A People's History homepage
General Strike Stories

The workers who derailed the Flying Scotsman

The iconic story of the derailment of the Flying Scotsman train during the 1926 General Strike, told through the perspective of the miners who made it happen.

A vintage, sepia-toned studio photograph with a worn, aged border. The portrait shows a young man with combed hair, dressed in a formal dark three-piece suit, white collared shirt, and pattern-knotted tie. A pocket watch chain hangs across his waistcoat, and a pocket square peaks out from his jacket pocket. He stands against a mottled, painted nature backdrop, resting his left hand on the back of a wicker chair.
Origins of Parliament Spotlight

Knights and Burgesses
An eighteenth century stipple engraving of a middle-aged man, Thomas Hardy, founder of the London Corresponding Society.
Gender Equality Sources

Seven Demands: How did women in Britain fight for their rights?

Seven sources to introduce the women’s liberation movement in Britain and the seven key demands they campaigned for over the course of the 1970s.

A historic black and white photograph capturing a dense crowd of women marching down a commercial city street during a protest. In the foreground on the right, protestors hold aloft a very large, prominent white banner that reads Women Unite for Womens Liberation in bold black block lettering. Surrounding marchers carry smaller signs advocating for free contraception, equal pay now, and nurseries, while onlookers and traditional storefronts like The Needlewoman Shop line the background street under a light snowfall or rain.
Gender Equality Stories

Why be a wife? Mary McIntosh and the Fifth Demand of the Women's Liberation Movement

Read this article on Mary McIntosh and the Fifth Demand of the women's liberation movement to strengthen your teaching of women's rights in Britain and marriage as a legal institution.
A top-down photograph of a circular pin-back badge with a solid magenta-pink background. Bold, sans-serif white text is arranged vertically in the center to spell out
Campaigns for racial equality Stories

Elizabeth Anionwu and Sickle Cell Disease

Use this article on sickle cell disease to inform your teaching of Black and global majority rights in 20th century Britain.

Campaigns for racial equality Stories

The Huntleys and the Black Education Movement

Use this article on the Black Education Movement to inform your teaching of Black and global majority rights and protest in 20th century Britain.

A candid black-and-white classroom photograph. On the left, an older Black man with grey hair, a mustache, and a light-colored V-neck sweater leans forward over a wooden desk. He points with a pen to a page in an open textbook, guiding two young Black schoolboys sitting next to him. The boys, both wearing sweaters, look intently down at the textbook, listening closely. A black pen rests on the table in the foreground, and a blank blackboard stretches across the background wall.
Gender Equality Stories

Stella Dadzie and the Organisation of Women of Asian and African Descent  

Deepen your teaching of the fight for women's rights and Black and global majority rights in Britain with this story on Black women's activist groups in 20th century Britain.
A medium shot of an older Black woman sitting in a chair, appearing to speak while smiling during an interview. She has her hair styled in a high, curly updo with grey streaks. She is wearing a long-sleeved, color-blocked sweater in shades of grey, black, and olive green, layered gold necklaces, and earrings. Her hands are clasped in her lap. The background is a softly blurred indoor setting with a large glass-paned door on the left and an exhibition banner on the right.
Campaigns for racial equality Stories

Before Grunwick: Immigrant Workers’ Strikes in Britain 

This article offers a longer history of strikes by global majority workers in Britain to show your students that the solidarity seen at Grunwick was hard-won and by no means guaranteed.  
Black and white photograph of an older South Asian woman smiling and raising a clenched fist in solidarity. She holds a large, handwritten protest sign stating
Campaigns for racial equality Stories

The Scarman Report and Brixton Defence Campaign

Balance your teaching of the Scarman Report and the aftermath of the Brixton Uprising by reading about the Brixton Defence Campaign as a grassroots community response.
A black-and-white studio portrait of a white British judge from the mid-20th century. He is shown from the waist up, seated at a dark wooden table with hands gently clasped in front. He is wearing traditional legal attire, including a dark robe, white jabot collar bands, and a light-colored judicial wig. He looks directly toward the camera with a faint smile against a dark, softly lit background.
Campaigns for racial equality Stories

The New Cross Massacre and Black People’s Day of Action

Bring the largest contemporary protest for Black civil rights in Britain into your teaching of the lead up to the Brixton Uprising.
A black and white photograph captures a crowd of Black demonstrators marching down a city street during the
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