Miners stood up for themselves. That was their history. The underground conditions they worked in charged them to speak out: 'You could express yourself. By working in a coal mine you are able to stand and talk. You were able to voice your opinion and say what you needed to say without recrimination. It encouraged ye to be vocal. And that's exactly how the Strike was. I'm going to stand up fir masel ... I'm gonna say how I feel ... I'm gonna action things.'  Alan Mackie, former miner, Lochore Miners' Welfare Social Club, 20 August 2023.