“If you are not having arguments, you are not making a difference.”
Harriet Harman
It wasn’t equal votes for all women – that came ten years later. But, one hundred years ago, after a lot of arguing, some women (if they were at least age thirty, with property) could finally take part in our democratic system. It was a monumental step in the right direction.
Coming to this years Festival, to talk about the history of women’s rights, is someone with a long heritage in the topic – Helen Pankhurst, the great granddaughter of Emmeline Pankhurst, the leader of the suffragette movement.
Alongside the suffragettes, and whose actions played a huge part in cementing the Fourth Reform Act, are the women of World War One. In No Petticoats Here, Louise Jordan explores through songs and stories the role women played in the Great War and the reaction they received.
A personal account of gender equality history is discussed by Britain’s longest-serving female MP, Harriet Harman. In her book, Woman’s Work, she uses her own experiences as a woman and a mother in politics to show how the equality struggle is far from over, and what we can do about it.
But way before that there were the Greek legends of hard-fighting, horse-riding women, the Amazons, as fictionalised in last year’s superhero film, Wonderwoman. Exploring the myth and new archaeological evidence, John Man talks about his book, The Amazons – the real warrior women of the ancient world.
And from Ancient Greece to space travel, Libby Jackson, one of Britain’s experts in space flight, recounts the amazing tales of women astronauts, engineers, mathematicians, scientists, computer programmers, physicists and nurses involved in the space programme. Hearing Libby talk about the real women in her book, A Galaxy of Her Own, is a must for girls who think that galactic exploration is just for boys, or girls who already love space.
To read more or book tickets for these fascinating events, click on the author’s name or visit
www.swindonfestivalofliterature.co.uk
