It is with a heavy heart that I share the news that Ed Cloonan has died. He died at Mercy Hospital in Pittsburgh, where he was born. A Catholic Communist from the Mon Valley, he was a union, community, and anti-war activist for many years.
“He was the greatest Son, Brother and Uncle in the world,” wrote his sister Linda Cloonan Vizzoca. “He pursued his whole life with passion, the church, family, friends, politics and was the proud President of the State Store Managers Union ISSU for 34 years. He devoted his life to help the underdog and disadvantaged”.
Ed Cloonan represented what the Mon Valley was all about. He was a union activist in the state-owned liquor stores and, despite retiring on a meager state pension, always found money to give to left-wing causes, including Payday Report.
“There will never be another Ed Cloonan. He has left his mark in countless ways and with so many people”, wrote his friend Sandy Fox. “We all have many fond and funny memories of Ed Cloonan. From his love of Pope Francis, Broadway songs, his devotion to social justice and equality, his expertise in organizing and fighting the good fight and having fun while doing it”.
Ed wrote me countless notes of encouragement over the years, and I appreciated his emails.
"The propaganda press in the USA can never be exposed enough - and their refusal to cover the labor angle because of their race and class perspective must be exposed and you have the skill and balls to do that," Ed wrote me in 2019 when the mainstream media was largely a massive GM strike.
Ed Cloonan was a big supporter of young people in the movement.
When I heard that Ed Cloonan had died, I thought of hanging out with him at Congresswoman Summer Lee’s victory primary party in 2022. Election night was a nail-biter as Summer faced more than $5 million in AIPAC spending.
By midnight, it was finally clear that Summer would win by a few hundred votes. Ed was so excited—a principled anti-war candidate had been elected to Pittsburgh—a major feat for someone like Ed, who had fought the good fight against wars for so many years.
Guys like Ed Cloonan fought for so many years, hoping to see days when moral anti-war voices like Summer Lee would be elected to Congress.
While Ed may be gone, the results of his tireless organizing in Pittsburgh and the Mon Valley will be felt for many years to come, giving a younger generation of Pittsbughers hope for a brighter future.
Services will be held for Ed tomorrow at 10 am in ST Thomas the Apostle Parish, ST Maximilian Kolbe Church, 363 W. 11th Avenue, Homestead. Details of the service can be found here.
May Ed Cloonan’s memory always be a blessing to yinzers fighting the good fight.
