Location: Oldham, Greater Manchester
Artist: Denise Dutton
Annie Kenney was born in 1879 in Springhead, West Riding of Yorkshire. She was the fourth daughter in a family of twelve children, their parents encouraging reading, debating and socialism.
Kenney became activatley social in the Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU) when she and her sister heard Teresea Billington-Greig and Christabel Pankhurst speak at the Oldham socialist Clairon Vocal Club in 1905. Kenney was invited to meet the Mother of Christabel (Emmelie Pankhurst) in the anticipation to this meet, Kenney has been known to describe the feeling of not being able to eat and floating on a cloud as she felt a great change coming. The meeting resulted in Kenney visiting Emmelie to be trained in public speaking each week and to collect leaflets on women's suffrage to be able to hand out to the women working in the mills in Oldham. Kenney quickly found herself explaining labour rights, employment and the rights to vote to large crowds across Manchester.
During a liberal rally at the Free Trade Hall with Winston Churchill in attendance, Kenney and Christabel interrupted to shout "Will the liberal party give women the rights to vote?" after unfurling a banner declaring "Votes for women" they were thrown out and arrested for obstruction. Kenney was imprisoned 13 times in total for her fight of activisim for Women.
Kenney began to speak across the country on womens rights topics and when given the choice of being imprisoned or to stop campaigning, Kenney chose prison as did many others supporting the mission.
Kenney became part of the senior hierarchy of the WSPU, becoming its deputy in 1912. Kennedy was a voice for any women left unrepresented. She stood for our autonomy, unfair pay and working conditions. Without Kenney in our history, we would not have the rights that we have now. We can thank her for our right to vote and our strength to fight for it.
A statue designed by sculptor Denise Dutton, was unveiled outside Oldham Town Hall on 14 December 2018 to mark the centenary of the Representation of the People Act 1918, which gave some British women the right to vote. The sculpture depicts Annie in the Votes for Women sash and ringing a bell, honouring the only working class woman to hold a senior position in the Women's Social and Political Union.
