Huge demonstration to save Lewisham Hospital

This afternoon's demonstration against cuts to services at Lewisham Hospital was phenomenal. Speakers at the end said the crowd was estimated as up to 15,000, and as somebody who has been on more than a few demonstrations over the years, I don't think they were far out (I would say somewhere between 10 and 15,000).

The demonstration made its way from Lewisham town centre to Ladywell Fields and the hospital, and left nobody in doubt that the threat to close Accident and Emergency and other services is extremely unpopular.



The front of the march - the 'Florence wouldn't put up with this' banner was made by nurses at Kings College.

 What is the definition of a good demonstration? Well size is part of it. I know lots of people I know were there today, but I only bumped into a handful of them. That is a very good sign. 10-15,000 from one part of London over a local issue (albeit with national implications) would be remarkable at any time. In the rain on a cold November day it is something else.  I watched the whole march go by and joined in towards the end, by the time I got to Ladywell Fields I had missed many of the speakers - another sign of a demonstration bigger than anybody expected.

It must have been the biggest demonstration in Lewisham for at least 30 years - you would need to go back to the New Cross Fire 1981 or the anti-National Front demonstration of 1977 to find similar numbers, and those were national mobilisations. Today was mainly local people. 

Another sign of a great demonstration is there is an explosion of creativity, with home-made banners and placards. My personal favourite was the one above. Who knows what possessed a group of young girls to bring a banner quoting a Bonnie Tyler song on the march, but it was very apt: 'Every now and then I fall apart, and I need you now tonight, and I need you more than ever'.

'No taking services away, don't let people die, cuts cost lives'

A good demonstration mobilises way beyond the usual suspects. Of course there are the usual political organisation and trade union banners, they are part of it and have as much right to be there as anybody else. But they are a minority amongst a sea of people. Bob from Brockley tweeted today: 'Most diverse (ethnically, age, etc) demo I've been on. Really representative of Lewisham street'. He was right.

A good demonstration strikes a chord. Its meaning is immediately understood and shared by all who see it. Nobody in Lewisham needs anybody to explain why cutting back their local hospital is a terrible idea. They have been born there, seen their friends and family get well there, or sometimes die there. That is why shoppers were clapping as the demonstration passed, and why drivers stuck in the traffic were tooting their horns in support rather than getting angry.



'I could have died by the time the ambulance reached Woolwich'
photo by Nikki Spencer at Twitter

 It was good to see some banners from beyond Lewisham, like this William Morris-referencing one from Greenwich and Bexley Trades Union Council. This isn't just about Lewisham, the specific changes will affect South London more generally. And as all the 'save the NHS' chants recognised today, this is a national issue (actually an international issue of the conflict between human needs and austerity).

Of course, a good demonstration has music:

'We save lives, not money'

A good demonstration has a strong sense of purpose that mere weather cannot defeat.

South London Solidarity Federation banner amongst the umbrellas

'Matt Kershaw, Jeremy *unt's puppet, Lay off our A&E'

Lewisham Pensioners Forum banner on the march

So by these standards, today was certainly a good day. Will it prove to have been an effective demonstration, in terms of making a difference?  We shall see, this is just the start of the campaign - but a very good start. What is clear is that the overwhelming majority of people in the Lewisham and wider area are totally opposed to the closure of the Accident and Emergency department at Lewisham Hospital, and the threat to other services there. Fundamental questions are raised about the meaning of democracy by the fact that unaccountable hatchet men can even put forward this proposal, let alone that ConDem  politicians with no mandate to slash the NHS can consider rubber stamping such proposals. 

Next steps:

There is a Save Lewisham Hospital public meeting on Wednesday 28 November, 7 pm at Broadway Theatre, Catford, with speakers including local GP Dr Louise Irvine.

You can respond to the 'consultation' on the plans until 13 December, details here.

More reports: 853, Crosswhatfields?, Andy Worthington.