During February half term, between 18th-26th, visitors can experience a history lesson of a children’s food strike here in the North East remembering 100 years of the strike.
Beamish Museum in Stanley, County Durham, is known as an open air museum where visitors can come and see how a victorian society was ran. Visitors can visit; dentists, doctors, barbers, sweet shops and more in the day out.
The Food strike started in 1917 when agricultural workers and food producers are signed up for war ,leaving towns/villages with a poor harvest and food shortages and risen food prices. Meaning the impact on the it leaves children hungry and dangerously loosing weight.
But what can a bunch school children do? When its fight for survival- they need to fight!
Gemma Steveson, the event manager of the production, says: “1,000 children took part in the strike in 1917 just to get free school meals, which thankfully they succeeded after two days of protesting!”
Bill Elliot who wrote the song ‘No school for us today sir!’ explains the protest and why the children were doing it, says:
“It’s a national event and adults and children in Washington should know about since it happened in Washington!”
The activities the children can do are; make protesting banners and walk down to the chapel where children in 1917 protested, visit the Co-op in town and see how low the supplies are try on uniforms of the soliders in 1917.
