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XCase Study: The Jarrow March, October 1936
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In this chapter we will examine the Jarrow March. This event has been seen to symbolise the unemployment and poverty of the Great Depression. We will look at the background to the march, the main events during the march and assess its impact. We will also explore how reflective the march was of conditions in Britain in the 1930s.
Caption The Jarrow marchers stop off to eat on their walk to London.
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What was the background to the Jarrow march?
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What were special areas?
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The improved economic picture we read about at the end of Chapter 8 was not universal. While declining in the rest of the country, the problem of mass unemployment still affected traditional industrial heartlands such as the north-east, Cumberland, central Scotland and south Wales. These were areas that had been dependent on industries such as coal mining, steelmaking and shipbuilding. These industries had been hardest hit by the Great Depression.
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In 1934 they were declared Special Areas and money was provided to help improve the local economy and attract new industries. Unfortunately, the financial aid was quite limited and did little to improve the position of these regions. Unemployment, especially long-term unemployment, remained stubbornly high. Matters were made worse by the system of unemployment benefit for the long-term unemployed.
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At this time, unemployment benefit was paid for 26 weeks before it was subject to a means test. This could lead to non-payment of further benefit if other people in the house were working or if there were any savings. The Unemployment Assistance Board was established in 1934. It made matters a little better and increased the number of people who received payments. However, it kept the means test and the payment was totally inadequate to maintain a decent standard of living. Many moved to the more prosperous south in search of work. The worst affected areas were those dependent on a single industry, for example shipbuilding in Jarrow or coal mining in the Rhondda in south Wales. It was the people of Jarrow that were to bring conditions in these areas to national attention.
CASE STUDY: THE JARROW MARCH, OCTOBER 1936 ❘ 89
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