Editing Peterloo Massacre (section)

===Memorial===
[[File:Peterloo Memorial (geograph 6240951).jpg|thumb|''Peterloo Memorial'' in front of [[Manchester Central Convention Complex|Manchester Central]] in 2019]]
{{Main|Peterloo Memorial}}

In 2019, shortly before the 200th anniversary of the massacre, Manchester City Council "quietly unveiled" a new memorial by the artist [[Jeremy Deller]].<ref name="Guardian 2019-08-13">{{Cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2019/aug/13/peterloo-memorial-jeremy-deller-unveiled-before-anniversary |title=Peterloo memorial quietly unveiled three days before anniversary |first=Josh |last=Halliday |work=[[The Guardian]] |date=13 August 2019 |access-date=18 August 2019 |archive-date=17 August 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190817145828/https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2019/aug/13/peterloo-memorial-jeremy-deller-unveiled-before-anniversary |url-status=live }}</ref> It was inaugurated at a large public gathering on 16 August 2019, widely reported in the press, covered extensively on regional TV and radio, and marked by a special edition of the ''Manchester Evening News''.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater-manchester-news/peterloo-200-years-on-manchester-16729620 |title=Peterloo 200 years on |date=16 August 2019 |work=Manchester Evening News |access-date=21 March 2020 |archive-date=30 November 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191130163452/https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater-manchester-news/peterloo-200-years-on-manchester-16729620 |url-status=live }}</ref>

The 1.5-metre-high memorial features 11 concentric steps engraved, sculpted from polished local stone and carved with the names of the dead and the places from which the victims came. The material not visible from the ground is reproduced at ground level, and there is a floor plaque.<ref name="Guardian 2019-08-16">{{cite news |last=Halliday |first=Josh |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2019/aug/16/manchester-gets-ready-for-noisy-tribute-to-the-dead-of-peterloo |title=Manchester gets ready for noisy tribute to the dead of Peterloo |date=16 August 2019 |work=[[The Guardian]] |access-date=18 August 2019 |archive-date=17 August 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190817145821/https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2019/aug/16/manchester-gets-ready-for-noisy-tribute-to-the-dead-of-peterloo |url-status=live }}</ref> While this met the official standards for access, it was also interpreted by some as a 'speaking platform' made inaccessible by its stepped design. The city council has promised that it will be modified to rectify this. Some disability campaigners described the memorial as 'vile' and calling for it to be demolished, a stance which in turn caused offence by appearing to dismiss the experiences of the many disabled victims of Peterloo. It has in practice proved very difficult to design a wheelchair ramp that does not damage or block substantial parts of the inscriptions.<ref name="Guardian 2019-08-13" /><ref name="Guardian 2019-08-16" />

The memorial has meanwhile become widely appreciated and visited, and the Peterloo Memorial Campaign site states that it is 'Proud to have campaigned for a respectful, informative and permanent Peterloo Memorial at the heart of Manchester'.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://twitter.com/peterloomemoria?lang=en |title=@peterloomemoria |date=2019 |website=Peterloo Memorial Campaign Twitter feed |access-date=21 March 2020 |archive-date=16 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220816032255/https://twitter.com/peterloomemoria?lang=en |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://manchester.public-i.tv/core/portal/webcast_interactive/476956 |title=Manchester City Council Communities and Equaklities Scrutiny Committee 5 March 2020 item 10. |date=5 March 2020 |website=Manchester City Council video minutes |access-date=22 March 2020 |archive-date=21 March 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200321230419/https://manchester.public-i.tv/core/portal/webcast_interactive/476956 |url-status=live }}</ref>