Getting Selected: public event to examine the changing role of women in Parliament

9 November 2017

Female leaders, equal rights activists and scholars will come together in Lincoln this month ahead of next year’s centenary of women gaining the right to vote and stand for Parliament, and will ask the question: how has the process of being selected as a Parliamentary candidate changed since 1918? The round-table discussion will feature leading […]

Female leaders, equal rights activists and scholars will come together in Lincoln this month ahead of next year’s centenary of women gaining the right to vote and stand for Parliament, and will ask the question: how has the process of being selected as a Parliamentary candidate changed since 1918?

The round-table discussion will feature leading women from a variety of fields, including Lesley Abdela, Co-founder of the 300 Group campaign for women in parliament, politics and public life; Dolly Theis, Co-director of the 50:50 Parliament #AskHerToStand campaign: Hannah Davies, playwright and Co-director of Common Ground Theatre; and Lincoln MP Karen Lee. It will be chaired by Professor Krista Cowman, Professor of History at the University of Lincoln, and will also include Sarah Childs, Professor of Politics and Gender at Birkbeck, University of London. Members of the public are invited to join the discussion, ‘Getting Selected – A Landmark for Women’s Rights’, which will take place on the University of Lincoln’s Brayford Pool campus on Friday 17th November.

The event forms part of a wider project funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council, entitled ‘What Difference did the War make? Women, Suffrage, Politics and the First World War.’ Led by the University of Lincoln in partnership with the University of Plymouth and Parliament’s Vote 100 project, the project aims to build on previous research exploring the links between the ongoing wartime suffrage campaign and women’s votes.

Principal Investigator Professor Krista Cowman, from the School of History and Heritage at the University of Lincoln said: “Women wanted the vote so that they could bring about changes in their own lives themselves. The vote was a means to greater equality rather than an end in itself. It is important to remember that 100 years ago women had no vote, and could not become MPs. We have come a long way since then, and have had female Prime Ministers, but women are still under-represented in Parliament.”

MP for Lincoln Karen Lee said “Next year marks 100 years since the Acts of Parliament which gave women the vote and allowed them to stand as MPs. I am delighted to take part in this event, which will celebrate these key milestones and examine their impact on our democracy past and present.”

Getting Selected – A Landmark for Women’s Rights will take place at 4pm on Friday 17th November. The event is free to attend but booking is essential. To book a place go to: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/getting-selected-a-landmark-for-womens-rights-tickets-39398033579.