Historical Legacy of Conversion Initiatives

Abstract

The activist aspect of the history of conversion in the post-war period dates mostly from the Lucas Plan onwards, with the rare exception of managerial initiatives in individual defence firms. So most of the foregoing has dealt with the theoretical and empirical studies of the economics of defence spending and disarmament, the structure of Western defence industries and the possibilities for conversion. Nevertheless the practical efforts outside of industry, modest though they were, to stimulate interest in conversion or create an environment in which defence companies, workers and their communities could more easily switch to civilian work should not be overlooked. Such efforts, begun in the pre-Lucas period, helped to lay the groundwork for the subsequent nexus between some peace and labour organisations and the emergence of various organisations to support and promote defence conversion. This earlier work was mainly conducted by two different groups: academic researchers who from time to time organised conferences in the USA and Western Europe,1 and legislators in the USA who have tried unsuccessfully for over twenty-five years to persuade Congress to pass legislation on defence industry conversion.