Sheila Hemingway
We lost our lovely comrade Sheila Hemingway on 7 January after a long debilitating illness.
Sheila had a rich history of revolutionary socialism and trade union activity. Born in 1949 to a family who mainly worked in tailoring, she trained as a seamstress after leaving school. She joined the tailoring union and was involved in strikes from the beginning.
Later, after having two children she worked as an auxiliary nurse in St James Hospital, Leeds. As a shop steward in Nupe—forerunner to Unison—she was involved in the nurse’s strike for better pay and conditions in the early 1980s.
Sheila retrained as a Special Needs Nursery Nurse and worked in primary schools. She became a full time convenor for Leeds Unison and was known for always making the rights of workers a priority.
Sheila had joined the International Socialists, later the Socialist Workers Party, in 1971. She remained a vibrant member for the rest of her life until illness prevented her activity.
In the mid-1970s, journalist Paul Foot persuaded her to write a weekly column about life in the workplace for Socialist Worker.
She was part of the branch and district leadership for decades. Her rich experience included being one of the first to be involved in setting up support groups during the Miners’ Strike of 1984-85.
Sheila was funny, kind and overall amazingly political. She was comfortable to talk to, had a wealth of information, and had the knack of listening before giving good advice. Politically astute, she was able to cut to the heart of political arguments and was brilliant at taking new members under her wing and encouraging them.
Sheila was an ardent and fearless anti-fascist and early member of the Anti Nazi League. She took a leading role in mobilisations to defend our Socialist Worker sales in Leeds city centre and to protest against fascist meetings and marches. She also had some amazing stories that she was willing to share about defeating the Nazis.
Sheila remained politically engaged right to the very end. She always wanted to tear the head off the capitalist system, was scornful of Keir Starmer and reformism, critical of the failures of the trade union leaderships and a fierce supporter of women’s and trans rights.
She was a Bolshevik woman to her core, convinced that the working class had the potential to build a better world. A dedicated fighter against oppression, she was steadfast in supporting her partner Laura through her transition.
Even when her illness stopped her from being active, she still enjoyed discussing how the branch was growing and intervening in the campaigns we were involved in. She never lost her enthusiasm for politics and the need to change the world.
For those who would like to come together to remember Sheila and celebrate a life well-lived, there will be a memorial event on 22 February (see below).
Sheila played such an important role in the lives of many comrades and we would like to send our love and solidarity to her partner of 45 years Laura Miles, children and step-children Samantha, Simon, Tanya and Jason, her brothers Ralph, Frank, and Clive, and her eight grandchildren.
