{"id":51143,"date":"2021-03-04T15:00:00","date_gmt":"2021-03-04T15:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/?p=51143"},"modified":"2023-10-03T14:53:49","modified_gmt":"2023-10-03T13:53:49","slug":"international-womens-day-liberation-in-oxford-by-gillian-murphy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/international-womens-day-liberation-in-oxford-by-gillian-murphy\/","title":{"rendered":"International Women&#8217;s Day: Liberation in Oxford by Gillian Murphy"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>This<a href=\"https:\/\/www.internationalwomensday.com\/\"> International Women\u2019s Day&nbsp;<\/a>discover a catalyst moment in the history of women and the city of Oxford. Told through an exhibition-like presentation of archival materials held in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lse.ac.uk\/library\/collection-highlights\/The-Womens-Library\">The Women&#8217;s Library, LSE<\/a>,&nbsp;Dr Gillian Murphy, the library&#8217;s&nbsp;Curator for Equality, Rights and Citizenship explores the occasion of the first Women\u2019s Liberation Conference, deemed a momentous event for women&#8217;s equality in the UK.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>On 1 March 2020, an event was held at Somerville College, Oxford, organised by the <a href=\"https:\/\/fla-network.com\/\">Feminist Library and Archives Network<\/a>, which was 50 years to the day since the first women\u2019s liberation conference in Oxford, and I was lucky enough to attend. We were treated to a screening of Sue Crockford\u2019s \u2018<a href=\"https:\/\/vimeo.com\/193724797\">A Woman\u2019s Place\u2019<\/a> (1971).&nbsp;This was Sue\u2019s first film and documents the women\u2019s liberation conference in Oxford and the first women\u2019s liberation march.&nbsp;As part of the British Library\u2019s \u2018Sisterhood and After\u2019 project, Sue was <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bl.uk\/collection-items\/in-the-beginning-we-demanded\">interviewed<\/a> about making the film.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image wp-image-43901 size-full\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"567\" height=\"374\" data-src=\"https:\/\/modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/2_1-1.jpg\" alt=\"Sally Fraser, Womens Liberation Conference, Oxford, 1970. Photograph courtesy Sally Fraser\" class=\"wp-image-51147 lazyload\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/2_1-1.jpg 567w, https:\/\/www.modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/2_1-1-300x198.jpg 300w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 567px) 100vw, 567px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 567px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 567\/374;\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Women&#8217;s Liberation Conference, Oxford, 1970. Photograph by, and courtesy Sally Fraser<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>The film is very moving, particularly as I was watching it in Oxford, listening to the young and older women talking about their hopes and fears about their lives and about what they wanted to change.<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>At the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lse.ac.uk\/library\/collection-highlights\/the-womens-library\">Women\u2019s Library<\/a>, we hold many papers of women who were active in the women\u2019s liberation movement, such as Anna Davin, Sheila Rowbotham and Sally Alexander. These three women were involved in organising the first women\u2019s liberation conference, which was initially to be held at Ruskin College but was relocated to the Oxford Union because of the numbers of women attending.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The main business of the conference took place on Saturday 28 February and Sunday 1 March 1970. The programme was divided into three main sections: the social role of women; women and the economy; and women and revolution.&nbsp;There was an informal discussion on Saturday evening and a concluding session called \u2018Where are we going?\u2019 Both of these sessions were closed to men.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Groups and organisations were asked to contribute brief discussion papers about their present work and some of these papers have survived. What follows is a look at some of these typescripts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>&#8216;The Myth of Inactivity&#8217;<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image wp-image-43873 size-full\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"638\" height=\"1024\" data-src=\"https:\/\/modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/7ada-rowbotham-1-638x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\u2018The myth of inactivity\u2019 by Sheila Rowbotham. Material from 7ADA The Women's Library at LSE. Image courtesy The Women's Library at LSE\" class=\"wp-image-51151 lazyload\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/7ada-rowbotham-1-638x1024.jpg 638w, https:\/\/www.modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/7ada-rowbotham-1-187x300.jpg 187w, https:\/\/www.modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/7ada-rowbotham-1-768x1232.