The sacking of Jack Lang – A space for political meetings
Jack Lang was the Premier of NSW from 1925 – 1927 and again from 1930 – 1932. During his term, he was the unfortunate Premier during the Depression of 1931-32. Following the announcement of the ‘Lang Plan’ to combat the crisis, Lang withdrew all the state's funds from government bank accounts so that the federal government could not gain access to the money, which they demanded in order to adhere to debt commitments. This action ultimately led to the sacking of Lang and dismissal of his government. However, over 200,000 people rallied in the Domain in 1932 to protest the sacking by Governor Sir Philip Game, in one of the largest political turn outs in Sydney.
Thousands rallied in the Domain to protest the sacking of Jack Lang. Image taken 13 May 1932.
The Domain has a long-standing history of public gatherings, having hosted rallies for peace and against war, and the fall out of political crises. Similar to the sacking of Jack Lang, 100,000 people turned up to protest in the Domain against conscription to World War I. Over 200,000 people returned in 1919 to join in the Official Peace Celebrations in The Domain, marking the end of World War I.
The Peace Celebrations of 1919. At the time this was the largest crowd of people to ever gather in The Domain.