Preben Møller Hansen (September 6, 1929 – September 11, 2008) was a Danish politician,

trade union A trade union (British English) or labor union (American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers whose purpose is to maintain or improve the conditions of their employment, such as attaining better wages ...

ist, writer and cook. As chairman of (the Danish Seamen's Union), he earned the nickname ('the Sailors' Boss') in Denmark and was well known for his

populist Populism is a contested concept used to refer to a variety of political stances that emphasize the idea of the " common people" and often position this group in opposition to a perceived elite. It is frequently associated with anti-establis ...

manners, including frequent swearing and anti-elitist remarks.

Life and work

Preben Møller Hansen was born in

Brønshøj Brønshøj, part of the municipality of Copenhagen, forms, together with Husum, the administrative city district (''bydel'') of Brønshøj-Husum, in Denmark. History The first mention of the village Brønshøj (Brunshoga), is in a letter dated ...

into a religious family. His father was a sexton and his mother wished for Preben to become a priest, but he believed religion to be superstition and became a sailor. He first joined with an EAC ship at the age of 16. During the strikes of 1956, seasoned stewards Jakob Rasmussen and Svend Petersen put him in charge of a sailor's strike. Because of his role in organizing the strike, he was arrested and imprisoned in Vestre Prison, where he was held for ten days before the Seaman's Federation's lawyer got him released. Møller Hansen was made chairman of the Seaman's Federation in 1968, and was responsible for the union's shift toward

communism Communism () is a political sociology, sociopolitical, political philosophy, philosophical, and economic ideology, economic ideology within the history of socialism, socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a ...

and a less compromising stance towards employers. In 1976 he was elected to the

Copenhagen City Council The Copenhagen City Council (Danish: ) is the municipal government of Copenhagen, Denmark, and has its seat at Copenhagen City Hall. The city council is Copenhagen's highest political authority and sets the framework for the committees' tasks. ...

standing for the Communist Party (DKP). After a controversy with another union ( HK/Denmark, then known as the Commercial and Clerical Employees) involving reimbursement for services rendered to the Seaman's Federation, he was expelled from DKP in 1979. He began planning to form a new party with other disgruntled DKP members; this party would be known as ( Common Course), and held its first congress in 1986. In the national parliamentary election of 1987, Common Course gained 2.2% of the votes and four seats, one of which was held by Hansen. Hansen had a difficult time adjusting to the culture of the Folktinget, and his brief tenure in parliament was marked by icy relations with the leaders of other parties. In the 1988 election one year later, Common Course fell out of parliament, achieving 1.9% of the vote and thus failing to pass the 2%

election threshold The electoral threshold, or election threshold, is the minimum share of votes that a candidate or political party requires before they become entitled to representation or additional seats in a legislature. This limit can operate in various w ...

. Following this disappointment, Hansen returned to the Copenhagen City Council in 1994, where he was elected standing for Common Course, and would remain elected until the party's dissolution in 2001. In 1985, Møller Hansen unexpectedly arrived with half a million krone in a cardboard box to give to striking brewery workers. He claimed he received it from a man on the street. After the party's dissolution he became the manager of a traditional

inn Inns are generally establishments or buildings where travelers can seek lodging, and usually, food and drink. Inns are typically located in the country or along a highway. Before the advent of motorized transportation, they also provided accomm ...

in Copenhagen, together with his daughter Janni Pedersen. He was often found cooking in the kitchen, favoring traditional Danish food "as mother used to make it". In 2001, he wrote the cookbook ( ''The Danish Cookbook'') reflecting his lifelong love of cooking.

Bibliography

* Hansen, Preben Møller (1972): ,
About the Seaman's Federation. * Thomsen, Ulla Nygaard (1987): , Ekstra Bladet
Portrait of Møller Hansen. * Hansen, Preben Møller (2001): , Askholms Forlag

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hansen, Preben Moller Danish communists Members of the Folketing Danish male writers 20th-century Danish sailors Danish trade union leaders Danish chefs Politicians from Copenhagen 1929 births 2008 deaths Communist Party of Denmark politicians Common Course politicians Leaders of political parties in Denmark 20th-century Copenhagen City Council members