To celebrate International Women’s Day and 120 years since Pankhurst co-founded the Women’s Social and Political Union, Madame Tussauds has unveiled a new statue of prominent suffragette and political activist Emmeline Pankhurst (WSPU). The figure is dressed in the iconic white and purple hues of the Suffragette movement, is seated on a chair in front of Downing Street, and is wearing a hunger strike medal.
At the unveiling of the statue, feminist activist, illustrator, and author Florence Given reflected on Pankhurst’s legacy, stating, “You don’t always need a platform; sometimes your platform can be your family table, and that’s your soapbox.”
Emmeline Pankhurst was instrumental in the Suffragette movement’s fight for equal voting rights for women, and her efforts led to the 1918 Representation of the People Act, which granted women over 21 the right to vote. Sadly, Pankhurst passed away just weeks prior to this historic event.
Tim Waters, general manager of Madame Tussauds London, commented on the statue as follows: “This is the second statue of Emmeline Pankhurst that we have created since 1908, when she was first immortalised during the Suffragette movement. With her new figure, we are able to bring history to life in a way that only Madame Tussauds London can, by allowing guests to view her in 3D as if they were in the crowd during one of her famously rousing speeches.”
Since the 1930s, a memorial to Pankhurst and her daughter Christabel has stood near the Palace of Westminster.
Madame Tussauds London will unveil a new statue of suffragette and political activist Emmeline Pankhurst on International Women’s Day 2020 to commemorate 120 years since she co-founded the Women’s Social and Political Union (WSPU). The figure is dressed in the iconic white and purple hues of the Suffragette movement, is seated on a chair in front of Downing Street, and is wearing a hunger strike medal.
At the unveiling of the statue, feminist activist, illustrator, and author Florence Given reflected on Pankhurst’s legacy and the progress made over the past century: “You don’t always need a soapbox; sometimes your soapbox is your family table.”
Emmeline Pankhurst was a central figure in the Suffragette movement, which fought for equal voting rights for women. Her efforts resulted in the passage of the Representation of the People Act of 1918, which extended the right to vote to all women over the age of 21; however, she did not live to see its passage.
Tim Waters, general manager of Madame Tussauds London, stated, “This is the second figure of Emmeline Pankhurst that we’ve created since immortalising her in 1908 during the Suffragette movement. With her new figure, we are able to bring history to life in a way that only Madame Tussauds London can, by allowing guests to view her in 3D as if they were standing in the crowd during one of her famously stirring speeches.”
Since the 1930s, a memorial to Pankhurst and her daughter Christabel has stood near the Palace of Westminster. Emmeline Pankhurst co-founded the groundbreaking Women’s Social and Political Union (WSPU) 120 years ago, so it is fitting that we honour her with this new figure at Madame Tussauds London.
