Marion O'Callaghan

Marion Patrick Jones (16 August 1931 – 2 March 2016) was a Trinidadian novelist, whose training was in the fields of library science and social anthropology. She is also known by the names Marion Glean and Marion O'Callaghan (her married name).Barbara Fister
"O'Callaghan, Marion"
''Third World Women's Literatures: A Dictionary and Guide to Materials in English'', Greenwood Press, 1995, p. 226. Living in Britain during the 1960s, she was also an activist within the black community. She was the author of two notable novels – ''Pan Beat'', first published in 1973, and ''J'Ouvert Morning'' (1976) – and also wrote non-fiction.

Early life

Jones was born in Woodbrook, Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago, in 1934. She graduated from St Joseph's Convent — an exclusive Roman Catholic girls' school in Port of Spain run by Irish nuns, the Sisters of Cluny — winning the Girls' Open Island Scholarship in 1950, and placing third. She attended the Imperial College of Tropical Agriculture, St Augustine, one of the first two women to be admitted. Funso Aiyejina
"Jones, Marion (Marion Glean O’Callaghan)"
in Daniel Balderston, Mike Gonzalez (eds), ''Encyclopedia of Twentieth-Century Latin American and Caribbean Literature 1900–2003'', Routledge, 2004, p. 287.

In the 1950s Jones went to New York City, where she earned a diploma in library science, paying for her education by working in a ceramics factory painting the wares. She worked with Manny Spiro to create a trade union. She then returned home to become a chartered librarian, working as Senior Librarian at Carnegie Library, San Fernando, Trinidad.Jennifer Rahim
"Jones, Marion Patrick"
in Eugene Benson and L. W. Conolly (eds), ''Encyclopedia of Post-Colonial Literatures in English'', Routledge (1994), 2nd edn 2005, p. 741. In the 1960s she continued her studies in Britain, graduating with a BSc degree from the University of London. She did postgraduate studies in social anthropology at the London School of Economics,Terry Coleman
"From the archive, 12 December 1964: Martin Luther King stops off in the UK"
'' The Guardian'' (UK), 12 December 2014. writing a thesis on the Chinese community in Trinidad.

Activism in Britain, 1960s

A pacifist and a Quaker, known as Marion Glean during her time in Britain, she played a prominent role within the black communityJohn Rex, review of ''The Politics of the Powerless: A Study of the Campaign Against Racial Discrimination'' by Benjamin W. Heineman, ''American Journal of Sociology'', Vol. 80, No. 5 (March 1975; pp. 1272–75), p. 1274. and "contributed to a series of statements by post-colonial activists on 'race' in the run-up to the 1964 UK general election, published by Theodore Roszak, editor of '' Peace News''."Kalbir Shukra
''The Changing Pattern of Black Politics in Britain''
Pluto Press, 1998, p. 20. As Kalbir Shukra describes in ''The Changing Pattern of Black Politics in Britain'' (1998): "After the election, Glean brought together Alan Lovell and Michael Randle, who were pacifists and former members of the Committee of 100, with other friends who had written for ''Peace News'' including an Asian woman, Ranjana Ash (an active member of the Movement for Colonial Freedom), C. L. R. James and Barry Reckord (African-Caribbean playwright and actor)."

The initial outcome was that a debating group called Multi-Racial Britain was formed; however, when Martin Luther King Jr. was on his way to Stockholm to receive the Nobel Peace Prize, Glean arranged with Bayard Rustin for King to come to London to address a meeting, which was chaired by David Pitt. According to '' The Guardian''′s report at the time: "Mrs Glean, together with Canon L. John Collins, hastily assembled about 30 Indians, Pakistanis, West Indians, and Africans...at the Hilton Hotel in London, where Dr King spoke for only a few minutes. The whole discussion lasted only an hour and a half, but at the end of it the new movement was formed and Mrs Glean appointed secretary." The movement founded at that gathering in December 1964 was the Campaign Against Racial Discrimination (CARD), which was formally launched soon afterwards.Lloyd W. Brown
"Jones, Marion Patrick"
Contemporary Novelists, 2001. Retrieved 25 April 2015 from Encyclopedia.com.

Writings, 1970s

She worked as Director of Social Science Programmes for UNESCO in Paris from 1965 to 1990, during which time she used her married name Marion O'Callaghan, or Marion Glean O'Callaghan, for her non-fiction writings, particularly on Africa. She was in charge of the anti- apartheid programme at UNESCO.

As Marion O'Callaghan she wrote "Introductory Notes" for a symposium, ''Sociological Theories; Race and Colonialism'', published by UNESCO in 1980.

Her first novel, ''Pan Beat'' (1973), was about steelband and the involvement of women in its development. Her other novel, ''J’Ouvert Morning'', was published in 1976, and examines middle-class predicaments in a society with a colonial heritage. These were published under the name Marion Patrick Jones. Lloyd W. Brown commented on her work: "In spite of the soap operatic quality of her narrative materials, Jones's novels succeed as riveting documents of a troubled society in a state of transition. ...despite Jones's melodramatic tendencies, the characters are vividly drawn and the language—especially in ''J'Ouvert Morning'' —is original and invigorating." According to Jennifer Rahim, "The author's invaluable contribution to the region's literature is her sensitive analysis of the Trinidadian urban middle class, as it strives to escape poverty and anonymity."

Writing by Jones appears in such collections as ''Her True-True Name: An Anthology of Women's Writing from the Caribbean'' (eds Pamela Mordecai and Betty Wilson, 1989), ''Caribbean Women Writers: Essays from the First International Conference'' (ed. Selwyn R. Cudjoe