Socialist Worker’s sensibly anonymous obituary of Ann Widdecombe is mostly boilerplate stuff with an AI style summary of many of her more objectionable ideas, though it does come with a warning that those who agreed with them might take offence at the tone. Fair enough. She was a class enemy.

The first jarring element is an explanation that the paper is opposed to murder. In fact, it expands on the idea: “We can all agree that murder is bad—and, for the avoidance of doubt, Socialist Worker is not offering “unconditional but critical support” to any suspect.”

It seems superfluous until you get to the end of the article. Suddenly having a laugh at the idea of a frail 78-year-old woman, who the press reports indicate was beaten to death, becomes an expression of class consciousness.

“Socialist Worker received a report from a source in a train carriage, full of former miners and their families going to the Durham Miners’ Gala on Saturday. 

One person got up and said, “I know I shouldn’t laugh, but just heard Ann Widdecombe was murdered.” 

It’s heartening to know that class hatred is alive and kicking.

We need a lot more of it—and a hell of a lot more class struggle—to fight the living embodiments of Widdecombe’s politics.”

Class hatred is a justifiable thing, but cheering on the brutal femicide of an elderly woman living alone is simple misogyny, a variation of “what do you expect to happen if she’s out at night wearing that”. The organisation that made it a point of political principle for its members to take the side of a man accused of rape has proved itself incapable of distinguishing between class consciousness and support for violence against women.

There was absolutely no need for the obituary to contain the anecdote and the fact that a supporter of Socialist Worker heard the comments and didn’t challenge them is damning. This is compounded by the editorial decision to suggest that the confused, reactionary thinking behind them is a necessary part of developing a class struggle leadership. It is the very opposite.

The role of a socialist newspaper is to challenge the reactionary, misogynistic ideas in the working class, not to amplify and praise them.  

Socialist Worker has disgraced itself.