Betty Papworth | |
|---|---|
 Papworth in 1998 | |
| Born | 1914 Stepney, London, England |
| Died | July 2008 (aged 94) |
| Burial place | Golders Green Crematorium, London, England |
| Occupation(s) | communist and anti-war activist |
| Organisation(s) | Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament,Stop the War Coalition |
| Political party | Communist Party of Great Britain |
| Spouse | Bert Papworth |
Betty Papworth (1914 – July 2008) was a British communist and anti-war activist. She was a member of theCampaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND) andStop the War Coalition.
Papworth was born into a large Jewish family in 1914 inStepney, in theEast End of London.[1] She marriedTransport and General Workers Union officialBert Papworth.[2][3]
With the rise of theBritish Union of Fascists, Papworth became a member of the Stepney branch of theCommunist Party of Great Britain (CPGB)[4] and took part in theBattle of Cable Street in 1936.[2] In 1938, she visited theSoviet Union (USSR).[2] She was a member of an Aid For Spain committee during theSpanish Civil War, through which she befriended the American actor, singer and political activistPaul Robeson.[2][5]
DuringWorld War II, Papworth worked makinggyroscope compasses at the London Sperry aircraft factory.[4] After the 1941 Nazi invasion of the Soviet Union, in 1942 she asked guests at her nephew'sbar mitzvah to donate money to the Aid For Russia campaign.[1][2] After the war, she ran the family clothing company inCricklewood and remained politically active, as one of the first members of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND).[1]
In later life, Papworth joined the Stop the War Coalition,[6] learned theRussian language and sold the Greater London Pensioners Association newsletter outsideParliament weekly.[2] In 2004, she travelled to Israel withIslington North MPJeremy Corbyn to witness the release of the Israeli peace activist and whistle-blowerMordechai Vanunu from prison.[2]
Papworth died in July 2008.[1][2] She was cremated and her ashes were buried atGolders Green Crematorium.[1]