Ivan Cooper receiving his honorary doctorate from President Michael D Higgins. PIC BY NORTHWEST NEWSPIX
Mr Cooper died in hospital on Wednesday at the age of 75 following a long illness.
He will be laid to rest in Altnagelvin Cemetery following a service at St Peter’s Church in Derry at 12 noon.
Mr Cooper is survived by his wife Frances and daughters Sinead and Bronagh.
Hundreds of mourners are expected to attend his funeral, including politicians from across the political spectrum along with those involved in civil rights down through the decades.
The former Stormont MP, who helped found the SDLP, led the fateful civil rights march in Derry on Bloody Sunday when soldiers shot dead 13 protesters in January 1972.
He was also at the forefront of another landmark civil rights march in Derry in October 1968.
Many point to the scenes of violence when police moved to break up the demonstration on the city’s Duke Street as the effective beginning of the Northern Ireland Troubles.
Irish president Michael D Higgins presented Mr Cooper with a special award to mark his role in civil rights at an event to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Duke Street march last year.
Mr Cooper was one of few Protestants involved with the civil rights movement.
He said his involvement saw him ostracised by other Protestants, and even found people in his church refused to sit beside him on the pews.
Former SDLP leader John Hume and his wife Pat expressed their sadness at the news that their close friend Ivan Cooper had passed away on Wednesday.
In a statement, Pat Hume said: “We are deeply saddened to learn of the death of our dear friend Ivan Cooper.
“Ivan and John walked side by side, hand in hand, in their shared desire for equality, justice and peace in Ireland.
“Ivan was the embodiment of the non-violent and non-sectarian movement for change that was the campaign for civil rights.
“His commitment and courage and his desire and determination to tackle these issues never waned. Nor did his friendship and relationship with John and me.
John Hume and Ivan Cooper at s unveiling of the new Bogside mural in 2015
“Ivan Cooper will forever hold a special place, not only, in our hearts but in the history of this island and in the continuing of the fight for civil rights and social justice.
“We send our condolences to Ivan’s wife Frances, daughters Sinead and Bronagh and wider family circle.”
Current SDLP leader Colum Eastwood paid tribute, hailing Mr Cooper as a man who “embodied the contrasting traditions of this island”.
“Ivan Cooper was born to break the mould,” he said.
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