Peoples Hustings College Green, Bristol

UNITY went down to College Green on Tuesday 4th May to check out the Peoples Hustings, organised by the Speakers Corner Trust.

Speakers’ Corner Trust is a registered charity which promotes free expression, public debate and active citizenship as a means of revitalising civil society in the UK and supporting its development in emerging democracies. (http://www.speakerscornertrust.org/)

Here are some thoughts from Ruth a UNITY volunteer: 

I went along today to hear what the politicians had to say at the Peoples Hustings on College Green today. It started with historical speeches, and that was really interesting, especially Emmeline Pankhurst. She talked about things that were most relevant for feeling disenfranchised. I think it is really relevant when she said, ‘No one can govern you, unless you give your consent.’

I thought it was good that there was a variety of people from different organizations in the community. And it was good to have a young person speaking, and not just the stereotype of a young person, but she spoke her own mind.
And the woman who spoke from SPAN was good and she had lots of good things to talk about.

It made me think that our own politics is about telling people that if they have a problem you will fix it, rather than having a proper discussion. Politicians need to be honest if they don’t agree or can’t fix something.

You can also hear three of the inspiring speeches from historical figures, Oliver Crowmwell, Emmeline Pankhurst and Winston Churchill.

Oliver Cromwell


Emmeline Pankhurst


Winston Churchill