"Lesbians And Gays Support The Miners (LGSM) Manchester banner" [NMLH.2012.26]

Catalogue Number
NMLH.2012.26

Object Name
Banner

Title
'Lesbians And Gays Support The Miners Manchester'

Place
Manchester, Parkside Women’s Pit Camp, Lancashire

People
Lesbians and Gays Support the Miners (LGSM), National Union of Mineworkers (NUM), Mark Ashton, Mike Jackson, LGSM Manchester, Parkside Women’s Pit Camp, Haçienda nightclub

Events
1984-85 Miners' Strike, 1992 Miners' Strike

Date
1992

Creator(s)


Description
A pink banner reading 'Lesbians And Gays Support The Miners Manchester' with a black outline of a colliery. The creators names are on the bottom of the banner.


Lesbians and Gays Support The Miners (LGSM) was a solidarity campaign between left wing LGBTQ+ activists and mining communities on strike during the 1984-85 Miners' Strike. The founding branch of LGSM was based in London, and twinned with a mining community in Dulais, South Wales, co-founded by two activists originally from Greater Manchester - Mark Asthon, who was born in Oldham and Mike Jackson, from Accrington. As word of LGSM's successful fundraising grew, other autonomous branches were founded around the UK and Ireland, including the Manchester branch who's fundraising night at Napoleon's, a long running Canal Street gay bar, paid for the materials to create the now iconic LGSM badge that is still made and sold today. This banner was created by LGSM Manchester when it reformed during the 1992 Miners' Strike.


When asked about the banner's creation, LGSM Manchester member, Cath Booth recalled: 'In 1992, the government announced that thousands of miners were to lose their jobs and many remaining mines were to be closed. This included Parkside Pit, Newton-le-Willows, the last remaining pit in the Lancashire Coalfield (note, administratively was by then within St Helens/Merseyside). Mike Jackson had coincidentally moved just a few miles from there, and promptly contacted the Parkside campaign to offer solidarity. They were establishing Parkside Women’s Pit Camp - Sylvia Pye was the national chairperson of Women Against Pit Closures. Their camp ran for 17 months, and LGSM Manchester (aka LGSM Again) was set up afresh to support them. We leafleted, raised money, took part in marches and actions at the pit camp. One highlight was putting on a fundraising event at ‘Flesh’, the LGBT night at the Haçienda Manchester (this made possible because one of the two organisers of Flesh had been part
of the Manchester LGSM group in 1984-85 and was supportive). The banner itself was made by me and a gay man called Gareth Williams. [...]we also made vertical banners (‘hard hats, high heels’) to display at the Haçienda event. We donated the 1992-3 banner afterwards, along with the original 1984-85 LGSM banner.'

**ON DISPLAY**

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