For Peace!

Britain is currently entering a new cycle of rearmament, expanding the reach of its nuclear capability, increasing military spending for NATO, and continuing to support Israel's genocidal war on Gaza. Those opposing this escalation have been met with increasing repression, through the use of counter-terror legislation, draconian sentencing of protesters and the proscription of groups engaged in direct action.

In this context, we revisit the peace movement’s material history, trying to better understand the diversity of tactics and intersecting movements which have shaped it. We hope that this exhibition acts as a resource and inspiration for those struggling for a demilitarised world today.

We orient the history of the peace movement away from a few well-known campaigns to highlight less-known histories that are nonetheless integral to the struggles for a demilitarised world. For Peace! interweaves historical strands from the workers’ movement, Women’s Liberation, anti-colonial, socialist, and anarchist movements to address questions of non-violence, class, international solidarity, and the role of liberation struggles.

For Peace! is structured around two gestures of the peace movement. Looking Inwards, we feature efforts to disarm the British state and remove US bases. Looking Outwards, we showcase international networks of solidarity and highlight the colonial legacy of global weapons infrastructure. Featuring campaigns from the last eight decades, the exhibition combines original printed materials, banners, badges, handicrafts, photos, audio interviews and activist videos.

This online exhibition is based on physical exhibitions at Glasgow Women’s Library and Four Corners Gallery (London) mounted in the Spring/Summer of 2025. The material links to the For Peace! Digital Archive hosted at MayDay Rooms Archive, where you can explore the full digitised documents. The materials presented draw from archives in the MayDay Rooms, Glasgow Women's Library, the Spirit of Revolt archive, Statewatch and Four Corners, as well personal collections of some of the movements and groups represented.

This project has been generously supported by Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust.