Hackney’s Hetty remembers the General Strike
May 15th, 2012 | By Matthew Brown | Category: Articles, Frontpage, NewsEighty-six years ago, Britain was in the grip of its first and only general strike – which ran from 4-13 May 1926.
It started with coal miners, who were fighting a long-running dispute over the introduction of longer working hours and a pay cut. Transport workers, dockers, printers and others joined the action in solidarity.
As a 20-year-old member of the Independent Labour party, Hetty Bower from Hackney in East London, supported the strikers. She is now 106 years old, but remembers it vividly.
A short, moving account of the Spanish Civil War. Focusing on events in Catalonia, it shows how even today, there is more to be remembered than the courage of the International Brigade.
A lively, frank and well-illustrated account of the ILP’s history from its origins in the 1890s, the Labour party’s development, and the rise and fall of the Labour left.
Bless:-) What an interesting lady – thanks for the link.