The People Speak

Democracy is not a Spectator Sport

Colin Firth, Anthony Arnove

• Publisher: Canongate Books
• Year: 2012
• ISBN:
  9780857864475
• Topic: History
• Subtopic: British History
• Index: History

'The idea was simple. Take the most impassioned speeches about the fight for what is right and bring them to life for a new generation. The reason why it's so powerful is because it's about everything that matters to us: love and life, sex and death, justice and freedom. We've found some amazing speeches from the most unlikely places, British voices that have been ignored for centuries because history is a tale often told by the winners' COLIN FIRTH The People Speak tells the story of Britain through the voices of the visionaries, dissenters, rebels and everyday folk who took on the Establishment and stood up for what they believed in. Here are their stories, letters, speeches and songs, from the Peasants Revolt to the Suffragettes to the anti-war demonstrators of today. They are some of the most powerful words in our history. Compiled by the Oscar-winning actor Colin Firth, influential writer Anthony Arnove and the acclaimed historian David Horspool, The People Speak reminds us that democracy has never been a spectator sport.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title page
• Copyright page
• Dedication page
• Contents
• An Eminently Skippable Introduction
• Note on the Text
• By Way of a Preface
• 1066–1450: Commoners and Kings
• Disunited Kingdoms: ‘Our English Enemies’
• Freedom of Worship: ‘Touching Our Faith’
• 1642–1789: Representing the People
• Land and Liberty: ‘The Earth Is a Common Treasury’
• Empire and Race: ‘All Slaves Want To Be Free’
• 1790–1860: One Man, One Vote
• Money and Class: ‘The Rank Is But the Guinea’s Stamp’
• Workers United: ‘Labour’s “No” Into Action’
• 1890–1945: Equal Rights
• War and Peace: ‘What People Have Your Battles Slain?’
• Gender and Sexual Equality: ‘A Human Being, Regardless of the Distinction of Sex’
• 1945–2012: Battling the State
• Notes
• Acknowledgements
• Permissions Acknowledgements
• Permissions Credits
• Chronological Index
• Index