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/7ada-rowbotham-1-957x1536.jpg 957w, https:\/\/www.modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/7ada-rowbotham-1-1276x2048.jpg 1276w, https:\/\/www.modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/7ada-rowbotham-1-573x920.jpg 573w, https:\/\/www.modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/7ada-rowbotham-1-1568x2516.jpg 1568w, https:\/\/www.modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/7ada-rowbotham-1-scaled.jpg 1595w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 638px) 100vw, 638px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 638px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 638\/1024;\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">\u2018The myth of inactivity\u2019 by Sheila Rowbotham. Material from 7ADA The Women&#8217;s Library at LSE. Image courtesy The Women&#8217;s Library at LSE<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p><br>Sheila Rowbotham, academic and activist, was involved in the History Workshop movement, along with Sally and Anna, which emerged at Ruskin College under Raphael Samuel during the 1960s. The History Workshop movement envisioned history from the perspective of ordinary people rather than the elite and tried to move the study of the past beyond academia into public gatherings which anyone could attend.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>This is where the idea for the women\u2019s liberation conference came from.<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image wp-image-43904 size-full\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"567\" height=\"374\" data-src=\"https:\/\/modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/3_0-1.jpg\" alt=\"Sally Fraser, Women's Liberation Conference, Oxford, 1970. Photograph courtesy Sally Fraser\" class=\"wp-image-51148 lazyload\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/3_0-1.jpg 567w, https:\/\/www.modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/3_0-1-300x198.jpg 300w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 567px) 100vw, 567px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 567px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 567\/374;\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Women&#8217;s Liberation Conference, Oxford, 1970. Photograph by, and courtesy Sally Fraser<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p><br>Sheila\u2019s paper wanted to discover the hidden histories of ordinary women:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>\u2018They are amongst the silent people, the people of \u2018no name\u2019 who are rarely heard about because they don\u2019t go on record.\u2019<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>She then lists questions that she wanted to address. Here are two of them: \u2018At what point does the consciousness of the oppression of women begin to look for alternative ways to live?\u2019, \u2018What contacts and common interests exist between women of different classes?\u2019 The typescript concluded with some references.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image wp-image-43875 size-full\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"782\" height=\"1024\" data-src=\"https:\/\/modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/7ada-child-rearing-1-e1614875013369-782x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\u2018Child-rearing and women\u2019s liberation\u2019 by Rochelle Wortis. Material from 7ADA The Women's Library at LSE. Image courtesy The Women's Library at LSE\n\" class=\"wp-image-51152 lazyload\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/7ada-child-rearing-1-e1614875013369-782x1024.jpg 782w, https:\/\/www.modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/7ada-child-rearing-1-e1614875013369-229x300.jpg 229w, https:\/\/www.modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/7ada-child-rearing-1-e1614875013369-768x1005.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/7ada-child-rearing-1-e1614875013369-1173x1536.jpg 1173w, https:\/\/www.modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/7ada-child-rearing-1-e1614875013369-1565x2048.jpg 1565w, https:\/\/www.modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/7ada-child-rearing-1-e1614875013369-703x920.jpg 703w, https:\/\/www.modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/7ada-child-rearing-1-e1614875013369-1568x2052.jpg 1568w, https:\/\/www.modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/7ada-child-rearing-1-e1614875013369-scaled.jpg 1956w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 782px) 100vw, 782px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 782px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 782\/1024;\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">\u2018Child-rearing and women\u2019s liberation\u2019 by Rochelle Wortis. Material from 7ADA The Women&#8217;s Library at LSE. Image courtesy The Women&#8217;s Library at LSE<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>&#8216;The domestication and subordination of women is perpetuated by modern psychology&#8217;<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>The words of Rochelle were probably echoed by many women who attended the conference. Caring for children was a very big concern and, however equal society became in terms of education and job opportunities, women believed that there would not be real equality until there were changes relating to how and who cared for the children and until there was a shift in family responsibilities.