Jack Kent (1870 in

Lambeth Lambeth () is a district in South London, England, in the London Borough of Lambeth, historically in the County of Surrey. It is situated south of Charing Cross. The population of the London Borough of Lambeth was 303,086 in 2011. The area expe ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

– 1946) was a British politician and an important figure in the early history of the

Socialist Party of Great Britain The Socialist Party of Great Britain (SPGB) is a socialist political party in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1904 as a split from the Social Democratic Federation (SDF), it advocates using the ballot box for revolutionary purposes and oppos ...

. Kent was a well-known member of the

Social Democratic Federation The Social Democratic Federation (SDF) was established as Britain's first organised socialist political party by H. M. Hyndman, and had its first meeting on 7 June 1881. Those joining the SDF included William Morris, George Lansbury, James Con ...

, being a writer for ''

Justice Justice, in its broadest sense, is the principle that people receive that which they deserve, with the interpretation of what then constitutes "deserving" being impacted upon by numerous fields, with many differing viewpoints and perspective ...

'' from 1897 and a speaker and lecture secretary. In 1902 he was on the SDF Executive Committee and was delegate for

West Ham West Ham is an area in East London, located east of Charing Cross in the west of the modern London Borough of Newham. The area, which lies immediately to the north of the River Thames and east of the River Lea, was originally an ancien ...

Central during the 1902 SDF Conference. He was not originally an

impossibilist Impossibilism is a Marxist theory that stresses the limited value of political, economic, and social reforms under capitalism. As a doctrine, impossibilism views the pursuit of such reforms as counterproductive to the goal of achieving socialism a ...

but came over after the 24 April meeting, revealing the manoeuvrings of Hyndman clique. Kent was working as a clerk at Whitbreads brewery when he helped found the

in June 1904. He was variously an indoor and outdoor speaker, a writer for the '' Socialist Standard'', Party delegate to the Amsterdam Congress of the

Second International The Second International (1889–1916) was an organisation of socialist and labour parties, formed on 14 July 1889 at two simultaneous Paris meetings in which delegations from twenty countries participated. The Second International continued th ...

in August 1904, secretary of Romford Division branch in 1904–1905, an Executive Committee member in 1905–1906 and finally Treasurer in 1907–1908. Kent resigned on 30 March 1908, probably as he did not want politics to prejudice his career advancement. After leaving the SPGB he helped organise the ‘

Constitutionalists Constitutionalism is "a compound of ideas, attitudes, and patterns of behavior elaborating the principle that the authority of government derives from and is limited by a body of fundamental law". Political organizations are constitutional ...

’, a popular

anti-socialist Criticism of socialism (also known as anti-socialism) is any critique of socialist models of economic organization and their feasibility as well as the political and social implications of adopting such a system. Some critiques are not directed ...

organisation, later joining the

Conservative Party The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right. Political parties called The Conservative P ...

. He became a local councillor in 1912, going on to become

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...

Acton Acton may refer to: Places Antarctica * Mount Acton Australia * Acton, Australian Capital Territory, a suburb of Canberra * Acton, Tasmania, a suburb of Burnie * Acton Park, Tasmania, a suburb of Hobart, Tasmania, formerly known as Acton Canada ...

in 1922–1923 and a

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, historic county in South East England, southeast England. Its area is almost entirely within the wider urbanised area of London and mostly within the Ceremonial counties of ...

county councillor. He died in 1946.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kent, Jack Socialist Party of Great Britain members Social Democratic Federation members Councillors in Greater London 1946 deaths 1870 births Conservative Party (UK) councillors People from Lambeth