Foremothers

Servitude or Freedom? by Pauline Woodbridge My chosen Foremother is Marilyn French. My reason is because two of her books have had a role in guiding my feminist learning. However, the two books are very different from each other. One, The Women’s Room, a work of fiction and the other, Beyond Power: On Women and … Read more

submitted by Gerry Polovich As a social worker, people ask me where I got my social justice and human rights beliefs from. I automatically go to answer this question with “my mother” which does not surprise them. However, although this is true, it’s not entirely true. The deeper I reflect on this, I realise I … Read more

Feminist Firebrand submitted by Betty McLellan Elizabeth Cady Stanton has been described as, among other things, a “feminist firebrand” who worked tirelessly for women’s rights for more than 50 years. As such, she is a hero of mine. From a wealthy privileged family, she studied at Troy Female Seminary in New York and is reported … Read more

A Story of Bravery by Tahlia Briggs My sister was two when she wandered off down the beach. My dad had taken her and my brother back down to the water to rinse off the sand. Instead of walking in a straight line back to my mum, my sister disappeared into the crowd and walked … Read more

submitted by Susan Hawthorne I write about my grandmother all the time. Her second name was Millicent. We all called her Mill and for many years I thought her first name was Maytie. In fact, it was the far more German-sounding Mehta. My grandmother was born in the nineteenth century and her mother was German. … Read more

submitted by Jennie Burrows I never met my great-aunt, but I am proud to be honouring her remarkable life. At the age of 2, Gertrude Jane Burrows was taken across the seas from England to Australia, accompanied by three older brothers, her father James, and her heavily pregnant mother Rosina. As the boat was landing … Read more

submitted by Bronwyn Patton and Wendy Patton Responses from Jean Patton to questions from a Granddaughter (2016) 1. What sorts of things did you learn when you were in school? The three Rs as they were then called – Reading, Writing and aRithmetic. We had no tv or computers in those days, and very few … Read more