We are saddened to hear of the death of Stephen (Steve) Black at the age of 65. Steve was a life-long member of the Labour Party and a good socialist respected by many in his local area. He will be sadly missed by his family, his many friends and the comrades he has in the labour movement.
At the age of 16, Steve just turned up one night at the Washington branch of the Labour Party Young Socialists and said he wanted to join the Labour Party. After that, he was an active member of the Young Socialists mainly in that area of Durham, but he was well known in the YS in the whole region.
His family was steeped in the working class traditions of the Durham miners and the Labour Party and he was proud of the fact that his great-grandfather was one of the first Labour councillors to be elected in the area (see article here) in 1913.
Steve always stayed loyal to genuine socialist ideas and supported real Labour traditions. He despised the careerists and right-wing carpetbaggers who so often came into the Party, even in places like County Durham, and not least under Starmer’s leadership.
Until mobility problems made it too difficult for him, he regularly attended the Durham Miners’ Gala, where he could meet old friends, watch the bands and banners and enjoy a pint. Steve loved the Gala; “these are my people”, he used to say.
As most Young Socialists were back in those days, Steve became a supporter of the newspaper Militant, and he remained such for many years. After the Militant sailed off in an ultra-left direction and fell apart in the early 1990s, he eventually became a supporter of Socialist Appeal, but that, too, went off on the same ultra-left path after 2015, so Steve walked away from it.
He was a staunch supporter of the ideas of Left Horizons, even from the inception of the website in 2017, because it fitted perfectly to his working class roots and his firm socialist principles, and he participated in a number of our national ‘foundation’ meetings.
He was well-known in the labour movement in Durham and especially in the Anfield Plain/Stanley area where he lived. The many kind messages on his Facebook page, replying to the notice of his passing are a testimony to how well-known and well-liked Steve was.
Steve was married to Sheila (pictured above with him) for over 36 years and the last time I saw him, when he was on holiday in Cambridgeshire a couple of months ago, we talked about how lucky we both were having family around. His family was something he cherished and never took for granted, particularly in the later years when two strokes and other health issues limited his mobility and activities.
We extend our condolences to Sheila, his son and daughters, and all of Steve’s family and friends.
John Pickard
