Ray Sparrow, who served as a member of the National Committee of the Socialist Workers Party from 1941 to 1975, first became involved in revolutionary politics at age thirteen, although because his parents were both members of the Communist Party he had been exposed to radical ideas at an even younger age. At sixteen Sparrow joined the Communist Party and became active in the Young Communist League. His radical and antiwar ideas led to eventual expulsion from high school and from the military.
In 1933 Sparrow broke with the CP and joined the Communist League of America. During the 1930s and 1940s he was involved in organizing efforts in the Merchant Marine and among the textile and steel industries in Chicago. In 1954, as a leader in the SWP in New York City, Sparrow entered the construction business, successfully winning a contract for the Guggenheim Museum. In 1958 he relocated to San Francisco where, while maintaining his work for the local SWP branch, he also supervised large construction projects such as the Marin County Civic Center and the San Francisco Airport. In 1965 the party assigned Sparrow to serve as a member of the United Secretariat of the Fourth International. In this capacity he worked with international Trotskyist leaders Ernest Mandel, Livio Maitan, and Ernie Tate and he was partially responsible for organizing many of the international anti-war demonstrations which took place during those years. Sparrow returned to San Francisco in 1968 where he remained active in branch activities. He died in San Francisco on November 16, 1985.
