Red Threads
A History of the People's Flag
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'I loved this book ... this is a history we can all connect with and be inspired by' - Josie Long, comedian
'The epic story of this universal symbol, told with passion and erudition' - Liz Lochhead, poet
The red flag: there is no symbol, perhaps other than the crucifix and the crescent moon, that so many people have lived and died for. A standard of hope and resistance to millions, and of terror and tyranny to many. But why is the red flag red? How did it come to represent the workers against the propertied class? And how did it travel the world?
In Henry Bell's lively account, we journey around the globe and back through history, tracing the lineage of the red flag as both a material object and a symbol. The book explores the triumphs and disasters of the flag's history, its designers and makers, heroes and villains, and the utopias and wastelands that have kept the red flag flying.
From its martial beginnings in Rome and France, to the raising of a blood stained flag at the Merthyr Rising and the arrival of the red flag at the Paris Commune; from the jungles of north-eastern India to the factories of Cuba; Red Threads explores how this symbol of working class power first came to be held aloft in the hands of revolutionaries; who raises it today; and its meaning for the future.
About this Author
Henry Bell is a historian and award-winning poet based in Glasgow. He is the author of John Maclean: Hero of Red Clydeside, described as 'compelling and brilliantly written' by Jackie Kay, Scottish Poet Laureate. He brings people's history to life through running Radical Glasgow Tours, and is a committee member of the Red Sunday School, a socialist school for young people. He has written for National Geographic, Open Democracy and Bella Caledonia.
Reviews
'Ranging around every corner of the globe but ending with an inspiring event on the author's doorstep in Glasgow, this panoramic yet humane book tells the story of a symbol of revolt and revenge, equality and bureaucracy, freedom and dictatorship, presenting the history of the workers movement in all its complexities, warts and all'
'Henry Bell takes us on a thrilling journey through radical history to explain why the red flag, though tarnished by totalitarianism, retains its power as an iconic symbol in the struggle for a better world'
'A great read. The red flag flying, a flame that can never be extinguished. The epic story of this universal symbol, so stirring, vivid, vital, its beautiful and humane ideals so often blood-soaked and betrayed, here told with passion and erudition, not flinching from a single terror or contradiction. You'll find herein thrilling histories of so many individuals, women and men, heroes, martyrs, communards and comrades, bonny fechters, the workers and writers lavishly quoted, the artists and activists worldwide throughout the last two centuries who have been, and still are, part of the ongoing imperfect - because human - struggle. I learned so much from this book.'
'I loved this book, it was thrilling to learn about these radical rebels and revolutionaries, and to feel that this is a history we can all connect with and be inspired by.'
'Intense and gripping, Red Threads tells a grand history of hope, disappointment and potential rejuvenation through the drama of the people and movements who flew and still fly the red flag.'
'From Paris to Petrograd, Delhi to Detroit, Merthyr Tydfil to Mexico City, Cairo to Cape Town, Henry Bell deftly traces the shifting meanings of the red flag to the people who flew it and to those who sought to tear it down through revolutions, rebellions and revolts. An internationalist tour de force of revolutionary history encompassing stunning victories and crushing defeats, Red Threads will also serve as a source of inspiration to those who wish to keep the red flag flying today.'
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