Richard GreenfieldThe branch was sad to hear of the death of Richard Greenfield, one of our more illustrious members who introduced order into our accounts when he did a two-year stint as treasurer almost a decade ago. Greenfield was a respected historian on Africa, who spent most of his career teaching in universities across the continent, including Ethiopia, Tanzania, Zimbabwe, Kenya, Ghana, Sudan, Nigeria and Somalia.
Most recently he had been working at the Research and Documentation centre at Asmara, Eritrea, trying to catalogue mountains of historic documentation that he had donated to the country – a lifetime’s collection of books, original documents, photos and other materials primarily relating to pan-Africanism and the early years of anti colonial struggle.
While in the UK, he lived in a council house in Blackbird Leys, delighting in the immunity his propertyless state gave him from threats by former members of the Somali authorities to sue him over a piece he wrote on the illegal trade in ivory.
Greenfield also has the status of being the only branch member (as far as we know) to witness the 9/11 attack on the World Trade Centre live from the top of a nearby skyscraper – he just happened to be visiting a friend in New York.
He was a committed NUJ member, and a sturdy support to the branch during a difficult period for the union,and will be missed by many. AW 2008-06-04
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