“Vacuuming the living room floor — with or without makeup — is not work that takes enough thought or energy to challenge any woman’s full capacity,” Betty Friedan wrote in her 1963 book The Feminine...
By Julie Hare
BroadAgenda Wraps the Week
Another year. Another brouhaha over the Aussie day lamb ad (are they becoming too political?) and the Australia Day honours list. Honestly, after last year’s national convulsion over the awarding of...
Who are the women of the extreme right?
On January 6, Ashli Babbitt, 35, became a martyr. The Air Force veteran was in the act of scaling a barricade of furniture in Washington DC’s Capitol when she was shot in the chest at point blank by...
The baby boomers: why MPs are calling for change
When Kate Thwaites was pregnant with her second child last year, she got angry. She got angry at the fact that, despite the widespread availability of sophisticated (and secure) videoconferencing...
LGBTI military personnel and the march of history
“Although homosexual behaviour is not a frequent occurrence in the [defence] services, it is not acceptable”. The year was 1976. The statement approved by Sir James Killen, the then-Minister for...
BroadAgenda Wraps the Week
I don’t get this. Research has found watching David Attenborough documentaries to be soothing and good for one’s mental health. Say what? Maybe I’m in the minority, but Attenborough’s message of...
The ACT, women and the body politic
Following an historic 2020 election, the ACT’s legislative assembly now comprises 60% women. Not only do women make up the majority of elected representatives, at least half of each party’s MLAs are...
Is it time for universal paid domestic violence leave?
Women experiencing domestic violence are often told to “just leave”. But “just leaving” is never simple; it is fraught with danger, complex logistics, and psychological trauma. More often than not...
BroadAgenda Wraps the Week: 4 December
It’s 25 years since Hillary Clinton uttered the immortal words “women’s rights are human rights”. It was at the UN’s 1995 Fourth World Conference on Women and optimism was high that we were on the...