JOURNAL OF THE IRISH LABOUR HISTORY SOCIETY

REMINISCENCE 117of Dail Eireann. 17 At this time anybody in public life, if they held differing views to the vast majority,simply had to keep their heads down. I didn't like that This was one of. the reasons that alienated mefrom public life. I didn't feel happy representing people who took such a different point of view frommy own, on these basic issues.These differences of opinion especially on matters relating to the Catholic Church were to affectDeasy's relationships within his own family, the bond between father and i6n was to become severelystrained.Then the Mother and Child Crisis in 195 iemerged. Thepbsiiibn of the Church on a social domesticissue manifested itself and (grieve to say the Labour Party leadership did not emerge from this crisiswith much credit. IS There was a general submission even within the Labour Party to the interventionof the Bishops on the social and political issue. These are some of the factors which might illustrate thedilemma of a young socialist in the ' 40s and ' 50s. To some extent I hope that will explain why I did whatmany considered at the time wrong, namely abandon a public career. Arguably, I should have held on'- but the cost might have been very high.The late' 40s and early' 50s were without doubt critical years for the young Deasy. Not only washe undergoing his own personal political trauma but he was also heavily involved in the struggle forthe control of the Ballyfermot Co-op. The idea of starting a consumer Co-op was originally initiatedby the Inchicore Labour Party Branch. AlthoughDeasy joined the Co-op at itsfirstfoundation meetinghe didn't become active until a couple of years later. Tim Graham, Secretary of the Co-op, approachedDeasy and asked him if he would take the position of chairman. 19The Co-op decided they would try to extend their activities to Ballyfermot from Inchicore. Theyalready had a shop in Inchicore that paid two di vidends. The Corporation were letting shops in the newhousing scheme in Ballyfermot at that time. The Inchicore Group applied for tenancy of a shop andI made representations on their behalf. Arising out of that the Co-op was granted the tenancy ofthe shopin Ballyfermot. We had several hundred members and used to go out canvassing two nights a week.On Saturday we would go around collecting the dues. Then somebody decided to promote the plansof the Society further. It was felt we should hold a public meeting as part of a Co-op week.The Ballyfermot Co-op Committee, however, were totally unaware that any agitation against theCo-op was brewing. The meeting turned into a debacle and had to be abandoned. People keptinterrupting and asking whether or not it was true that several of the Co-op Committee were membersof the Communist Party. As chair Deasy refused to answer these questions as hefelt the politics of theCommittee bore no relevance to the Society. The campaign against the Co-op accelerated helped byvenomous attacks against it by the Catholic Standard.The following Sunday we were denounced from the pulpit of the three churches in Inchicore andBallyfermot. We were denounced as having refused to disclose whether there were Communist Partymembers on the Committee of the Co-op. It was announced from the pulpit that I had been challengedas chairman at this meeting to answer these questions and declined to answer. At what was to be thebeginning of a venomous campaign people were asked not to support the BaIlyfermot-Inchicore Coop.Four of the Committee of twelve including myself were members of the Irish Workers' League.Now it could be argued that having regard to the environment at the time we made ourselves rathervulnerable. The Cold War was hotting up and a very strong anti-Communist feeling prevailed. Therewere also several details about the nature of the attack which were personally upsetting. As a result ofdenunciations from the pulpit my parents couldn't go to mass locall y but had to go to Church in the nextparish. There were all sorts of allegations doing the rounds. One described how I had gone into the