Women and Whitlam Revisiting the revolution

The Whitlam Government transformed Australia. What is often overlooked, however, is the scope and scale of the reforms for Australian women. The Whitlam Government of 1972– 1975 appointed a women’ s advisor to national government – a world first – and reopened the equal pay case. It extended the minimum wage for women, introduced the single mother’ s benefit, ensured cheap and accessible contraception, funded women’ s refuges and women’ s health centres, introduced accessible, no-fault divorce and the Family Court, introduced paid maternity leave in the public service, and much more. At a time when women are once again discovering their political voice, this book brings together three generations of women – including Patricia Amphlett, Elizabeth Reid, Eva Cox, Tanya Plibersek, Heidi Norman, Blair Williams and Ranuka Tandan – to revisit the Whitlam revolution and to build on it for the future.

Michelle Arrow is professor in Modern History and one of Australia’ s leading contemporary historians. She is the author of Friday on Our Minds and the prize-winning The Seventies.

Foreword – Tania Plibersek Introduction (Michelle Arrow) Part 1 introduction: Women and political influence – Marian Sawer Whitlam and the Women’ s Liberation Movement – Elizabeth Reid Women’ s Electoral Lobby and equal pay – Iola Mathews Sisterhood – Biff Ward The personal is political – Pat Eatock and Cathy Eatock Part 2 introduction: Women and the law – Kim Rubenstein Whitlam, women and human rights – Elizabeth Evatt ‘ Every difficult female’ : Women and the Family Law Act 1975 – Camilla Nelson Part 3 introduction: Health and social policy – Karen Soldatic Women’ s health, women’ s welfare – Marie Coleman Women for Whitlam everywhere: The impact of the Whitlam government in regional Australia – Margaret Reynolds Just add women and stir: Revisiting the femocrat revolution – Eva Cox Out of wedlock – out of luck: Single mothers and ex-nuptial babies – Terese Edwards Part 4 introduction: Media, arts and education – Julie McLeod Whitlam, women and the media – Gillian Appleton Whitlam, women and the arts – Patricia Amphlett Jean Blackburn, girls and their school education – Craig Campbell and Debra Hayes Part 5 introduction: What remains to be done – Heidi Norman Then, now and what might come – A writer’ s take – Sara Dowse Beyond liberal feminism: The importance of a grassroots women’ s movement – Ranuka Tandan Re-energising the revolution: From 2010 to now – Blair Williams Bios and acknowledgments