In the middle of the 17th century, Mrs Townsend found a lump in her breast. Diagnosed with breast cancer by a local physician, she underwent a mastectomy without anaesthetic – an agonising...
Category: Feature
What’s a ‘manel’ and what can we do about them?
Despite making up half the world’s population, women’s voices continue to be underrepresented and excluded in public discussions, forums and panels. The frequency of these instances is so striking...
Momentous week in court appointments
Judicial appointments to each of the highest courts in the United States and Australia made for a momentous week both for court watchers and anyone understanding the singular reach of these supreme...
The new war on women: Weaponising online spaces
“Online spaces are being systematically weaponised to exclude women leaders and to undermine the role of women in public life. Attacks on women which use hateful language, rumour and gendered...
The evidence is in for women in STEM (and it’s not good news)
Scientists and researchers are not a particularly happy bunch - not according to a recent survey of nearly 1500 Australian scientists. And particularly not female scientists who have to contend with...
Raising the age of consent in The Philippines
When I did my masters thesis on teenage pregnancy in Philippines way back in 2014, the youngest pregnant girl I met was Jhen. She was only 12 years old. I was not able to interview her because her...
Intentional invisibility – women need to be seen & heard
I worked in politics as a staffer for a number of years, and in politics there's an unwritten rule: don't poke your head above the parapet. In other words, you don't have a profile. You don't state...
The next two High Court Justices should both be women
Asked, when will there be enough women on the US Supreme Court, the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg shot back: "When there are nine". While some people were shocked, she stated: “there'd been nine...
Troubled blood: gender, identity and JK Rowling
There has been much animosity – some of it vile – hurled at JK Rowling in recent times. Here Holly Lawford-Smith unpicks the anti-Rowling critique and argues why Rowling’s point of view matters. A...