As we celebrate International Women's History Month it is important to remember the endless determination of those who have gone before us, advocating on behalf of all Australian women.
The National Archives' current exhibition Disrupt, persist, invent: Australians in an ever-changing world looks at how Australia has changed since the beginning of the twentieth century, and highlights the individual stories of a number of remarkable women.
Edna Ryan, Elizabeth Reid and Susan Ryan are three women who were instrumental in the social changes we continue to appreciate in Australia today. Along with organisations like the Women's Electoral Lobby (WEL), their hard work and advocacy has impacted the lives of every woman in this country.
Dedication to a cause
Women, if you want equality, don't wait for men to win it for you.
Edna Ryan, 1927
Edna Ryan, one of Australia's leading feminists, dedicated her life to the fight for equal pay and working conditions for women. Her early political affiliations shifted from the Communist Party to trade unions and the Australian Labor Party, until she found her political home in the WEL in the early 1970s.
Her work with WEL on the submission to the National Wage Case in 1974 led to women being awarded the same minimum wage as men.
Advisor to the Prime Minister
I want women to come to me with their suggestions, comments and grievances …
Elizabeth Reid, 1973
Fifty years ago, in 1973, Elizabeth Reid was appointed advisor on women’s affairs to Gough Whitlam's Labor Government. She was the first advisor on women's affairs to a head of state anywhere in the world. Reid had tremendous influence across a range of issues affecting women, from access to child and health care to the continuing fight for equal pay and fair working conditions.
Reid chaired a committee responsible for over $2,000,000 of funding allocated by the government to support projects to benefit women in the lead up to International Women's Year in 1975. The stories of two projects which benefited from this funding are included in the exhibition.
A woman's place is in the Senate
It was not unlawful to sack women who married or became pregnant, or just because they were women.
Susan Ryan, 2019
Campaigning on the slogan 'A woman's place is in the Senate' Susan Ryan was elected to the Parliament in 1975. She made history by becoming the Australian Capital Territory's first Labor Senator.
Ryan became the Minister for Education and Youth Affairs, and Minister Assisting the Prime Minister on the Status of Women when Bob Hawke won the 1983 election. Within three months she introduced the Sex Discrimination Bill to Parliament which advocated to prevent discrimination based on the basis of gender, marital status or pregnancy.
Friendships and connections
Edna Ryan, Elizabeth Reid and Susan Ryan were among many prominent women involved in the women's movement in the 1970s and 1980s, and their activities were interconnected. For example, Edna Ryan and Susan Ryan (no relation to one another) were both involved in the work of WEL. Susan Ryan and Elizabeth Reid's paths crossed in the political sphere when both women represented Australia at the World Conference of the International Women's Year in Mexico City in 1975.
These inspirational women fought for similar issues from different angles at a time when women around the world were demanding change. And while we can look back and celebrate these key events in our recent history, it is also important to look to the women who are continuing to lead us into the future.
