Chicago loses anti-fascist fighter

Dan Parry, right, with friends.

Progressives in Chicago suffered a profound loss on the morning of Dec. 25 with the untimely passing of Dan Parry. Dan, 33, was a longtime revolutionary anti-fascist activist. He was a member of the Chicago Socialist Party and a very active member of the Colombia Solidarity Committee. Parry was so committed to the success of the Colombian revolution under the leadership of the FARC-EP that he collected 250 signatures himself on a petition to free Ricardo Palmera, a Colombian revolutionary arrested in Ecuador in 2004 and extradited from Colombia to the U.S., where he is now being held. After the Katrina tragedy, Parry got a van, filled it with bottled water and drove to New Orleans, where he felt his EMT training would benefit the African-American masses and working class whites affected by this government-made disaster.

In addition, Parry was also very well known in the music scene in Chicago. He was a traditional anti-racist skinhead who loved ska, reggae, soul and R&B. He had a massive record collection—all vinyl—that reflected his special love for 1960s-era soul; labels like Motown, Tamla and Stax were his favorites. He was a disc jockey at a local club in the Noble Square neighborhood of Chicago. The club, Sonotheque, held a benefit for Parry’s family on Dec. 27, which would’ve been his night to DJ. More than 100 progressives, Mods and Skins turned out to remember our comrade. Hasta siempre, compañero Dan Parry. You will be missed.

—Eric Struch