Our Emmeline comes home to Manchester

Thousands marched on Manchester’s St Peter’s Square to celebrate the unveiling of Our Emmeline – a statue in honour of the city’s suffragette leader Emmeline Pankhurst.

The unveiling was timed to coincide with the centenary of the first women being able to vote in a British general election on December 14, 1918.

Our Emmeline was selected in a public vote following campaigning to encourage more statues of women led by Manchester councillor Andrew Simcock.

Created by sculptor Hazel Reeves, the statue shows Emmeline Pankhurst standing on a chair and pointing towards the former Free Trade Hall, site of an incident which marked the beginning of the militant phase of campaigning by suffragettes.

Thousands of people marched from the @PankhurstCentre and @PHMMcr to join the @OurEmmeline unveiling ceremony in St Peter’s Square #Manchester #OurEmmeline #RadicalManchester #BeMoreEmmeline pic.twitter.com/9lI2dhrucP

— Simon Donohue (@SimonDonohue) December 14, 2018

A statue of Emmeline’s fellow suffragette, Annie Kenney, was unveiled at the same time in Oldham.