Catalogue Number
NMLH.2023.33
Object Name
Poster
Title
Grunwick Strike Committee Mass Picket
Events
Saltley Gate, Grunwick
Date
1972-1982
Description
The Poster Collective was a collective formed in 1971 at the Slade School of Art,  a group formed to initially produce posters in response to the miners strike and on the wars in both Vietnam and Ireland. It was formed on the basis of developing a coherent visual style, which addressed the political issues of the time. This included the armed struggles against colonialism in Africa, the struggle of women for equal rights and the continuing struggle against racism. The collective was active in the 70's and 80's, producing posters on a wide range of issues, including for educational purposes. The group was not-for-profit and used a variety of hand-printing techniques to create their posters. This is a black poster with white and red text reading "Grunwick Strike Committee MASS PICKET / From Tolpuddle to Tonypandy, from the Matchgirls to the Miners, working people have fought for the right to organise. Trade unionism is under attack at Grunwick. A defeat for us would be a defeat for the
whole working class. On October 17th we resumed mass picketing. 5,000 trade unionists from all over Britain rallied to our cause. We are now calling for a mass picket every Monday building up to the day of reckoning on November 7th. / STOP THE N.A.F.F.! CUT OFF GRUNWICK NOW! / THE DAY OF RECKONING MONDAY 7TH NOV. 6.30 a.m onwards" The poster features a black and white photograph of engineers arriving at Saltley Gate in 1972, likening the Grunwick strike to the flying pickets Arthur Scargill encouraged in Saltley Gate, Birmingham, during the 1972 miner's strike.
