38 Years of Civil Rights - Happy Birthday SDLP
Saturday, August 23rd, 2008On the 21st August 1970 the Social Democratic and Labour Party was created. Six MPs and one Senator got together to change the country, to promote civil rights, to represent the people, to stop the IRA war, to campaign for a new Ireland and supporting a principle of consent.
The seven men had worked together since the 1969 elections. They were John Hume MP elected in Foyle, Paddy O’Hanlon MP in South Armagh, Ivan Cooper MP in Mid Londonderry, and Austin Currie MP re-elected in East Tyrone, Paddy Devlin MP in Falls, Gerry Fitt MP in Dock, and Senator Paddy Wilson (who was brutally murdered in 1973 by the UFF).
Please read more on The Belfast Stoop blog. Also, here are the SDLP’s founding principles:
