Biography, Event, Politics, Women's History

Margaret Rawlings at the National Portrait Gallery

Rawlings (1906 – 1996) … made her stage debut on 21 March 1927 in George Bernard Shaw’s ‘The Doctor’s Dilemma’ at the Grand Theatre, Croydon. During the 1930s, her reputation as a leading tragedy actress gained ground as she starred as Bianca Capello in Clifford Bax’s play ‘The Venetian’ and Oscar Wilde’s ‘Salome’, and she continued to receive praise from critics for her vivid and emotional performances. Rawlings was particularly successful playing the spectacular dual role of Mary Charrington and her husband’s murdered Mistress, Lucy, in Gordon Sherry’s thriller ‘Black Limelight’, which had a long run at the St James Theatre in 1937 … Rawlings gained further recognition following her roles as Eliza Doolittle in Shaw’s ‘Pygmalian’; ‘A House in the Square’ by Diana Morgan, in which she starred with Lillian Braithwaite; and Vittoria Corombona in John Webster’s tale of corruption and deceit ‘The White Devil’.

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 …

Event, Politics, Women's History

The Cry of Lost Aboriginal Sisters Across Canada

•The Indian Act of 1876 was intended to assimilate indigenous peoples. It denied self-government and segregated those subject to its provisions on apartheid style reserves. Patriarchal societies were intended to replace matriarchal ones. The 1884 Indian Advancement Act included Inuit communities, requiring their members to carry a tattoo on their necks.

Event, General, Politics, Source, Women's History

International Alliance of Women (IAW) … Herstory in the Making: Pt 2

The Congress was held in the main hall and environs, surrounded by portraits of ‘very important men’ – judges, barristers, queen’s and king’s counsel … As these portraited men looked down upon the women gathered beneath then, voicing uproar and outrage at the ravages wrought by warring in Syria, denial of rights to children born but not formally registered so running the risk of being ‘seen’ as non-existent, the oppression, damage and destruction lying at the base of child marriage, the importantce of ecological balance and taking action to undo the damage of climate change … what would these men have thought?