. Under Edward Carson, it led unionist opposition to the Irish Home Rule ...

candidate

William Gibson William Ford Gibson (born March 17, 1948) is an American-Canadian speculative fiction writer and essayist widely credited with pioneering the science fiction subgenre known as ''cyberpunk''. Beginning his writing career in the late 1970s, hi ...

by 35 votes to 5. Dorman was regarded as an expert on

Irish literature Irish literature comprises writings in the Irish, Latin, English and Scots (Ulster Scots) languages on the island of Ireland. The earliest recorded Irish writing dates from the 7th century and was produced by monks writing in both Latin an ...

of the nineteenth century, and was also known as an advocate of

temperance Temperance may refer to: Moderation *Temperance movement, movement to reduce the amount of alcohol consumed *Temperance (virtue), habitual moderation in the indulgence of a natural appetite or passion Culture * Temperance (group), Canadian dan ...

. During the 1930s, he campaigned for the reunification of Ireland, and supported Nationalist Party candidates in several elections. Dorman visited

Liverpool Liverpool is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the List of English districts by population, 10th largest English district by population and its E ...

in mid-1937 to attend the funeral of his brother, but he died suddenly, while addressing a religious meeting, and was buried alongside him.Untitled article, ''

'', 25 August 1937, p.5

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dorman, Robert 1859 births 1937 deaths Irish Christian socialists Irish Quakers Irish socialists Irish temperance activists Members of the Senate of Northern Ireland 1925–1929 Members of the Senate of Northern Ireland 1929–1933 Northern Ireland Labour Party members of the Senate of Northern Ireland Politicians from Dublin (city) Protestant Irish nationalists Royal Navy sailors