These two maps (mouse over to see the more modern one) show the area of Peterloo as it was and
where it is today:
On the newer map you can see Central Library and St Peter's Square toward the top right, and G-Mex is
bottom-left.
The Radisson hotel where the blue plaque is sited, is the building just above the 'A'; the plaque is at the front
of the hotel on Peter Street, marked by a blue circle.
"The word "democracy" has been tarnished by the politicians who
benefit from its Parliamentary form.
But do not forget that people
fought and died for democracy, for the right of universal suffrage.
The Peterloo Massacre was one such event but the calls for freedom,
justice and democracy were meet with murder and suppression.
The
shameful object that seeks to serve as a commemorative plaque to this
event hides the struggle of working people, it hides the urgency of
their demands and the brutality of the state.
To fail to refer to the
massacre, to fail to refer to the deaths and instead skip over these
events is an act of historical vandalism akin to Stalin airbrushing
dissidents out of photographs."
Mark Thomas, comedian