March 8th is International Women’s Day.
It was originally International Working Women’s Day, first celebrated in 1909, but has been widened to celebrate many of women’s political, social and economic achievements over the years.
In NZ it usually results in rather smug lists of significant dates and women at the top, PMs, Governors-General, the occasional CEO, Chief Justice and the like. Sometimes we see groundbreaking women scientists or educators mentioned. Then the world goes on its merry way, conveniently forgetting that equal pay for work of equal value has yet to be achieved, there are still few directors on boards, senior managers in tertiary institutions and so on and women are still the main targets of high levels of domestic violence.
Disabled women are rarely if ever mentioned. They are still in workshops being paid third world rates, struggling to acquire a good education, to bring up their children, forge a career and make ends meet. They are even more subject to domestic and related violence
I am really tired of feeling embarrassed attending international gatherings where projects to improve the lot of disabled women are underway in poorer countries than NZ. The plight of disabled women internationally has been recognised in the Disability Rights Convention. Yet here our issues are subsumed by general disability or general women’s issues. I guess we will have to start the ball rolling ourselves, as women have always done.
Before I am accused of being a whinger and moaner let me bring disabled women into the list of those we celebrate on International Women’s Day.
Who are our heroines, both living and dead? There are many and these are just a few I can think of and in no particular order. They include: Anne Hawker, next World President of Rehabilitation International,
The late Dame Anne Ballin, disability pioneer
Vi Hepburn, marine engineer,
Victoria Manning, Deaf human rights activist
Trish Harris, poet
Wendi Wicks, pest about town,
Alexia Pickering, accessibility pioneer,
Ruth Jones, disability strategist,
Karen Butterworth, poet
Mary O’Hagan, mental health consumer activist and former Commissioner,
Judy Small, blind activist and public servant,
Alison Riseborough, accessible transport activist and public servant,
Linda Beck, researcher, and lawyer
Verona Moynihan, tireless community worker,
Val Smith, former social welfare commissioner and then some, Marion Wellington, tireless community worker
Josie Khoury, Video presenter,
Minnie Baragwanath, media star and then some
The late June Opie, author and disability pioneer
Pam Cook, former National Education Advocate and mentor
Marilyn Baikie, disability activist and past DPA president
Grace Wheeler, blind activist and mentor
Vicki Terrel, disability activist within the churches
Bronwyn Hayward, dancer
and all the others, too many to name, all of you, disabled women, celebrate, this is your day too!
