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Gierek, Edward

(Encyclopedia)Gierek, Edward gyĕˈrĕk [key], 1913–2001, Polish politician, b. Porąbka. His family emigrated to France, where he was raised. He joined the French Communist party in 1931 and was later deported t...

Julian, George Washington

(Encyclopedia)Julian, George Washington jo͞olˈyən [key], 1817–99, American abolitionist, U.S. Representative from Indiana (1849–51, 1861–71), b. Wayne co., Ind. Elected to the Indiana legislature as a Whig...

Hardie, James Keir

(Encyclopedia)Hardie, James Keir kērˈ härˈdē [key], 1856–1915, British labor leader and socialist, b. Scotland. A coal miner, he became a union organizer and in 1888 founded the Scottish Labour party. In 189...

Fälldin, Thorbjörn

(Encyclopedia)Fälldin, Thorbjörn (Nils Olof Thorbjörn Fälldin), 1926–2016, Swedish political leader, prime minister of Sweden (1976–78, 1979–82). A member of the Center party, he was first elected to the ...

Mann, Tom

(Encyclopedia)Mann, Tom, 1856–1941, British labor leader and socialist. He was an organizer of the 1889 London dock strike, which was an important step in the unionization of unskilled English laborers. Secretary...

Lévesque, René

(Encyclopedia)Lévesque, René lāvĕkˈ [key], 1922–87, Canadian political leader and Quebec separatist. After a career in journalism and television, he served in the Quebec National Assembly (1961–67) as a me...

Gandhi, Rahul

(Encyclopedia)Gandhi, Rahul gänˈdē [key], 1970–, Indian political leader, B.A. Rollins College, 1994, M.Phil. Cambridge, 1995. Son of Rajiv Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi, he entered politics in 2004, winning electi...

Hu Yaobang

(Encyclopedia)Hu Yaobang ho͞oˈ youˈbängˈ [key], 1915–89, Chinese Communist political leader, b. Hunan prov. A protegé of Deng Xiaoping, Hu became general secretary of the Communist party in 1980 and party c...

Pereira, Aristides Maria

(Encyclopedia)Pereira, Aristides Maria ärĭshˈtēdĭsh märēˈä pərāˈrä [key], 1923–2011, first president of Cape Verde. In the late 1940s he became an activist in the struggle against Portuguese colonial...

Tsipras, Alexis

(Encyclopedia)Tsipras, Alexis, 1974–, Greek political leader. A civil engineer by training, he was the head (2008–13) of Snyaspismos, a leftist party that was part of the Coalition of the Radical Left (Syriza);...