I grew up in a female-dominated household with two older sisters, a brother and our parents. My mother and father wanted to see us all do well and made no distinction between my brother and us girls. I never elt there was anything I couldn’t do just because I was a female, besides the obvious things of course. Throughout my childhood, my mother regularly called out bias against women—she still does: she doesn’t let an offensive or derogatory remark slip by for the sake of being polite. Regardless, to me, my life seemed to be progress- ing in the same way as my brothers’. As a result, I felt aware of feminism but not necessarily affected by it. An awakening of sorts happened later when I worked as an employment lawyer and witnessed the slow progress being made towards equality, particularly around pay. Increasingly, I’ve felt the need to speak up, just like Mum.
I now think back to my mother’s resolve in not just letting things go, and I admire her for it. I suspect there were many women like her at the time, making their point at dinner tables. Their children might also have realised much later just what their mothers were going on about, but still, I think, better late than never. I’m grateful for my mum’s persistence and I’ve taken up the baton. It makes me wonder what my daughter will eventually think of me.
As a single woman, I’ve felt a certain tension with feminism…