Silvertown

In 1889, Samuel Winkworth Silver&;s rubber and electrical factory
was the site of a massive worker revolt that upended the London
industrial district which bore his name: Silvertown. Once referred
to as the &;Abyss&; by Jack London, Silvertown was notorious for
oppressive working conditions and the relentless grind of production
suffered by its largely unorganized, unskilled workers. These
workers, fed-up with their lot and long ignored by traditional craft
unions, aligned themselves with the socialist-led &;New Unionism&;
movement. Their ensuing strike paralyzed Silvertown for three
months. The strike leaders&; including Tom Mann, Ben Tillett,
Eleanor Marx, and Will Thorne&;and many workers viewed the
trade union struggle as part of a bigger fight for a &;co-operative
commonwealth.&; With this goal in mind, they shut down Silvertown
and, in the process, helped to launch a more radical, modern
labor movement.






Historian and novelist John Tully, author of the monumental social
history of the rubber industry The Devil&;s Milk, tells the story
of the Silvertown strike in vivid prose. He rescues the uprising&;
overshadowed by other strikes during this period&;from relative
obscurity and argues for its significance to both the labor and socialist
movements. And, perhaps most importantly, Tully presents
the Silvertown Strike as a source of inspiration for today&;s workers,
in London and around the world, who continue to struggle for better
workplaces and the vision of a &;co-operative commonwealth.&;