Aamer Anwar

Mr Anwar, rector of the University of Glasgow, will give the lecture in the Bute Hall, where Mr Reid delivered his own rectorial address in 1972, entitled Alienation, which became known as the “rat race is for rats” speech.

Mr Anwar’s lectured is called The Struggle for Justice, Equality and Freedom in Scotland.

He said: “It’s an honour to walk in the footsteps of Jimmy Reid. As rector, he gave what has been described as one of the greatest speeches since Lincoln’s Gettysburg address in which he spoke out against injustice and inequality, urging our students to reject the values of the ‘rat race’.

“Since then, we have achieved much that as a nation we can be proud of.

“However, injustice, inequality and racism remain deeply rooted in our institutions and society. We continue to sleep walk in complacency while politicians issue sound bites of comfort. Nearly 50 years after Jimmy spoke, the vulnerable, the poor, minorities and the weak are despised, abused and silenced. It is time that the voice of the voiceless was heard.”

Professor Gregor Gall, director of the Jimmy Reid Foundation, said: “Jimmy Reid would have been delighted that such a leading campaigner for social justice as Aamer Anwar is to give a lecture in his honour in the very hall where Jimmy himself gave his trailblazing 1972 rectorial address.”

Book your ticket here