Today, the Barnet Eye got some tragic news. One of our biggest supporters, regular guest bloggers and much loved co-conspirators, Mr John Sullivan has passed awa I am 99% certain that John has contributed more guest blogs than anyone else to the Barnet Eye. By my reckoning, John wrote 20 blogs that I published on the site. He probably wrote another 20 that I couldn't as the passion and anger in his soul was too much and I'd have had a lawsuit on my hands. When I'd tell John that his words were likely to result in a lawsuit, he'd say "You can't be sued for telling the truth". I'd reply you can and it would cost a fortune to defend. Win or lose I couldn't afford to risk my house. He'd be cross with me for a week or two, and when John was cross, you'd know it, then he'd get over it and we'd move on.
If I was Elon Musk and had billions to defend such claims, I suspect John would have written hundreds of blogs for me. He really cared. What inspired him and why was he so angry? His daughter Susan, his "Little Chief" lived with Downs Syndrome. John saw just how badly our system treats people like Susan and he vowed from the moment she was born, to fight for her and give her the best life he possibly could. I had total respect for that. Susan was a peer and friend of my cousin Tessie Fanning, who also lived with Downs Syndrome, so I had a bit of an insight into Johns struggle. He was her Dad and he would do anything to protect her and make her happy.
Susan passed away with Covid during the pandemic. John spent his last years trying to get justice for her. He believed that Susan and her ilk were thrown to the wolves by Boris Johnson's government. The second last time I mentioned John was when he phoned the James O'Brien show on LBC radio and moved James to tears. The last time was when he addressed the COVID inquiry and I wrote a blog detailing it and my thoughts. John posted the following comment, which was the last contribution he made.
John sullivan said...
Thanks Roger for being brave enough to post this blog, which is a tribute to your beloved Tessie, may she rest in peace. Along with a bitter exposure of what happened to far to many disabled people , who during the early days of Covid- 19 made up 60% of the death toll.
Susan was denied ITU, and therefore a chance of life, simply because she had Downs Syndrome , and her Medical Notes attest to that fact , as does somewhat reluctantly the Serious Incident Investigation by Barnet General Hospital .
What happened to people with Learning Difficulties at the behest of a Prime Minister that refused to prepare or take Covid-19 seriously, was a crime against humanity, that needs to be exposed to ensure it will never happen again. So thank you from the Sullivan family, for helping to expose our horror story in order to protect the human rights of people with Learning Difficulties when the next pandemic comes along. Which it surely will.
John S & family
If I am honest, I always feel that I massively let John down. There is a bit of me that feels incredibly guilty for not posting his more outspoken blogs. What he was saying needed to be said and now it never will be. I did what I thought was right, but it wasn't enough and when John was naming and shaming the great and good of the Barnet Tory party, calling them corrupt, lying theives and saying they were taking envelopes stuffed with cash, I knew he totally believed what he was saying but also knew their lawyers were watching. I wish I could say I got the balance right, but now I am not so sure.
There were plenty of people who properly let John down. The NHS, in not properly treating his cancer when it was still treatable. Barnet Council with the treatment of Susan and her peers. The legal profession who took his evidence at the COVID inquiry.
By the time I got to know John, he was living under the shadow of cancer. He would have episodes of excruciating agony. On a few occasions, we had a beer before it got too bad and I saw the other side of John. He was a man who loved life, was a real family man and a great singer. He was also isnpirational. With John, we made a version of 16 Tons and what do you get. The video below is a rough version I did that never got shown publicly, but you can get a sense of what a great singer and fun character John was. This was his baby and I was all too delighted to facilitate it.
When it came down to it. John was a decent family man, who fought tooth and nail for what he believed. His love for his wife of 62 years Ida was unquestionable. His kids were the most important thing in his life. He had a great sense of fun.
The London Borough of Barnet has lost a legend and a stoic warrior. I will leave the last word to John. He explains here why he launched a legal challenge against Barnet Council's One Barnet porgramme.
RIP mate and give Susan a hug in the sky!
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