Erection date: /10/2019
{Plaque on the mural with a photograph of Rosa May Billinghurst:}
A thousand steps will follow - Votes for women campaign homage mural by Artmongers.
This mural was commissioned by The Ladywell Assembly to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the success of the Votes for Women movement which saw public meetings at nearby Hilly Fields. The Representation of the People Act 1918 extended the franchise to women over 30, who met a property-owning requirement, and all men over 21. Women gained equal voting rights with men with the Equal Franchise Act 1928.
Rosa May Billinghurst was born in Lewisham in 1875. She was an activist on a wheelchair. She sometimes even used that to her advantage - when participating in the window smashing campaign in 1912, she apparently hid a supply of stones under the rug that covered her knees. She was an active member of the Women's Liberal Association and later a member of the Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU).
Artmongers created a mural that has a contemporary feel, to emphasise that the fight for equality for all continues in the present.
Lewisham
Artmongers
The mural was due to be completed in 2018, to mark the centenary of votes for women, but was delayed because Network Rail were carrying out repairs to the bridge
Site: Votes for Women campaign hommage (1 memorial)
SE13, Ellerdale Street, Bridge ELR - XTD Structure 116
Credit for this entry to: Alan Patient of plaquesoflondon.co.uk
