Kirkby Rent Strike
The Kirkby Rent Strike was a 14-month-long rent strike initiated by 3,000 tenants in October 1972 in the town of Kirkby, outside Liverpool, against the Housing Finances Act.[1] The strike caused a £1 rent rise. A group of women on the Tower Hill estate formed a discussion and support group to help themselves and their families through the factory closure crisis. When the Housing Finances Act was passed, these women formed an Unfair Rents Action Group and responded by organizing the rent strike.[2]
The strike lasted for 14 months, resulting in the strikers being summoned to court and failing to appear.[3] 36 of the strikers were then charged with contempt of court and faced the threat of jail. The strike ended in December 1973 when one of the strikers was jailed and a further four were arrested. A vote was held with the majority voting to end the strike.
The strike was the subject of a film, Behind the Rent Strike by documentary film maker, Nick Broomfield.[4]
References[edit]
- ^ Murden, Jon (2006). "The 1972 Kirkby Rent Strike: Dockland Solidarity in a New Setting?". London: Economic History Society. Archived from the original (DOC) on 25 September 2006. Retrieved 17 February 2012.
- ^ "Kirkby Rent Strike 1972".
- ^ Belger, Tom (9 October 2015). "Watch: Kirkby rent strike remembered, four decades on". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 12 July 2024.
- ^ McKeon, Christopher (19 June 2021). "From struggling estates to regeneration in 'left behind' town". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 12 July 2024.
External links[edit]
- [1] Nick Broomfield's 1974 film, Behind the Rent Strike
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