Richard James Whitecross
28 July 1945 - 6 November 2009
Richard was diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer's disease in 2003.
He donated his brain and spine to University College London (Queen Square Brain Bank) for dementia research.
Cristina, Mathew, and Thomas would like to thank their friends and family for their love and support.
Donations can be made here in Richard's memory. Thank you for your generosity.
Amnesty International
Richard was a great supporter of Amnesty International.
They campaigned tirelessly for his and Cristina's release when they were political prisoners in Argentina.
He was always grateful to them for their help.
On his return to England, Richard set up the Argentina Human Rights Committee and joined the Chile Human Rights Committee, and the Oxford Amnesty group.
We have also set up two other pages in Richard's name, for those who would prefer to donate elsewhere:
The Clive Project
www.justgiving.com/richardwhitecrossthecliveproject
Asylum Welcome
www.justgiving.com/richardwhitecrossasylumwelcome
The Guardian Newspaper
Other Lives Obituary
7 December 2009
Richard Whitecross, who has died of Alzheimer’s disease aged 64, had an incredibly varied and full life – as a publisher, campaigner, translator and devoted family man – characterised by his generous, gentle spirit, quiet courage and offbeat sense of humour. He had an innate ability to touch the lives of people he met.
As a post-war baby, far younger than his brothers Mike and David, Richard spent much of his childhood alone; this solitary upbringing fuelled his love of books, and led to his reading English at . His adventurous spirit exhibited itself early on, when after university he travelled to to visit David, and embarked on various escapades – climbing Kilimanjaro, hitchhiking through the , and visiting nomadic tribes with a photographer – before being mugged in a shantytown, giving him a distinctive machete scar on his cheek.
Always in search of fresh experiences, Richard began a new life as a publisher in , representing various publishing houses, including Oxford University Press. Soon after his arrival, he met a lecturer, Cristina, and fell in love. They were married six months later.
The political situation in Latin America was deteriorating, and after the 1973 military coup in , Richard and Cristina became politically active, attending rallies and hiding refugees in their apartment, at great personal risk. Like thousands of others in ’s “dirty war”, the couple were arrested by the secret police and “disappeared”. Lucky to survive, they were imprisoned for six months inside the notorious Villa Devoto detention centre, but thanks to a concerted campaign by friends, family, Amnesty International, Reuters, The Buenos Aires Herald, and the ASTMS trade union, which Richard belonged to, they were eventually released and exiled.
Twelve years ago, Richard first started exhibiting signs of forgetfulness, causing problems at work. Cristina began to suspect it might be Alzheimer’s, but it took two years for the diagnosis to be confirmed. From someone who had been so patient, thoughtful and kind, he was transformed by bouts of paranoia, hallucinations and anger. His deterioration was rapid and heartbreaking. Mercifully, once this initial stage had passed, he returned to his normal temperament, and regained his sense of humour and good nature, even as his memory waned. He still responded to jazz and to the Marx Brothers films he had always enjoyed, and remained a loving father and husband to the end.
He is survived by Cristina, Mat, Tom, and his beloved golden retriever Tommy.