Our Red Ladies .

Two Red Ladies , and not just their hair colour.
Angela Raynor ( Deputy Leader of the Labour Party ) unveiling the larger than life bronze cast statue of Barbara Castle. What a breath of fresh air to hear a national politician speak with heartfelt passion ( in a northern accent ) . I don’t recall the detail but was impressed that she was able to weave in past and present figures with a rallying call to building on what has gone before and being willing to speak truth in order to create a fairer society for low paid, hard working people .
For those who don’t know , one of Barbara Castles achievements was to see through into law the Equal Pay Act so that women could no longer be paid a lower wage than men for doing the same job . It became law in 1970 but I recall in the early 2000’s that jobs were being re-evaluated so that jobs of equal worth in terms of skill and responsibility were put on an equal footing in terms of wages as women were still finding themselves being paid less than men for jobs of equal worth . It’s a reminder that the fight to create a fairer society is never won , gains are made but we have to remain on high alert , protect that gains as best we can and speak out on the injustices that we find .
I get the impression that Barbara Castle wasn’t an easy person to work with as she was always ready to speak her mind . She was passionately anti colonial and its widely thought that her anti racist views cost her an early promotion as head of the ministry of overseas development. She was determined that Britain, in the sixties, should use its relative wealth to help countries around the world.
You can probably tell that the unveiling of one red lady by another was an uplifting moment in a day that was altogether pleasant in many different ways.
I am very grateful for the fine , gracious and compassionate people , with fire in their bellies for s just society and I’m equally grateful and delighted to have met such a selection of similarly gracious and compassionate people on Blip . I learn so much from you all , so thank you .
P.S. on a lighter note , check out Angela Rayners amazing shoes ! Now who couldn’t vote for a pair of outspoken shoes like that !