Why miners needed the unions

[kport]

Behind the story of Billy Elliot is the story of the miners and their union, the NUM. We hear about its leader, Arthur Scargill, and even when the scabs' names are read out, they are the names of people associated with the strike of 1984 (Joe Gormley was president of the NUM from 1971-1982 (there were two national strikes, in 1972 and 1974).) Today, the NUM is a shadow of its former self, as coal production has nearly ended in the UK.

Not so the case in America. This story indicates that a coal union is very much alive and kicking:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/07/0 ... 57604.html

[Borrobil]

The demise of the coal industry is just part of the deindustrialisation of Britain, and for that matter Europe, which started well before the strike. (This is still one of the major issues to this day, as the economy in North and Scotland has still not recovered relative to the South). If you like you can reference it in the traditional sweaters worn in the opening scenes. Knitwear was the only manufacturing industry in Easington, which was closed down completely in the years before the strike, due to uncontrolled imports.

I'm willing to suggest that America is in a considerably better position than Western Europe economically simply because it has held on to more of its industrial and mining production.

Obviously the miners' confrontational history has not helped them either, particularly as Gas and Nuclear have never been significantly union-ised in Britain, and consequenly have benefitted from the accountants manipulation of their benefits ever since.

[Barry Appleby]

On BBC TV news today it showed the miners rally in Durham, it was packed with people, also it showed the pit gates at Easington, then into the miners welfare there, were the Easington Colliery band were practising. On the wall was a Billy Elliot the Musical poster.

[Borrobil]

Thanks Barry, great that it's still going. Here's a similar link http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-tyne-33463726

[kport]

This article brings home the decline of the coal mining industry, as the last union coal mine is closed in Kentucky:

http://www.pressherald.com/2015/09/05/h ... cky-shuts/

[kport]

This is a fairly concise (if slightly tilted toward a defense of Maggie Thatcher) explanation of the miners' strike of 1984:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politic ... attle.html

[Borrobil]

I hope this is seen as created from late, and third-hand, half-truths. Designed to woo 21st century voters.
We already have Thatcher's original autobiography and a previous "memoirs". Both filtered by her location and her advisers, to provide a one sided (but still acceptable) view. Similarly, Ian Macgregor's biography includes a surprisingly moderate amount about Thatcher's influence and that is his viewpoint.

Thankfully however, there were numerous books, which represent all sides, written during the strike or compiled just after, from records and first hand reports. Many of the lines and sub-plots of Billy Elliot can be found reflected precisely in their pages.

Nice advert for Billy though.