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image wp-image-43903 size-full\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"567\" height=\"374\" data-src=\"https:\/\/modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/6_4-1.jpg\" alt=\"Sally Fraser, Women's Liberation Conference, Oxford, 1970. Photograph courtesy Sally Fraser\" class=\"wp-image-51149 lazyload\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/6_4-1.jpg 567w, https:\/\/www.modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/6_4-1-300x198.jpg 300w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 567px) 100vw, 567px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 567px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 567\/374;\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Women&#8217;s Liberation Conference, Oxford, 1970. Photograph by, and courtesy Sally Fraser<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p><br>Women\u2019s employment was another big area of discussion. In the below typescript, Arielle Aberson provides statistics about women\u2019s employment concluding that there were increasing numbers of women over 35 in the workforce, mainly working part-time and mainly involved in clerical work or unskilled work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>A very small proportion of women were employed in professional, scientific and technical jobs which was a fast-growing area of employment to which men were geared.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image wp-image-43876 size-full\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"703\" height=\"1024\" data-src=\"https:\/\/modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/7ada-employment-1-703x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\u2018Main features of women\u2019s employment in Britain in the 1960s\u2019 by Arielle Aberson. Material from 7ADA The Women's Library at LSE. Image courtesy The Women's Library at LSE\n\" class=\"wp-image-51154 lazyload\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/7ada-employment-1-703x1024.jpg 703w, https:\/\/www.modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/7ada-employment-1-206x300.jpg 206w, https:\/\/www.modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/7ada-employment-1-768x1119.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/7ada-employment-1-1054x1536.jpg 1054w, https:\/\/www.modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/7ada-employment-1-1405x2048.jpg 1405w, https:\/\/www.modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/7ada-employment-1-631x920.jpg 631w, https:\/\/www.modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/7ada-employment-1-1568x2285.jpg 1568w, https:\/\/www.modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/7ada-employment-1-scaled.jpg 1757w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 703px) 100vw, 703px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 703px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 703\/1024;\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">\u2018Main features of women\u2019s employment in Britain in the 1960s\u2019 by Arielle Aberson. Material from 7ADA The Women&#8217;s Library at LSE. Image courtesy The Women&#8217;s Library at LSE<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>The below typescript is anonymous but it encapsulates the sentiment of many women who were angry and wanted change in society. There\u2019s a real sense that this conference was the beginning of something that could be big:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>\u2018Women\u2019s liberation so far has been a ripple on the water. How easy it would be to make a tidal wave!\u2019&nbsp;<\/strong><strong>This speaker didn\u2019t want to change existing roles between men and women but \u2018what\u2019s needed is the attack on the totality of life-styles to destroy all roles.&#8217;<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image wp-image-43878 size-full\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"696\" height=\"1024\" data-src=\"https:\/\/modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/7ada-story-of-.....-1-696x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\u2018A story of love, drama and tenderness\u2026\u2019 Material from 7ADA The Women's Library at LSE. Image courtesy The Women's Library at LSE\n\" class=\"wp-image-51156 lazyload\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/7ada-story-of-.....-1-696x1024.jpg 696w, https:\/\/www.modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/7ada-story-of-.....-1-204x300.jpg 204w, https:\/\/www.modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/7ada-story-of-.....-1-768x1129.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/7ada-story-of-.....-1-626x920.jpg 626w, https:\/\/www.modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/7ada-story-of-.....-1.jpg 859w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 696px) 100vw, 696px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 696px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 696\/1024;\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">\u2018A story of love, drama and tenderness\u2026\u2019 Material from 7ADA The Women&#8217;s Library at LSE. Image courtesy The Women&#8217;s Library at LSE<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>The organisers were interested in collecting some general views of the women who attended the conference and put together this questionnaire. Although the text is faded, the questions it presents are revealing. Question 2 is an interesting question: \u2018What do you feel is the most important wrong with women\u2019s position in society?