‘There is always more than one side and story to any war’
COUNCILLORS BACK TRIBUTE TO CONSCIENTIOUS OBJECTORS
Castle, North Yorkshire, for refusing to take on military duties.
Today, the group are remembered by the graffiti images, political slogans and portraits of loved ones they left behind on the walls of the former cell.
Coun Hodson added: “It’s of course essential that we remember soldiers from Wearside who were killed on the battlefields of the First World War.
“But those who opposed the war are also part of our story and I think it’s still a controversial subject for a lot of people and often misunderstood.
“As a council we can do something to deal with that troubled past because conscientious objectors like Norman Gaudie had an important bearing on our history.”
Conservative councillor William Blackett, while stressing his support for the work of conscientious objectors who served as ambulance drivers and with the Red Cross, announced he would oppose the motion.
“I also wonder why Sunderland? Yes it had a handful of objectors for example Walter Summerbell, the son of Sunderland’s first Labour MP,” he said.
“However, this small number pales in comparison to the approximately 25,000 Sunderland residents who served in World War One.
“Many objectors undoubtedly suffered for their beliefs and this is wrong but surely at this time we should be focusing on the suffering of the approximately 7,000 Sunderland residents who gave their lives or were maimed in the mud of Flanders while serving their country.”
Cabinet secretary, Coun Paul Stewart, backing the motion, noted the links between the history of conscientious objectors and the history of the Labour party. This included many objectors doing so on political grounds with the majority being members of the independent Labour party, he explained. “It’s a case that many of these ended up in jail, often for up to ten years because of their beliefs,” he added. “Although there’s an opinion to say it’s important to serve your country, it’s also important if you have strong beliefs, whether they’re religious or political, that you stand by those and that that should be respected.”
The motion was carried with 53 votes for and six against.
The motion, backed by council, reads: “At the last council meeting on 19th September 2018, the council resolved to commemorate the many women who have made acontributiontotheciviclifeof Sunderland following the 1918 Representation of the People Act.
“Council notes with regret that the same 1918 act excluded 16,000 conscientious objectors from the right to vote, throughout the First World War and for five years after.
“Council notes with sadness the appalling way in which conscientious objectors were treated during and after the First World War.
“In this, the centenary of the armistice, the council recognises the courage and contribution made by conscientious objectors from Sunderland. Accordingly,council resolvestocallonthechiefexecutive to look into the feasibility of an event or lasting memorial to the Sunderland’s conscientious objectors.