‘We always told the vicar when we were going out in case we were arrested.’ Photo: courtesy of Lyn Barlow
Women’s work: Forty years on, seven Friends talk to Rebecca Hardy about the Greenham Peace Camp
‘It was life changing, in many ways.’
Forty years ago last month, thirty-two women, four men and some children set off on foot from Cardiff to Berkshire, in protest against the nuclear weapons that were being held at RAF Greenham Common. The march was the beginning of the Greenham Common Peace Camp, which was set up outside the RAF base between 1981 and 2000. It was declared ‘women-only’ a year later. With more than 70,000 taking part, the camp went on to become the largest female-led protest since the women’s suffrage movement. Many Quakers were involved in the camp, with some directly living there, others regularly visiting and involved in affiliate peace groups, and many others supporting. Here, seven Quakers share their memories.
