For Ed Broadbent, socialism meant providing for average people — and fighting for the cause

For Ed Broadbent the politics of personality were secondary to ideology and the importance of political ideas.

By Jonathan Sas, Special to the Star

Sunday, January 28, 2024

Ed Broadbent’s integrity, his decency and kindness have animated the outpouring of admiration from across the political spectrum since news of his passing. It is recognition he duly deserves.

I met Ed in 2013, an earnest new policy director at the nascent think tank the Broadbent Institute he then chaired. We became friends (or comrades, as we joked), and formed a bond that would eventually lead to working together on his remarkable new book, "Seeking Social Democracy: Seven Decades in the Fight for Equality."

That Ed was adored by many was clear anytime I was in public with him. On street corners, in cafes or in newsrooms, a man who had left the political limelight decades ago still engendered such warmth and excitement. Ed didn’t quite understand people's desire for selfies; he much preferred to talk to them and hear their concerns and viewpoints.

I have no doubt Ed would appreciate the earnest affection and respect being expressed for his leadership style. But for Ed, the politics of personality were secondary to ideology and the importance of political ideas.

On Nov. 1, Ed gave what would turn out to be his last interview to a national audience. On CBC’s “The Current,” host Matt Galloway asked Ed whether he still considered himself a socialist.

“Yes,” he replied bluntly.

His enduring socialist convictions should come as no surprise. Ed was remarkably consistent through nearly seven decades of interventions in public life.