\u2019 There were questions about whether women liked being a housewife. Other questions were about child-care and about married life. The last question on this page:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>\u2018When you were a child did you have ambitions other than to get married and have a family?<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image wp-image-43879 size-full\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"698\" height=\"1024\" data-src=\"https:\/\/modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/7ada-questionnarie-1-698x1024.jpg\" alt=\"Questionnaire. Material from 7ADA The Women's Library at LSE. Image courtesy The Women's Library at LSE\n\" class=\"wp-image-51157 lazyload\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/7ada-questionnarie-1-698x1024.jpg 698w, https:\/\/www.modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/7ada-questionnarie-1-205x300.jpg 205w, https:\/\/www.modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/7ada-questionnarie-1-768x1126.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/7ada-questionnarie-1-1048x1536.jpg 1048w, https:\/\/www.modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/7ada-questionnarie-1-1397x2048.jpg 1397w, https:\/\/www.modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/7ada-questionnarie-1-627x920.jpg 627w, https:\/\/www.modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/7ada-questionnarie-1-1568x2299.jpg 1568w, https:\/\/www.modernartoxford.org.uk\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/7ada-questionnarie-1-scaled.jpg 1746w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 698px) 100vw, 698px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 698px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 698\/1024;\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Questionnaire. Material from 7ADA The Women&#8217;s Library at LSE. Image courtesy The Women&#8217;s Library at LSE<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>Further information:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In spring 2020, LSE Library mounted an exhibition \u2018Social Revolution: women\u2019s liberation and gay liberation in the 1970s and 80s\u2019 to mark 50 years since the first women\u2019s liberation conference and the first meeting of Gay Liberation Front, which occurred at LSE in October 1970. You can find out more about some of the items that were displayed in this exhibition <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.lse.ac.uk\/lsereviewofbooks\/2020\/03\/03\/5-key-items-to-see-in-lse-library-exhibition-social-revolution-womens-liberation-and-gay-liberation-in-the-1970s-and-80s\/\">here<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You can find out more about the beginning of women\u2019s liberation in Britain in this <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.lse.ac.uk\/lsehistory\/2020\/03\/17\/the-beginnings-of-womens-liberation-in-britain\/\">blog post<\/a>.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>And more about our women\u2019s liberation movement archives <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lse.ac.uk\/library\/collection-highlights\/womens-liberation-movement\">here<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>~ Words by Dr Gillian Murphy<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Dr Gillian Murphy is the Curator of Equality, Rights and Citizenship at LSE Library. She worked at the Women&#8217;s Library as an archivist for many years before it was transferred to LSE in 2013.&nbsp;<\/strong><strong>Discover more about the work of The Woman&#8217;s Library on their <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lse.ac.uk\/library\/collection-highlights\/The-Womens-Library\">website.<\/a>&nbsp;<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Modern Art Oxford would like to thank Sally Fraser for her photography of the Women&#8217;s Liberation Conference, and&nbsp;Mica Nava,&nbsp;Emeritus Professor of Cultural Studies at the University of East London for her generous research support.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>The theme of International Women&#8217;s Day 2021 is&nbsp;#ChooseToChallenge. Join in with IWD 2021&nbsp;activities <a href=\"https:\/\/www.internationalwomensday.com\/\">here<\/a>.&nbsp;<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>This International Women\u2019s Day discover a catalyst moment in the history of women and the city of Oxford. Told through an exhibition-like presentation of archival materials held in The Women\u2019s Library, LSE, Dr Gillian Murphy, the library\u2019s Curator for Equality, Rights and Citizenship explores the occasion of the first Women\u2019s Liberation Conference, deemed a momentous event for women\u2019s equality in the UK.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":51148,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-51143","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","entry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.4 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>International Women&#039;s Day: Liberation in Oxford by Gillian Murphy - Modern Art Oxford<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"This is Adapt Transform Stories, a thematic series exploring community responses to urban design and creativity. 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