On Aug 26th 1981, 36 women started their 110 mile walk from Cardiff to RAF Greenham Common in protest against the Americans holding Cruise missiles on common land.
Over the next 19 years Greenham Common became home to thousands of women who believed they could create change and leave the world a better place.
Some women visited the camp for a day or a night, some stayed for a weekend of a week and some stayed for months and years. The women who visited were fearful for their children and future children but hopeful that they could make a difference.
They were fighting for:
Women from all backgrounds and all over the world braved every weather to protest peacefully and creatively. In a time before the internet and mobile phones, Greenham women and their supporters organised numerous large scale demonstrations like “Embrace the Base” in 1982, where 30,000 women held hands around the 9 mile perimeter fence.
Non Violent Direct Action or NVDA was at the heart of the Greenham Common protests which included an agreement that property but not people could be harmed. The protests were largely women only spaces and they used their position as mothers to empower them to take action for their children’s future.
The men who supported the women on large action days often supported them by enabling them to take action. They were not directly part of the protest, rather supporting in the background for example making sandwiches and bringing food and looking after the children. Men were also able to support the work of Cruise Watch.
Women used humour, song, art, poetry, discussion and disruption in their protests.
Explore the impact tree to discover interview clips, animations, pictures, lesson plans and activity ideas to help you uncover more about the Greenham Common Women’s Peace Camp.
What were the camps like? What types of actions did the women take? What role did creativity have at the camp?
Song, poetry and banner making were all part of daily life at the camp. Songs helped keep women’s spirits up, poetry helped them to process their experiences and a rich language of symbols images helped them to create a colourful, positive and empowering identity for the camp.
Find out more about the role creativity had to play at the camp as well as ways you can explore craftivism and creativity to communicate your own message.
The Creative Camp
The Greenham Common Peace Camp was the largest women’s led movement since suffrage. The camp lasted for 19 years through harsh winters and tough conditions. Sometimes the space was held by a few women, at other times thousands would turn up for large actions. Find out more about what day to day life at the camp was like here.
Camp LifeWe’re inviting schools to join us to help us explore the legacy of the Greenham Common Peace Camp and the impact it’s had on your community. Are there Greenham Women living in your local area? What skills can you learn from Greenham Women? What causes are important to your community today and what can you learn from Greenham to help you make a difference?
You can find out more about our Common Ground Schools project here for primary, secondary and otherwise educated groups.