It is with sad and heavy heart that I report on the untimely death of Nu Yawk (New York) anarchist and all around trouble maker Bob McGlynn. Apparently he died of a heart attack. He was about 61 and suffering from health issues for some time.
Many of you might recall Bob McG from "Neither East-Nor West" and "Trust Group" days. More likely recall "On Golol Boulevard" ( http://www.spunk.org/texts/pubs/ajoda/37/sp000793.txt ) (http://news.infoshop.org/features/neither-east-nor-west ) I believe his one lib com posting can be found: https://libcom.org/news/statement-rojava-17082015
I hope to write something more extensive later. For now, let me just share these words I posted on FB:
"Bob and our NY comrades go back to the late 1970s...from bike messengers, to east-west stuff, the Awareness League, so many other campaigns and good times. A hard drinker and wild at that in his prime, but you would not have found a more dedicated soul...both to the movement and those he had a special relationship with.
Dear friend, comrade, I never would've thought it would come to such a short end. You fought your demons, your demons fought you. You fought the good fight for freedom, be it in the capitalist world or the so-called "communist". You were such a nutter at times, but no one could every question your sincerity, your heart and funny ass soul. Time may not have always been good, but brother, you were "there" in so many ways. Big hug comrade, many tears to shed, many good memories to recall and write about, but the fight will go on, just as you would wish.
Those of us who knew you well will miss you in ways that go beyond words. Until we are on the same side of the barricade again.... Bob McGlynn...PRESENTE!"
Although a remix of
Although a remix of previously written stuff, I believe this was the last version, by Bob, of the history of "Neither East Nor West" / "On Golog Boulevard" .... http://www.fifthestate.org/archive/391-springsummer-2014/neither-east-west/
Sorry to hear this, my
Sorry to hear this, my condolences to you and others who knew him
Well that's sad to hear. Some
Well that's sad to hear. Some of his health problems were job related, from his days as a bike messenger, I remember him saying. I think I may have met him briefly once with local people I was visiting.
I remember reading Neither
I remember reading Neither East Nor West decades ago. Sad news.
R.I.P. Bob.
I am very sorry to hear this
I am very sorry to hear this - I met Bob at the Neither East nor West meeting in Prague in 1994 or 95 (I also met Felix Frost there for the first time). He was a larger than life guy who was very knowledgeable. We kept in touch for a bit after but it drifted away. I still have photos somewhere of him from that conference (and the associated socialising).
I came away from that meeting with a lot, both personally and politically - but I think nearly all of it happened outside of the main meetings. Isn't it always the way?
Very sorry to hear this and
Very sorry to hear this and my condolences to syndicalist and all who knew him.
BTW, I really enjoyed Bob's article Neither East Nor West, very inspiring stuff. A different era for sure, but given the resurgent militarism and reaction in Putin's Russia, as well the never abated militarism and reaction of the NATO/U.S. alliance, one perhaps can't help but think that similar efforts are necessary today. Perhaps Bob's writings could help to inspire to action new generations of anti-militarist's on both sides of the pond.
Sike wrote: Very sorry to
Sike
For sure it was a different era. Most comrades sorta look at us with glazed eyes when we talk about it. And about the rethorc some use today that those of an older generation would not touch without a hyphenated version.
My fav Bob story.... Chicago
My fav Bob story....
Chicago 1986, 100th Haymarket Anniversary. Marching they Pilsen, action faction gets rowdy. McGlynn never wanting not to be center stage was doing or whatever something. Cops grab him and another couple of folks. I was nearby and inserted my short ass self into the mix. The comrades were in the back if the paddy wagon. The crowd chanting. The cops willing to drive off with the comrades but really not looking for a fight. I dunno, maybe symbolic busts. So I'm looking at Bob, he's looking at me. I ask the brass and officers around the back of the paddy wagon whats it gonna take to get the comrades released right then and there. They asked me if I was a lawyer or the leader. Said no, said I had no authority or power or money. Just a working stiff looking to free the three or glue in the wagon. The cop with the gold braids said if I can get folks to agree to match through Pilsen on the sidewalk and not the no sanctioned street they would let them go. So here I am an out of towner no one knows standing before the several hundred marchers. I laid it out that we could do the sidewalk march and the folks would be key go. Or they can street march and send the comrades to the pokey. I don't recall much after thst. Basically some booing and whatever, but laid the scenario out again. Folks started to drift towards the sidewalk and that was basically it. Bob look at me like how the duck did I do that as he was being let free. All these years later I can say that was the best negotiating session I ever was in. And Bob and my friendship was quietly sealed forever.
yep, I witnessed that
yep, I witnessed that @syndicalist
fnbrilll wrote: yep, I
fnbrilll
Cool and thanks for remembering.
The one thing which is a blur was the reaction if the audience as I was trying to lay it out
I remember some booing. I sorta recall the RCP calling me a sell out, but not much more
You ain't done nothing if you
You ain't done nothing if you haven't been called a sell out by the RCP?
I'll try and scan a few "Bob
I'll try and scan a few "Bob things" today
Maybe just the Trust Group thing at first
Some of you influenced by the
Some of you influenced by the former "Love & Rage" organization might find this of interest, as it is taken form a L&R electronic bulletin. I believe Bob may have been a member of some form, surely he hung around and worked with NYC members. The newspaper "L&R" was also a regular source of publication for the Neither East Nor West publication "On Gogol Boulevard". This scribe, Mike Harris, was a member of NENW.
