About us
These resources have been developed by Dr Sundari Anitha from the University of Lincoln and Professor Ruth Pearson from the University of Leeds in 2013 as part of a follow on project 'Striking Women: South Asian workers' struggles in the UK labour market from Grunwick to Gate Gourmet' funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council.
As part of this project, we have produced this website, a two-part comic that depicts the life stories of two South Asian women in the UK (downloadable from the module 'Striking Out' in this website) and a mobile exhibition on South Asian women workers' participation in industrial disputes from Grunwick to Gate Gourmet.
This project builds on the work of an earlier research project entitled “Subverting Stereotypes: Asian Women’s Political Activism” carried out by Ruth Pearson, University of Leeds, with Linda McDowell (University of Oxford) and Sundari Anitha (University of Lincoln). Detailed findings from the original research can be found on www.leeds.ac.uk/strikingwomen
This website can be referenced as: Anitha, S. and Pearson, R. (2013) Striking Women. Lincoln: University of Lincoln. [Online] Available from: www.striking-women.org [Accessed: followed by date the website was accessed ]
For further information about this project, for printed copies of the comic, or to borrow the exhibition please contact Sundari Anitha (sanitha@lincoln.ac.uk) or Ruth Pearson (r.pearson@leeds.ac.uk).
About this site
The website offers a set of educational resources on: (i) migration, (ii) women and work, (iii) rights and responsibilities at work and (iv) the stories of South Asian women involved in the Grunwick and Gate Gourmet industrial disputes. This site also provides resources for Black History Month that celebrate the contribution of Black and minority ethnic communities to the political and economic life of the UK, and to their role in the struggles for better rights for us all. The site includes student-friendly research findings, workbooks, time-lines, case studies, curriculum connections and activities as well as a two-part comic which depicts the life stories of two South Asian women involved with these disputes, downloadable from the site.
These resources are linked to the curriculum which is taught in secondary schools to age 11- 16 (currently Key stages 3 and 4). The materials will be of particular relevance to the teaching of Geography, History and Citizenship Education. They will also be useful for educational and community groups involved in “Black History Month” and associated adult education initiatives. There is also a mobile exhibition which can be borrowed by community groups and organisations.
At the time that we are finalising this website, changes in the future structure of secondary school curriculum have been proposed, which means that we are not able to provide specific links particular parts of the syllabus. However we remain committed to offering a contextualised and informed account of women’s working lives in the UK, and the important role that South Asian women and other migrant workers have played in these histories. We are also mindful of the importance for young people of accessing information about the changing nature of work and the place of workers’ organisations and trade unions in securing and defending rights and protection at work.
How you can use the content
If you wish to use the content in a commercial context (eg a publication, CD or website the public needs to pay for to obtain, or a project such as a broadcast series or film), please contact us to obtain permission. If you wish to use this content under 'fair dealing' terms (eg. as an educational resource or teaching material) or for a non-commercial project (eg. for educational research or exhibition), you may do so, but should acknowledge the source as striking-women.org. Images can be utilised as part of the website for such non-commercial use. The copyright for the photographs are held by individuals/ organisations listed, and permission will be needed from the copyright holders if you intend to reproduce these.
Use of content from the archive does not give you any sublicensing rights. Any organisation or individual who wishes to use the content should be aware of these guidelines and use the content directly from the site.
How to approach the content
We have organised the content into modules that are broken into sections. These four modules map on to curriculum topics in Geography, History and Citizenship for key stages 3 and 4. Activities are signposted by big brown buttons. Alternatively, module activities can be downloaded and printed out from each module landing page. There are links to further resources in the right hand side bar.
You can see definitions of Glossary terms by hovering over them, or visiting the Glossary.
The pages are designed to be used either on a desktop PC or projected on to classroom whiteboards.
The comics
The comics are available to scroll through in the Grunwick and Gate Gourmet sections of the ‘Striking Out’ module. The two-part comic can also be downloaded, ready for print, from the landing page of this module.
If you would like a printed copy of the comic, please contact Sundari Anitha (sanitha@lincoln.ac.uk) or Ruth Pearson (r.pearson@leeds.ac.uk).