Australian Women's Book Review: Online

Hecate's
Australian Women's Book Review

ISSN 1033-9434
Editor:  Barbara Brook
Contributing Assistant Editor:  Katie Hughes
Photomontage:  Set in Stone, Adele Flood

Volume 12, 2000

Keeping the Flag Flying

Carrying the Banner: Women, Leadership and Activism in Australia, edited by Joan Eveline and Lorraine Hayden. University of Western Australia Press, Nedlands. 2000, paperback, 237 pages.

Reviewed by Joy Damousi

“Women are all too often reluctant leaders”, observes Debra Shorter, the head of a successful marketing-communications company, The Shorter Group. One of the striking themes of this collection is that when they do assume the mantle of leadership, women exercise it in very different ways from men. Each of the women who have contributed to this collection reflects on the meanings of leadership and activism and invariably questions the method, style and approach traditionally associated with male models of power.

Explicitly or implicitly, these women advocate a new form of leadership which is more communicative, more tolerant, and more inclusive.

The first section – “regenerating politics” - considers women's role and experience in party and local politics. Joan Williams opens with a timely reflection of the methods of feminists of the past and considers how tenuous their victories have been, calling for the need to continue unified action. Labor senator, Pat Giles, and Jo Vallentine, the anti-nuclear parliamentarian, also view leadership in politics within a collectivist model where women work cooperatively and in partnership. Carmen Lawrence would agree – but, not surprisingly, her piece discusses the role of the media in creating and demolishing leaders. Rachel Cleland, environmental activist, also suggests collectivism is the way forward to social change.

The second section – “my place, my work” - looks at issues of place and space, and extends some of these issues of collective leadership in a variety of contexts. Josie Boyle presents an evocative and powerful Aboriginal story of resilient, proud, womanhood. Shirley De la Hunty (née Strickland) discusses her involvement in athletics and discrimination against women in that sphere, but moves to a discussion of environmentalism and broad-based activism. Helen Creed relates her experience of women within the union movement, whilst Mary Patetsos explores the challenges in bringing together Greek and Australian cultures. The exercise of management skills and the establishment of a more egalitarian workplace in the context of two male-dominated professions is explored by Lyn Sherwood (building and construction) and Debra Shorter (marketing communications).

Another key theme is that the exercise of power also involves the ability to give it away and empower others. Faye Gale reflects on her role in promoting women academics. The supportive relationship that can exist between women is also emphasised by Antoinette Kennedy as she suggests that women's collective action can be effective in tempering male dominance in the law. Donella Caspersz, Ann Ghisalberti in her discussion of science, Patricia Crawford as feminist historian, and Val Marsden in regard to her involvement in WEL (Women's Electoral Lobby), all stress the importance of collectivism. This theme of collectivism and unity amongst women also runs throughout the final section, in which Joan Winch discusses the experiences of Aboriginal women and education, and Barbara Buick talks about Indigenous peoples, equal opportunity, and WEL. Issues of equality and discrimination in terms of ethnicity and sexuality are raised by Mail Valamanesh and Annie Goldflam respectively, while Veronica Brady condemns the “hairy individualism” of many management models as both inappropriate and ineffective.

This genre, of documenting women's achievements through personalised stories, continues to hold an important place in feminist scholarship and endeavour. The writing in these pieces is immediate, accessible, fresh and relevant. They serve as engaging historical documents, as women reflect on the obstacles and opportunities available to them, and on the feminist vision that has propelled them into politics and activism throughout their lives.

These stories are drawn from women in Western Australia who have been involved in a range of local and government institutions. Despite this impressive breadth, the voices of younger women could have been included. There are no women under 36. Such an inclusion could have added a further contrast of how women of another generation are now grappling with these issues of power, leadership, and activism. Similarly, there are no women represented from the arts - drama, film, art, literature - where particularly masculinist notions of leadership operate in subtle, but no less powerful, ways.

Veronica Brady exhorts us to remember that the “most potent force in the world is surely the power to imagine things differently”. After reading this collection, the powerful message is that women do and can make a creative difference in remodelling power dynamics and the structures within which they are active. These testimonies point to the challenges confronting women in trying to invent and re-invent new ways in a constantly changing and dynamic environment.

Joy Damousi teaches Women's Studies at the University of Melbourne and is a widely-published feminist historian.

Hecate's Australian Women's Book Review

ISSN 1033-9434		Editor: Barbara Brook Contributing Assistant Editor: Katie Hughes *Photomontage: Set in Stone, Adele Flood*
Volume 12, 2000

Keeping the Flag Flying Carrying the Banner: Women, Leadership and Activism in Australia, edited by Joan Eveline and Lorraine Hayden. University of Western Australia Press, Nedlands. 2000, paperback, 237 pages. Reviewed by Joy Damousi “Women are all too often reluctant leaders”, observes Debra Shorter, the head of a successful marketing-communications company, The Shorter Group. One of the striking themes of this collection is that when they do assume the mantle of leadership, women exercise it in very different ways from men. Each of the women who have contributed to this collection reflects on the meanings of leadership and activism and invariably questions the method, style and approach traditionally associated with male models of power. Explicitly or implicitly, these women advocate a new form of leadership which is more communicative, more tolerant, and more inclusive. The first section – “regenerating politics” - considers women's role and experience in party and local politics. Joan Williams opens with a timely reflection of the methods of feminists of the past and considers how tenuous their victories have been, calling for the need to continue unified action. