The trouble with Benny
Campaigners are trying to raise a statue in memory of legendary Scottish boxer Benny Lynch, but their efforts have come under fire from charity groups, which point out that the man who became the flyweight world champion was convicted of violent assaults
THE narrative is a familiar one: a talented and revered sportsman, a fall from grace and a divisive legacy.
This is the story of Benny Lynch but it is a story told many times about so many prominent men, one that raises questions with no easy answers.
Benny Lynch is a hero son of Glasgow, known for being a champion of the people but all but ignored by the powers that be.
A group of local campaigners is close to raising the money needed for a statue honouring him, to be erected in the Gorbals where he was born and raised.
But Lynch had convictions for both child abuse and domestic abuse – so, particularly in the evolving #MeToo era, is a statue for Benny the right thing to do?
Lily Greenan, right, deputy director of Zero Tolerance, the charity working to end male violence against women, would say no. “We understand the community would like a statue of Benny Lynch as he is a local hero,” she said. “But we would strongly question if this is the sort of local hero we should be commemorating.
“He was convicted of two separate violent assaults on women and young girls.
“These actions, and the actions of all violent men, should not be excused or forgotten because they are or were talented sportsmen, popular politicians, or celebrities of any sort.”
Born in 1913 to Irish parents in the Gorbals, Lynch died just 33 years later after a battle with chronic alcoholism that left him penniless and ultimately killed him.
In the interim, he achieved boxing fame and fortune, becoming Scotland’s first world champion boxer and earning the adulation of Glasgow.
Since 2015, when the Statue For Benny campaign began, Lynch’s name has re-entered the city’s consciousness with great praise for the man described in an obituary in 1946 as “a veritable artist of the ring”.
Film star Robert Carlyle is patron of the campaign, world champion boxer Jim Watt has lent his weight with fundraising support, and the city’s former Lord Provost supported and praised the idea.
The Statue For Benny campaign group also wants to set up a legacy project that would support people into sport, such as scholarships for talented youths.
His downfall was alcohol
THE Statue for Benny campaign worked with Glasgow Life, which runs the city’s museum and sport centres, to develop an exhibition about the boxer, which ended up travelling around the city for three years.
Open Museum outreach assistant Kevin Kerrigan, below, curated the display, which, after dozens of people came forward to donate Benny Lynch-related objects, ended up with a larger space in the People’s Palace museum.
“The group wanted to tell a more positive story about Benny Lynch but I was always very clear that any exhibition would have to be balanced, it would have to contain both sides of the story,” said Kerrigan.
“And it does go into quite a lot of detail about his alcoholism but next to that are the very positive things, his gloves and his trophies. It showcases his achievements.
“He achieved a lot in his career but his downfall was alcohol, that fed into his convictions – such as for drink-driving.”
For Kerrigan, who is writing a book called Finding Benny, Lynch is a tragic, complex figure whom the city should be proud of.
“There is no excuse for [domestic violence] but there can be causes,” he adds.
“He has no convictions from before 1935. If you want to look for a cause [drink] is one of them. Every single one of the newspaper reports mention that he was intoxicated.
He was a flawed character.
“We are reframing things based on today’s social norms and taking these incidents as standalone events then yes, we have to condemn them.
“But there wasn’t the help then that there is
Press report The Staffordshire Sentinel Monday March 6, 1939 Headline: “Scene in house described”
“Benny Lynch, former flyweight champion of the world, was fined £20 at Hamilton today for assault.
“He was found guilty of assaulting his wife, 11-year-old sister-in-law, and three police constables.
“Mrs Lynch, who is 24, was informed that she was not obliged to testify against her husband, but elected to do so.
“She said she had been separated from him for six weeks, but returned to him on February 16.
“There was a dispute, and he went out, returning at night.
“When she was at home with her son and sister, Mrs Lynch said he came in “screaming and shouting.”
“He said to her, “Get out of this house,” and kicked her on the back.
“Saying, “I will show you,” Lynch, she declared, took the baby into the kitchen and held him over the gas stove, declaring: “I’ll gas him.”
“When she attempted to get the baby, her husband kicked her on the legs.
“Mrs Lynch, who was under the stress of great emotion, stated that her husband put the baby on the floor and said: “Look at him – he’s dizzy.”
“He then got her by the ears and hair and, when her sister tried to push him away, he turned and kicked the sister.
“Tears streamed down Mrs Lynch’s face as she was cross-examined, and she was allowed to be seated.”
Lynch was drunk during the attack and, on arrival at the police station, said he couldn’t remember what had happened.
The Staffordshire Sentinel court report goes on to give the response of Lynch’s defence lawyer, adding: “[Lynch] had been making a real struggle to get fit again and felt ashamed that he, who could control himself in the ring better than anyone in the world, should be unable to control himself in his own home.
“[The lawyer] had been asked to contest strongly that Lynch, who loved his children, should be charged with the offence relating to the baby.”