In Memory of Comrade Pat Ryle here ♦ Lifelong Communist, Powerful Organizer here ♦
In Memory of Comrade Pat Ryle
With the most profound sorrow, we convey the news of the sudden death of Comrade Pat. He was a lifelong communist and a founding member of the ICWP. His profound class consciousness, acute political analysis, and unflagging dedication made real Pat’s deep love for the masses in his work as an industrial organizer, teacher, and party leader.
Pat was a great fan of football (soccer). Especially his hometown team, Manchester United. But mainly he loved “the beautiful game,” the ultimate team sport. He brought to ICWP his understanding that what matters isn’t individual “stars” but the interaction among players.
Many of us remember how Pat worked to develop our communist team.
“I had recently come from El Salvador,” a Los Angeles comrade remembered. “This white industrial worker was giving a speech against South African Apartheid. It made a big impression on me.”
“I was about 23 or 24, at a May Day March in Delano in the mid-1980s. Pat was standing on the sound truck giving a speech. I do not remember exactly what he said but listening to him reaffirmed my feeling that I wanted to be part of the communist movement,” recollected a comrade leader.
“Without knowing us, trusting only in our comradeship in the Party, Pat opened his home to us. We lived there for two and a half months,” wrote comrades in Mexico. “From him we learned several life lessons: (1) There is no greater enemy than the capitalist system. (2) In our daily lives, we can combine in a dignified manner the struggle to crush the capitalist system and our everyday struggle to survive. And (3) even with our illnesses, we can live with strength, joy, and hope that a society led by the working class is possible.”
A comrade in Seattle (USA) remembers Pat’s stories of working-class struggle and resilience. “Some things made you laugh. Humor is also necessary during struggle!”
Another remembered “the way Pat engaged in book study and his intense discussion of political ideas.”
“He was always recommending good books,” said a young comrade.
Just before Pat’s death, he spent more than an hour talking about the genocide in Gaza. His words were full of hope. He said the crisis of capitalism triggered by Gaza will end in the destruction of capitalism. He was struggling to continue due to his failing health. “I asked him to send an audio to Red Flag. I have never seen him happier, “ reported a comrade. “Pat said he would do it. He passed away the next morning.”
“In a time when others have turned away from their commitment to communist revolution, Pat’s commitment was steadfast,” declared an older comrade who knew him well.
As comrades in Costa Rica said, Pat’s spirit lives on.
Pat Ryle, presente!
LIFELONG COMMUNIST, POWERFUL ORGANIZER
Pat was born in Buxton, England, a picturesque small town. He was brought up as a devout Catholic. His childhood was filled with adventure and fierce loyalty to his mother. Pat’s father’s working-class roots deeply affected him. When his impressive high school grades placed him on an academic path, his father was furious. Pat would recall his dad saying, “None of my boys are going to be bloodsucking pen pushers.”
Torn between adventure and pursuing an academic life, Pat lasted only three years in college. During those years, he was in Manchester and London. He met many working-class students. In London, he lived with a student from South India, who introduced him to Marx and spicy food. Instantly, Pat would recall, “I became addicted to both of them.”
Pat moved to Canada in the 1960s to join his brother. He loved acting and literature. His height and his assertive, commanding voice attracted many in the theatre business. He met many actors. But he got disgusted by their lavish lifestyle.
Canada, like the rest of the world in those years, was rocked by rebellion. Protests against the US war on Vietnam. The Quebec independence movement. Indigenous rights activism. The 1968 anti-racist protests at Sir George Williams University, led by Black women students. Amidst this political ferment, Pat became an active communist.
In 1971, Pat and his first wife moved to Berkeley, California (USA). There they adopted a daughter, with whom Pat maintained a loving relationship for the rest of his life. When Pat married his life partner Dorothy in 1987, they formed a strong blended multi-generational and interracial family.
Pat worked and organized for communism at the Colgate plant in Berkeley. After a worker got fired for allegedly stealing from the plant, Pat wrote an exemplary leaflet “Who’s Stealing from Whom?” It exposed and explained that capitalism is based on the theft of our labor power. It was distributed at the plant, showing how Marxism explains workers’ lives.
Later he became a full-time party industrial organizer. His main responsibility was developing a communist concentration at AC Transit. Even decades later, Pat was still organizing distributions of Red Flag and leaflets at transit stations like Fruitvale and riding the buses to converse with the drivers.
After his first battle with cancer, Pat became a high school social studies teacher in Oakland. Pat loved engaging with his working-class students. His lively and creative lesson plans introduced students to key ideas in Marxist political economy. Later, he was an elementary school substitute teacher. He brought communism into many class struggles in the Oakland schools.
Pat was a great speaker and storyteller. In 1984, as the mass struggle in South Africa intensified, Pat stood tall and firm at a massive rally at the University of California, Santa Cruz. He recalled the rebellious youth in South Africa, “the spirit of no compromise.” The entire hall listened to him in complete silence. And then erupted into a thunderous uproar as he proclaimed that the communist revolution would be the future.
Pat’s stories were simple but full of irony, contrast, and contradiction. They explained exploitation, dialectical materialism, and history. They were vivid, heartfelt, and inspiring. And most of all, they communicated a profound love for the international working class. He carried that spirit of ‘no compromise’, defense, and loyalty to communism.
The last demonstration Pat participated in was in San Francisco. The banner advocated communism in Arabic, Hebrew, Spanish, French, and English.
Pat was hopeful and confident that communism would prevail. His legacy inspires a new generation of young workers.
