The Newcastle women’s movement in the 1970s and 1980s through the lens of Josephine Conway’s activism and archives

From the late 1960s, women in the Australian industrial city of Newcastle, New South Wales (NSW), joined women around the world in agitating for a broader role in all areas of society and Josephine Conway was one of those women. Josephine raised awareness of, and campaigned on, many of the feminist causes of the 1970s and 1980s. She was passionate about women’s healthcare, protested against women’s objectification in the media, and lobbied for legislation that offered legal parity for women. She fought never-ending battles for the right to legal and affordable pregnancy terminations; and campaigned for equal employment opportunities and the provision of childcare services. Josephine supported women’s activism in the peace movement and for women’s ordination; and was involved in the blossoming of feminist spirituality and creativity in Newcastle. Using Josephine’s extensive archives as a lens, supplemented with oral histories from campaign allies, the thesis explores their pathways to feminism and shared activism. It dissects the women’s groups which Josephine joined, and the modes of operation and relationships within them, as well as the actions that were carried out in pursuing their feminist causes. The themes that emerge are, first that Josephine’s role in the women’s movement was that of the ‘committed individual’ posited by Gerda Lerner as necessary for social change. Second, the thesis demonstrates the wide range and value of the macro and micro-actions undertaken by Josephine and her cohorts in mounting and maintaining effective campaigns. Third, this study reveals the web of relationships and the flow of ideas, tactics and artefacts along transnational and national feminist pathways, and between the capital cities and the regions, which were essential for bringing about nationwide change. In doing so it reveals an important regional story which has not previously been included in histories of the Australian women’s movement.