Interesting exhibition at The Women’s Library

Ms Understood: Women’s Liberation in 1970’s Britain

Opening: 8 October 2009
Ending: 31 March 2010
Entrance fee: Free

Ms Understood: Women’s Liberation in 1970’s Britain celebrates the 40th anniversary of the country’s first national Women’s Liberation Conference at Ruskin College, Oxford. During this event, over five hundred women came together and lay the foundation for the movement’s key demands:

•  Equal pay for equal work
•  Equal educational and job   opportunities
•  Free contraception and abortion on demand
•  Free 24 hour nurseries under   community control

The exhibition explores the prelude, birth, rallies, media, fashion, politics, disagreements and victories of this crucial phase for improving women’s rights.

“It was an amazing buzz. I think it was one of those rare times in your own history when you know you’re there at an occasion that’s historically important.”
Sue Crockford, Activist and Film-maker

Audio, visual and interactive – Ms Understood weaves this important story around fresh interviews, rare objects and significant written items, welcoming you to add your thoughts and insight to build a huge organic display, which will be used for future academic reference.

Exhibition Guided Tours:
Thursdays 6:30pm, 30 mins (Free)
• 2009 5 Nov, 3 Dec
• 2010 7 Jan, 4 Feb, 4 Mar

Saturdays 12pm, 30mins (Free)
• 2009 31 Oct, 28 Nov
• 2010 30 Jan, 27 Feb, 27 Mar

Accompanying the exhibition are a range of related events. We are also offering free workshops for students

Writing the Century – diaries & letters needed

We have been contacted by Willa King from BBC Wales Radio Drama, asking us to draw your attention to ‘Writing the Century’ – see below.

Calling all letter writers and diarists in Wales!

BBC Wales Radio Drama wants contributors to its ‘Writing the Century’ strand for Radio 4. They’re looking for diaries and letters of women and men from 1965-1975.

 

For the past 18 months, Writing the Century, a Woman’s Hour drama series, has been broadcasting a personal history of the first half of the 20th century. The source material for the drama is personal letters and diaries contributed by members of the public, or found in unpublished archives.

Now the producers want to do a series specifically from Wales and are looking for listeners in Wales to contribute to the series. We want to know if you have any family letters and diaries which illustrate how we used to live our lives in the period 1965-1975.

It is important that these are personal accounts that were written at the time, rather than memoirs that were written after the main events. During this period, main events include the flooding of the Tryweryn Valley, Aberfan, and the Investiture of Prince of Wales.

So if you have any letters or diaries which you think may be relevant, write to the production team explaining what your material contains. Don’t forget to tell us the dates, who the people were who were writing, why they were writing, and what kind of places or people or events they describe. The producers may then ask you to send in photocopies or scans of the original material. Please do not send in original documents. No content will be used without the permission of the owners. If you think you have something to contribute, please contact the production team via:

‘Writing The Century’
BBC Wales Radio Drama
Room E2106
Broadcasting House,
Llandaff
Cardiff
CF5 2YQ

Or alternatively email: writingthecentury@bbc.co.uk

More information on the concept for the project from http://www.open2.net/writingthecentury/developingtheidea.html

Download a free book on the Playgroup Movement in Wales

The Playgroup Movement, which began in Britain in the early 1960s, made a great difference to the lives of many children and their parents. Voluntary Playgroups depended on the active involvement of parents and, whilst many Playgroups employed a Supervisor, it was usually the parents who took on full responsibility for the administration of the groups, and mothers regularly helped at the play sessions on a rota system. The Playgroup philosophy was that children learned through play and that parents and children learned together.

These ‘Memories’ record the experiences of those involved in the Playgroup Movement in Wales and the effect it had on their lives and their families.

Accessn the website http://www.playgroupmemorieswales.org.uk/ to download the book.

Join the ‘Hope Not Hate’ anti-facism campaign!

 The BNP will take a seat in Brussels, but they will not represent us – they are not going there in our name.
The BNP fundamentally believe that women are 2nd-class citizens. Here are just a few examples of the BNP’s views on women:

On Rape: ·

• The feminazi myth that rape is such a serious crime … Rape is simply sex. Women enjoy sex, so rape cannot be such a terrible physical ordeal. To suggest that rape, when conducted without violence, is a serious crime is like suggesting force-feeding women chocolate cake is a heinous offence. A woman would be more inconvenienced by having her handbag snatched.’ (Nick Eriksen, BNP, 2005) 
• ‘Innocent men who are falsely accused of rape have their lives ruined while their lying accusers cannot even be named’ (BNP ‘Mini Manifesto’, 2007)

On the answer to the recession: 

• ‘… for women to work at home’ (Nick Eriksen, BNP, February 2009)

On women working: 

• Mothers ‘should never go out to work’ 
• ‘For a woman to consider a job or career more important than having children is, quite literally, unnatural’ (both quotations are part of the BNP’s ‘fundamental principles’)

On family law: 

• ‘Divorce and family laws and maintenance arrangements discriminate against men’ (BNP ‘Mini Manifesto’, 2007)

The BNP cannot claim to represent women any more than they can claim to represent anyone who is not an ‘indigenous Briton’. Furthermore, it is an insult to be asked to accept as a representative, on any level, a party which doesn’t recognise rape as a crime; which believes that women should stay at home; and which tacitly endorses domestic violence.

Please join the WWNC in signing the petition, ‘Not in My Name’. It wil be delivered to the European Parliament on the first day that their MEP takes their seat.

