Constructing a culture of solidarity: London and the British coalfields in the long 1970s

Kelliher, D. (2017) Constructing a culture of solidarity: London and the British coalfields in the long 1970s. Antipode: A Radical Journal of Geography, 49(1), pp. 106-124. (doi: 10.1111/anti.12245)

Abstract

This article explores relationships of solidarity constructed between London and the British coalfields from 1968 until the 1984–1985 miners’ strike. Foregrounding the development of a culture of solidarity over this period resituates the support movement during the 1984–1985 strike as embedded in longer-term relationships, which suggests a more equal relationship between coalfield and metropolitan activists than is given by focusing narrowly on the year itself. I argue that a spatially and temporally dynamic sense of the development of these relationships allows us to better grasp the potentially mutual nature of solidarity. Thinking about the construction of this culture of solidarity can contribute significantly to understanding the nature of labour agency. I emphasise the generative nature of solidarity, particularly the ways in which the spatial and social boundaries of the labour movement were challenged through solidarity relationships, allowing in some instances a more diverse conception of working-class politics.

• Item Type: Articles
• Additional Information: This research was undertaken as part of a PhD funded by Economic and Social Research Council grant number 1369204.
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Kelliher, Dr Diarmaid
• Authors: Kelliher, D.
• College/School: College of Science and Engineering > School of Geographical and Earth Sciences > Earth Sciences
• Journal Name: Antipode: A Radical Journal of Geography
• Publisher: Wiley
• ISSN: 0066-4812
• ISSN (Online): 1467-8330
• Published Online: 03 May 2016
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2016 The Author and Antipode Foundation Ltd.
• First Published: First published in Antipode: A Radical Journal of Geography 49(1): 106-124
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced in accordance with the publisher copyright policy