What was the governments reaction when the WSPU introduced the white feather?
On the outbreak of war, Christabel Pankhurst was living in Paris, in order to run the organisation without fear of arrest. Her autocratic control enabled her, over the objections of Kitty Marion and others, to declare on the outbreak of World War I that the WSPU should abandon its campaigns in favour of a nationalistic stance supporting the British government in the war. ————————————–… On the 10th August the government announced it was releasing all suffragettes from prison. In return, the WSPU agreed to end their militant activities and help the war effort. After receiving a £2,000 grant from the government, the WSPU organised a demonstration in London. Members carried banners with slogans such as ‘We Demand the Right to Serve’, ‘For Men Must Fight and Women Must work’ and ‘Let None Be Kaiser’s Cat’s Paws’. At the meeting, attended by 30,000 people, Emmeline Pankhurst called on trade unions to let women work in those industries traditionally dominated by men.
