
ACTIVISTS marked the anniversary of the historic Kinder Scout Mass Trespass of 1932 this weekend by climbing the Derbyshire peak in a defiance of private landownership.
The walkers gathered at Hayfield in sight of the landmark hill for a weekend of celebration, education, and of course a repeat of the action, originally led by Benny Rothman, in which around 400 ramblers exercising their right to roam were confronted by cudgel-wielding gamekeepers, resulting in a brawl.
The weekend’s anniversary event united Young Communist League and Communist Party members, friends and ramblers — as the trespass did 92 years ago.
The participants, who arrived from Manchester, Yorkshire, Derbyshire and Merseyside, also helped raise £200 for medical equipment for Palestine.
Organiser Jude Percival from Manchester told the Morning Star: “On the Sunday we trudged up Kinder setting off from a car park which had been a quarry which where the original trespassers set off in 1932.
“At the top we had an educational session on the legacy of the trespass and a workshop on how we could expand the right to roam, the right of ordinary people to get into the countryside.”

This year’s march and swim in a reservoir in the Peak District will continue the fight for 'access for all' in a nation where 92 per cent of land remains inaccessible to the public, writes SHAILA SHOBNAM
