Guilty and Proud of it

Drawing on extensive research archives and newspaper reports, this chronicle documents the Poplar Revolt in the aftermath of World War I, during which 30 Labour Party counselors went to prison rather than accept inequitable taxes and rates to the London City Council. Detailing the story of the support mobilized by Poplar Council in the wake of their revolt, this history demonstrates how newly-enfranchised, working-class voters elected the Labour Party to run the Council in 1919, and how life for Poplar residents improved as the party came into ever-increasing conflict with the central authorities and the local government funding system. Illustrating the counselors' eventual release from prison as well as the government's revision of the law and the redistribution of funding from richer to poorer boroughs, this portrait captures a well-earned triumph in the face of economic injustice. An overview with a survey of outcomes and considerations of this story's significance within the context of the present day is also included.