Sign to show the rest of the EU what we think of this new MEP! http://action.hopenothate.org.uk/notinmyname

(Information sent by Wales Women’s National Coalition  (www.wwnc.org.uk)

West of England & South Wales Women’s History Network – 2009 Conference

University of Wales,
Newport (Caerleon Campus)

 

Saturday 4^th July 2009, 9.45am-4.30pm

 

 

Women’s Activism: History and Historical Perspectives

 

Keynote Speakers Professor Angela John and Professor Deirdre Beddoe

 

The theme of this year’s conference is women as agents of change across a range of historical periods.  Taking a broad view of the term ‘activism’, speakers will present the findings of their research into the variety of ways in which women have been active, whether as individuals or as part of an organisation (formal or informal), in achieving political, social, cultural or religious change.  Keynote speeches will be given by two renowned feminist historians, Professor Angela John and Professor Deirdre Beddoe, who will also treat us to some of the material contained in their very latest publications.    

The conference is dedicated to the memory of our former Chair, Dr Ursula Masson,  whose death in 2008 has left a much-regretted gap in our organisation and whose excellent work in the field of women and activism must be continued.      

 

 

 

Registration (includes morning and afternoon refreshments)

£12 Women’s History Network members    £8 WHN members concessions / students                               

£15 non-members      £10 non-members concessions / students            

Lunch £10

For further information and a registration form, please contact Rachel Lock-Lewis on

rachel.lock-lewis@newport.ac.uk or telephone (0044) (0)1633 432133

Picturing the Past at Turner House (Penarth)

Penarth Porthladd Trust is again holding a Picturing the Past Penarth Festival event on the afternoon of Saturday 18th July at Turner House, with the kind permission of ffotogallery and the help of Helen Warburton.

It will include a power point display of photographs featuring the Pamir and Passat, the part played by local people (including women) in breaking Franco’s blockade during the Spanish War, and the lost great houses of Penarth and the peole who lived in them.

Alan Thorne, local historian, will give a talk on ‘Have we learnt any lessons from the 1930’s ?’, followed by tea and welsh cakes with Ivor Novello.

More information about Penarth Porthladd Trust, which works with other local organisations to preserve the heritage of the Victorian/Edwardian seaside town, can be found on their website – http://www.penarthporthladd.org/index.html

Women’s Studies Summer School

Gender, Equality and Diversity

College of Education and Lifelond Learning, Bangor University

Saturday & Sunday 11th & 12th July, 2009
Friday, Saturday & Sunday, 25, 26 & 27 September 2009,
9.30-4.30 on each day

Gender, Equality & Diversity is a 30 credits module on the well-established MA Women’s Studies course at Bangor University.  It may be taken as part of the MA Women’s Studies programme, or as a free-standing module in its own right.

Fee for module – £552

Deadline for applications – 15th June 2009

Further information from: Laura Pritchard-Jones, Dysu Gydol/Oes / Lifelong Learning, Prifysgol Bangor University, Stryd y Deon / Dean Street, Bangor LL57 1Ut, Tel: 01248 382708, email: ll@bangor.ac.uk

Speak out on the Equality Bill (from Fawcett eNewsletter)

 The Government’s new Equality Bill is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to end the gender pay gap. But the measures it includes, announced on Monday, are inadequate. Despite media headlines that gender pay audits are being introduced, the bill actually only allows the Government to enforce pay audits in 2013, and even then it could apply to only 0.4% of employers. Read more on Fawcett and UNISON’s reaction here.

 Women cannot afford to wait another 4 years for such limited action. Join us in telling the Government that time is up: we demand equal pay now.

Take Action

1. Attend public rally on 8th June Fawcett and Unison are organising a public rally in Parliament to urge the Government to strengthen equal pay law reforms. Attend the rally and make your voice heard. To register email kat.banyard@fawcettsociety.org.uk or call 020 7253 2598

2. Sign our petition

3. Write to your MP. Download a template letter here

4. Write to your local newspaper. Download a template letter here

Women have been waiting nearly 40 years for equal pay.

Let’s finally end the national scandal that is Britain’s gender pay gap.

Save North Wales Women’s Centre – sign petition now

“The North Wales Women’s Centre is facing a funding crisis. We are presently lobbying the Welsh Assembly for funding to bridge a rapidly approaching revenue gap. To date the Welsh Assembly Government have been hugely supportive of our work not least by the provision of money to purchase our building last month – but as times are hard for us all and particularly those holding the public purse strings we need to alert Ministers as to the false economy of allowing our centre to close. We don’t expect long term support as much work has been done for securing future funding – but as with many voluntary sector organisations – the delay in roll out of Convergence contracts has impacted on our future plans. We have recently heard that an initial informal request for support has not been successful. Our intention is not to antagonise Ministers as their support has been evident so far – we just need to be sure that all the implications of losing this resource have been taken into account before it is too late. ” (Introduction to the Petition)

To sign the petition, go to http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/WomensCentre09/

Information sought on women photographers in World War One

We have received the following request for information -

“I am currently studying for an MA in British First World War Studies at Birmingham University.  For my dissertation I intend to research the role of women photographers in theatres of war.  …
I’m always interested in improving the profile of women in history and think their contribution during the Great War has been much overlooked.  I know there were a good many women, particularly nurses, who took cameras with them to record their lives at this time, but little if anything has been written about them beyond Olive Edis, an official photographer from this time.”

If anyone has suggestions of collections, or other relevant information, please contact Alison Greenwood (email Alison.Greenwood@pasa.nhs.uk)