A sample of some of the
A sample of some of the information published in "On Gogol Boulevard". Bob was persistent in getting OGB in every place possible. Known as been a real pain, the news was valuable and folks usually gave in to Bo's persistence. This come from a longer section in the anarchist publication "Profane Existance"
Bob would sign off in many ways. Sometimes pretty straight forward and clam. Other times, as he was known to be, a bit free flow and wildest.... a man who believed in a free tongue as well as freedom........
Links to some other materials
Links to some other materials either written by Bob or circulated by Neither East Nor West:
http://flag.blackened.net/agony/nenw.html
I always read the On Gogol
I always read the On Gogol Boulevard stuff with great interest.Very sorry to hear of comrade McGlynn's passing.
syndicalist wrote: Links to
syndicalist
would be good to get all of those texts up here in our library or history sections!
"Anarchist rally in
"Anarchist rally in Chattanooga"
By Bob McGlynn
http://www.spunk.org/texts/pubs/ajoda/39/sp000749.txt
Another "more Bob" version of
Another "more Bob" version of the history of Neither East Nor West.
NEITHER EAST NOR WEST NYC
a De Facto Anarchist Black Cross History, 1980-1994
https://anarchisthistory.noblogs.org/files/2015/01/nenw-history-SCREEN.pdf
Old friend and comrade Neil
Old friend and comrade Neil Farber writes:
My memories of Bob go back to
My memories of Bob go back to the early 1980s when very few of us in North America were publicizing the plight of progressive opposition to the State Capitalist systems of Eastern Europe. Though we lived on different coasts, we regularly collaborated on Neither East Nor West in publications as well as coordinated protests and demonstrations. And we managed to get together in person several times per year. And even though we had some severe lifestyle differences (at that time I didn’t drink!), we hung out and had a good time, as well as did some really important political work together.
Bob was a fountain of relentless energy! When most of the rest of us were worn out from a particular campaign, Bob continued to push for us to do more. He had an unending passion for helping foreign comrades in trouble, and even exhaustion couldn’t stop him. He worked hard and he partied hard.
One of my fondest memories is of his arrest/detention during the 1986 Pilsen march as part of the 100th anniversary celebration of the Haymarket Affair in Chicago (which someone else has chronicled in this blog).
Another fond memory is of the two of us sitting in a bar across from Tompkins Square watching TV coverage of the Berlin Wall starting to be dismantled by activists. We were both hugely happy at the fall of the East German police state and the ripple effect that was coming across most of the Eastern Europen State Capitalist regimes. But even during our initial excitement for our comrades there, we spent a lot of time speculating about the specter of the triumph of western-style capitalism there.
Over the past week I've been having great memories re-reading hundreds of emails from "b"oB. Topics ranging from Polish Anarchists jailed in Chechnya, to whether Love & Rage retained some of its RSL Leninist roots, to pie-throwing activists, to WBAI issues, and (of course) many many messages about Eastern Europe. But what had slipped my mind was messages about Anarchist struggles in Nigeria and the Philippines. Though he mostly focused on struggles in NYC and Eastern Europe, he still had a voracious interest in the struggle of comrades throughout the world.
Bob was a one-of-a-kind individual who defied any type of stereotype. He could rapidly move from serious to frenetic. And his writing could go from organized and cogent to stream-of-consciousness. Here's how he referred to himself in one 2005 email: ""b"oB McGlynn (Joey Homicides)The KIng Of All Bike Messengers, wino and womanizer". Bob was a real character, and he will be sorely missed!
^^^^. Right on!
^^^^. Right on!
Good article from another
Good article from another perspective by Bill Weinberg:
Bob McGlynn, linked Tompkins protests and glasnost
http://thevillager.com/2016/09/08/bob-mcglynn-linked-tompkins-protests-and-glasnost/
I'm sad to hear the news
I'm sad to hear the news about Bob. Bob was someone I always enjoyed spending time with then I lived in the New York area.
svartfrosk
This was my first meeting with Bob also, and yeah, that conference was even more disorganised than usual, but the socialising outside the meetings was excellent.
When I moved to the Brooklyn a couple years later, I got involved with trying to keep the Neither East Nor West group going, but most of the air had gone out of the project by then. One of the things I did was set up the NENW webpage that Syndicalist linked to earlier. This was possibly the first webpage I ever did. I'm kinda impressed that it's still up.
In memory of the "King of
In memory of the "King of Bike Messengers", please find this 1985 article by the late Bob McGlynn .
Bob was instrumental in launching some of the earlier worker organizing amongst bike messengers.
A few years after the NYC messengers started to organize the Couriers in London began there efforts.
Please find a 1985 article by Bob on the trials and travails of being a bike messenger in NYC
http://www.processedworld.com/Issues/issue15/15nyc_bike.htm
I still haven't got around to
I still haven't got around to actually listening to it yet, but people involved in NENW might be interested to see that work gets cited as inspiration in this new interview with Iranian anarchists: https://thefinalstrawradio.noblogs.org/post/2020/01/12/perspectives-from-iranian-anarchists/
R Totale wrote: I still
R Totale
That’s cool. I’m sure Bob would relish in this cudos if he knew.
Having been a part of this history, it just reconvinces me that
even small and often isolated activities can serve valuable services in times of struggle,Periods up hill attempts at education. And can leave some form
of historical legacy to learn from and build upon in a way contemporary to whatever moment in time of replication
syndicalist wrote: That’s
syndicalist
Having now got around to actually listening to it, the interviewer mentions regretting never getting to interview Bob while he was alive, which got me thinking - as someone who was there for some of this history, would you (or other people on this thread, tbh) be interested in doing an interview the Final Straw folk about NENW and other projects from that time? I'm not actually involved so I can't speak for them, but I think they'd probably be up for helping to preserve and share that historical legacy you mention.