How Newcastle helped blaze a trail on the road to democracy will be explored in a new guided walk.
Newcastle City Guides will mark the role of the city and the region in democratic struggles.
The walk will be led by five volunteer guides on Sunday July 28 at 2.30pm and will set off from the Kingsgate, at the arches to Newcastle University Quad.
Lead guide Martin John Talbot said: “This walk uncovers Newcastle’s radical links and the part it played in Britain’s road to democracy, and its impact on places such as the United States.”
The event will focus on radicals and progressives with links to Tyneside, including Martin Luther King Jr, with boxer Muhammad Ali also meriting a mention.
Brian Ward, Professor in American Studies at Northumbria University and author of Martin Luther King in Newcastle, said: “When Martin Luther King came to Newcastle in 1967, he became one of many eminent African Americans to visit the city, from Frederick Douglass and Ida B. Wells before him to Muhammad Ali and Harry Belafonte afterwards, not to mention Paul Robeson, Jimi Hendrix and the stars of Motown.
“The city has welcomed a succession of African American activists and artists. When you add the visits by important US reformers such as abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison, writers such as Allan Ginsberg, and political leaders including Presidents Ulysses S. Grant and Jimmy Carter, we can see the historic importance of these transatlantic connections.
“Tyneside’s Road to democracy has always taken an international pathway.”
Martin said: “Ali wasn’t just popular with sports fans when he visited in 1977, he captured the imagination of the area and he was hugely complimentary about how welcoming we were to him and to everyone.”
The walk will take in the Civic Centre, charting the city’s link to the Norwegian fight against the Nazis during the Second World War.
So strong was the link with Norway and Newcastle after the war, the King of Norway opened the Civic Centre and Bergen continues to send a Christmas tree each year.
The walk will continue down Northumberland Street, the backdrop to scenes in the fight for female suffrage.
Martin said: “Additionally, we will tell the stories of home born radicals including Joseph Cowen and some of the first female doctors and engineers.
“Their stories may not appear remarkable in the 21st century, but they were trailblazers who played a crucial role in changing attitudes towards women in the workplace, which helped to gain them the vote.
“In so many ways this walk has stories that can relate to everyone in the city. This was the Road to Democracy.”
The Parson Polygon artwork on Blackett Street provides a link to Rachel Parsons, the daughter of Sir Charles Parsons, who became a pioneer for women in engineering.
During the First World War she helped to train thousands of women in munitions factories, not just in Newcastle, but across the country and helped to change perceptions of women in such roles.
* The walk costs £5 for adults, £3 for over 60s, under 16s are free accompanied by adults. It will last around 90 minutes and finish at Newcastle Central Station.
For more information, go to: www.newcastlegateshead.com/city-guides
