South Aussie stories: The SA Beef Riot

Today is the anniversary of the South Australian Beef Riot, 1931. At a time when many South Australians were out of work and relying on government rations, more than 1000 unemployed men and their families assembled to protest the replacement of beef with mutton on their ration tickets. The protest began in Port Adelaide and marched towards the city.

The marchers carried placards that read phrases like “we want beef”, “down with imperialism” and “hands off China”, as well as waving red flags and union signs.

As the march continued towards the Southwark Hotel on Port Road they were joined by around 1000 more Adelaide men, but were also escorted by a strong police presence. The march ended at the Treasury Building. While the crowd demanded to talk to the Premier, what was waiting for them behind the Treasury doors was very different.

Check out Adelaidia to ready more about the 1931 Beef Riot: http://adelaidia.sa.gov.au/events/beef-riot


Posted

in

by

Tags:

Comments

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *