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Biography, Politics, Women's History

Mrs EM King – Campaigning for Women’s Rights Pt 1

Mrs King withdrew from public life between 1875 and 1881 … She resumed her polemical role in public addresses and publications, the most notable of which was her pamphlet, Rational dress; or, The Dress of Women and Savages … In November 1882 she announced that the Rational Dress Society would stage a Rational Dress Exhibition in the following year. As a probable consequence of her too radical views on dress reform, she was displaced as secretary of the Rational Dress Society in early 1883. She immediately announced the formation of a competing organisation, the Rational Dress Association, which would stage the Rational Dress Exhibition which had been abandoned by the Society. The exhibition, held in Princes Hall Piccadilly, opened with an address by Mrs King and ran from 18th May to 12th June, 1882.[8] Though there were large attendances and some reviews were favourable, the extensive newspaper and journal coverage was predominantly hostile.

Politics, Women's History

Excluded from the Record – Women, Refugees and Relief 1914-1929

The records do not necessarily provide the full stories … Miss Alma Tadema, daughter of the artist, on 30th September 1915 brought to Mrs Webbe, Mme Marie Wybo, aged 29. She had thrown vitriol and threatened suicide. A younger girl in unspecified trouble, possibly theft or being out all night, was Maria Caroline Verwilt, aged 15. In this instance, as in many others, Mrs Webbe was appointed her Guardian by the Old Street Juvenile Court. However, women who were categorized as morally deficient were likely to find themselves in positions where power relationships became particularly complex. One of these was Gertrude Kuypers. In May 1917, Somerset House, responsible for refugee registration, asked the W.R.C.’s Intelligence Department to find Gertrude’s Baby. It was found in Nazareth Convent at Hammersmith, placed there by Father Christie, the Catholic priest who worked with the W.R.C., because the Mother, i.e. Gertrude, was ‘leading an immoral life’.

Event, Politics, Women's History

The Women ‘who never cry’: British Women Released by Germany

The women were more fortunate than the 150 white men, who were taken back to Prisoner of War camps in Germany. And that privileging of women was a common pattern in WW2 .

After that Betsy and Geraldine’s group endured two weeks of what one newspaper described as ‘a rollicking Robinson Crusoe adventure’ on Emirau (‘Squally’) Island. It was not.

Then on Christmas Day an Australian naval initiative rescued them and took them safely to the Antipodes.

Event, Politics, Source, Women's History

Will Women Click for Clique?

Indeed the word ‘product’ to describe Clique seems just as apt as terms such as magazine, publication, title. Likewise, the woman with the magazine in her hands is perhaps better described as the consumer rather than the reader. Despite some standard women’s magazine features, such as a cookery page, there is very little to read; the emphasis is firmly on visual content. Furthermore, the magazine repeatedly and consistently positions the reader as a consumer. Using the Clique app, the reader-consumer can ‘unlock hidden content’ on every page, indicated by a range of eight symbols. This is where the interactive element comes in, allowing the reader-consumer to share details of items with friends, watch videos of fashion shoots or get styling tips.

Event, Politics, Women's History

The Geo-Politics of War and Woman-Terror in Congo

Rape and sexual torture have featured prominently in the Congo’s killing fields. Occurring on a daily basis, militia strategically turn the bodies of females of all ages, some infants, others elderly, into battle grounds. They do this by penetrating and mutilating their victim’s genitals to impart maximum physical and psychological damage. The damage to victims, and also to their families and communities, is not only horrific. It is immeasurable. It happens alongside kidnapping which, while targeting young men as military recruits, also targets girls and women for sex slavery. Often, women and girls are held captive for months or, in some instances, for several years.

Event, Politics, Women's History

GRANTHAM: Moral Panic in the First World War

‘Men’ who did not ‘get into the war literature’ such as ‘cleaners, launderers and the like’ were, in fact, usually women. The Grantham Labour Exchange worked out a scheme for washing garments by collecting them on Mondays and returning them on Fridays. Each woman was expected to take about twenty-four sets of washing per week, a set comprising four garments from each man; for this she would be paid 3½d per set which would entitle her to 7s per week. It was thought that the plan would benefit local washerwomen by a total of £218 per week …