‘Proud’ - Great-niece of two Jarrow Marchers marks the 90th anniversary at Downing Street
A descendant of two Jarrow Marchers has visited Downing Street to honour them as part of the 90th anniversary celebrations.
Ninety years after 200 unemployed men marched from Jarrow to London to demand jobs and a better future, their descendants have been welcomed through the doors of Downing Street.
The historic visit has been hailed by Prime Minister Andy Burnham as a chance to "right the wrong" of 1936, when the Jarrow Marchers' pleas for help went unanswered.
Speaking exclusively to the Shields Gazette, he said: “It's been 90 years since the Jarrow Marchers were turned away. They had walked almost 300 miles to demand jobs and a future for their town, but they were ignored.
“I'm glad that we've been able to right this wrong.
“Their courage and determination has never been forgotten, and it's a real privilege to honour their legacy here at Downing Street.
“Even today, the North East doesn’t always get the attention it deserves from Westminster. In this role I am determined to change that.”
Among those attending the event yesterday (Monday), was Bronwyn Mogie, 33, from Hebburn, whose great-uncles Henry and Robert were among the Jarrow Marchers.
She spoke of her pride at representing them at the event marking the 90th anniversary of the historic Jarrow Crusade.
Around 200 unemployed men set off from Jarrow on October 5, 1936, to deliver a petition to the government calling for industry to be re-established in the town following the closure of Palmer's Shipyard in 1934.
The petition was received by the House of Commons but was never debated, and the march achieved little in the way of immediate results.
‘People are coming together to remember them’
Bronwyn, who is the driving force behind the campaign to establish a North East Shipyard Heritage Museum, said how proud she was to be among the descendants to meet the Prime Minister.
She said: “It is really important because back then [1936], the politicians probably hadn’t even heard of Jarrow whereas now, the Prime Minister even mentioned it after running the Great North Run.
“When they did the March 90 years ago, they felt like it didn’t achieve anything but the thing is, it brought the community together and even now, people are coming together to remember them.
“Even though times have changed, the people from Jarrow who’ve went to Downing Street still have that passion in them to never give up.
“I’m really proud because at the beginning of this year, I really picked up the pace about the Shipyard Heritage Museum and it was all about the 90th anniversary of the Jarrow Crusade.
“To think that in February, my dad and I were going door-to-door handing out flyers to get a petition signed to eight months later meeting the Prime Minister to tell him what we’re campaigning for.
“It all relates to what they did 90 years ago and how big shipbuilding was in the North East.”
‘All down to the voices in the community’
As well as marking the 90th anniversary of the Jarrow March, Bronwyn has also highlighted how big an opportunity it wa share the campaign with the Prime Minister and stated that it had only been made possible due to the backing that it had received.
She added: “I don’t think that I could ask for more and it is exactly the way that we want to highlight what we’re doing with the Shipyard Heritage Museum.
“Because the Prime Minister is so focused on the North, I couldn’t imagine a better opportunity and I’m really proud to have it.
“It is really exciting for the region to get this recognition and be part of this.
“The fact that I’m able to tell Andy Burnham what we’re doing is all down to the voices in the community, they’ve made this happen.
“Britain is talking about building ships again and that comes from every community voice that has given up on the shipyard’s story.”
Kate Osborne, the MP for Jarrow and Gateshead East, has said that the descendants meeting Meeting Prime Minister Andy Burnham at Number 10 “rights a historic wrong”.
You can keep up to date with the Shipyard Heritage Museum campaign at: https://www.facebook.com/ShipyardHeritageMuseum/.