Statue of James Larkin from the former Demanding a Voice gallery
Most people need to feel that they have some say in what goes on around them. Over the centuries ordinary working Liverpool people have found ways to make themselves heard. Sometimes this has been by spontaneous protest, such as the 1775 sailors' riot and the 1981 Toxteth rising.
Others united to form organisations of mutual support in times of trouble. Trade unions, co-operatives and the women's suffrage movement all grew in strength during the 19th and 20th centuries when, as a major city, Liverpool saw a great deal of social change. Each of the links below gives further information about these movements.
The former Demanding a Voice gallery showed the history of Liverpool people in their struggle to gain a political voice.