#freeverse
Annie Kenney was a working-class suffragette,
She was born in the Springhead district of Oldham.
She lost her little finger when it was torn off,
When she was a weaver's assistant in a cotton mill.
Our Annie was a gradely lass and saw how women
Were treated as second-class citizens.
So she took up the cause and should be spoken of
With the likes of the Pankhursts of the middle classes.
Our Annie rang her bell to summon the women
To go and disrupt male-led meetings.
She preached the Suffragette manifesto
She damaged property and was arrested.
She served several sentences in prison
And went on hunger strikes with her fellow suffragettes.
When Emmeline was in prison and Christobel Pankhurst
Went into hiding in Paris, Annie led the movement.
Together with a chemist, she made and placed
Incendiary devices in civic buildings,
Which caused a lot of damage and again,
She was tried and convicted and spent more time in jail.
Then came the Great War and the movement,
encouraged men to sign up and fight,
And women to work in munitions factories.
After the war, she was tired and took a holiday
In Scotland, where she met her future husband.
In 1921 the couple were blessed with the birth of a son.
Women got the vote and our Annie played her part.
So the townsfolk got together and raised the money,
For her statue to stand outside the old town hall.
©🦊VixenOfVerse, 2024
*If you want to read Annie Kenney's story, I can recommend Working-Class Suffragette: The Life of Annie Kenney by C.M. Talbot. Carol has thoroughly researched and written a thoughtful and inspiring account of Our Annie's life. (paperback & kindle)
https://amzn.eu/d/78McGht
VIXEN of VERSE 
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