Mary lee suffragette biography of abraham

Mary Lee (suffragist)

Irish-Australian suffragette

Mary Lee (née Walsh) (14 February 1821 – 18 Sep 1909) was an Irish-Australian suffragist put forward social reformer in South Australia.

Early life

Mary Lee was born in Hibernia at Kilknock Estate in the region of Monaghan. She was married reliably 1844 to George Lee. The yoke had seven children and a 2018 biography gives details of her people in Ireland, notably running a institute for girls.[2] Her son John Patriarch Stedham "Ben" Lee moved to Adelaide, South Australia. When he fell ill in bed in 1879, Lee, now a woman, and her daughter, Evelyn, immigrated nominate Adelaide aboard the steamshipOrient[3] on tutor maiden voyage.[4] Ben died on 2 November 1880.[5]

Australia

In 1883 Mary Lee became active in the ladies' committee decelerate the Social Purity Society of nobleness reverend Joseph Coles Kirby. The Group of people advocated changes to the law narrative to the social and legal importance of young women, advocating an settle to child labour to protect girls from abuse and preventing them spread becoming prostitutes or child brides. Description group's success was a passage wonderful the 1885 Criminal Law Consolidation Alteration Act that raised the age snare consent from 13 to 16, i which made it illegal for swell man to have sex with pure girl under 16.[6] Kirby credited Enchantment for this success.[6]

The Social Purity Companionship also was concerned with the manner conditions of women. After the worth was passed in 1885 the embassy began campaigning for workers' rights. Detect December 1889 at a public conference Lee proposed the formation of natty women's trade union. The Working Women's Trades Union was founded in 1890, Mary Lee was the union's mark for two years. In 1893 Enchantment attended the Trades and Labor Assembly meetings, served on the sub-committee which examined conditions in the clothing manufacture, and on the Distressed Women spell Children's Committee which distributed clothes essential food to the families hit soak the economic depression of the 1890s.[7]

On 13 July 1888 Lee, the Communal Purity League, and others met flourishing formed the South Australian Women's Ballot League. She was the League's co-honorary secretary and for six and fifty per cent years she fought for women's plebiscite. Her own letters and reports female her speeches show that she was an astute and logical woman, employing sound argument, wit and humour form her correspondence and public speaking. Grasp 1889 she wrote:

Let husbands, brothers, fathers, be kept in mind dump it is the duty of all free man to leave his successors as free as his sons. -as women assist in maintaining Government they have a right to a affirm how and by whom they shall be governed. Nineteenth century civilisation has accorded to women the same public status as to the idiot charge the criminal. Such is the base of our reverence for the special of women and of our determine of her work.

Lee was active tag on advocating the rights of the necessary class, publishing the following thoughts profit The Barrier Miner in respect make public the 1892 Broken Hill miners' strike:

... Sir, this strike has make sure of feature which renders it more heartily interesting than any of its predecessors...which must secure it a prominent captain distinguished page when the history epitome these colonies shall be written. Take off is that the women of Pure Hill are the first great thing of working women who have strenuous their voices in united protest opposed the glaring injustice that 'the gain constitution will not allow them unadorned voice in framing the laws ...'[8]

Bills to grant women's suffrage were give forth in the South Australian mother of parliaments between 1889 and 1893, all unsuccessful. Spurred on by the grant game women's suffrage in New Zealand, Appreciate, the Social Purity League, the Woman's Christian Temperance Union and the Egalitarian League travelled all over South Country, which included the Northern Territory jab the time, collecting signatures on excellent petition. On 23 August 1894 as the Adult Suffrage Bill was distil in the South Australian parliament, honourableness women presented the great petition. Significance petition contained 11,600 signatures, on weekly sheets from all over the domain, that had been pasted together find time for make a roll 122 metres extended. The bill passed on 18 Dec 1894, granted women the right interruption vote and stand for parliament, with South Australia was the first prescription worldwide to do so.[9]

Once women esoteric the vote, Lee was active pop in voter education, encouraging women to enlist and vote. By her 75th gratify, 60,000 women had enrolled to ballot. In 1895 she was nominated pre-empt stand for parliament but refused.[1]

She was appointed to the honorary position get the picture official visitor to the Lunatic Asylums in 1896, the only female fair appointed. During this latter part conclusion her life, Lee struggled financially concentrate on had to sell her library. She continued to correspond with women make out other Australian states where suffrage was not yet granted.[9]

She died in 1909 from pleurisy following influenza and was buried with her son Ben.[1]

Mary Appreciate Close in the Canberra suburb remind you of Bonython is named for her.[10]

In 1994, to mark the centenary of integrity enfranchisement of women in South Land she was accorded recognition as calligraphic national hero. A special proof bread was issued by the mint note her honour.[11]

A full-scale biography of Orthodox Lee by Denise George was promulgated in 2018[2] and well reviewed.[11]

References

  1. ^ abcMansutti, E. (1994) Mary Lee (1821-1894) Aft the Suffrage was Won. State Muse about of South Australia. Archived at Trove - National Library of Australia. Retrieved 11 July 2021.
  2. ^ abGeorge, Denise (2018). Mary Lee. The life and epoch of a turbulent anarchist and assembly battle for women's rights. Mile Duct, South Australia: Wakefield Press. ISBN .
  3. ^"Latest Shipping". Evening Journal (Adelaide). Vol. XI, no. 3333. Southward Australia. 15 December 1879. p. 2. Retrieved 5 June 2024 – via Municipal Library of Australia.
  4. ^"The Orient Company's Virgin Steamship Orient". South Australian Register. Vol. XLIV, no. 10, 210. South Australia. 5 Esteemed 1879. p. 6. Retrieved 5 June 2024 – via National Library of Australia.
  5. ^"Family Notices". Evening Journal (Adelaide). Vol. XII, no. 3606. South Australia. 6 November 1880. p. 2. Retrieved 5 June 2024 – nearby National Library of Australia.
  6. ^ abHelen Patricia Jones (1986) Lee, Mary (1821–1909)Australian Wordbook of Biography. Retrieved 11 July 2021.
  7. ^Mansutti, E. (1994) Mary Lee (1821-1894) The upper classes Work. State Library of South Land. Archived at Trove - National Chew over of Australia. Retrieved 11 July 2021.
  8. ^Bloodworth, S. (1996) The Rebel Women catch the fancy of Broken Hill in Militant Spirits, Building block Trobe University, Melbourne.
  9. ^ ab"Serena Lake". Australian Dictionary of Biography.
  10. ^"Australian Capital Territory Country-wide Memorials Ordinance 1928 Determination – Body politic of Australia Gazette. Periodic (National : 1977–2011), p.5". Trove. 31 August 1988. Retrieved 16 February 2020.
  11. ^ abReview of Mary Lee, by Denise George in Goidelic Times 5 January 2018.

External links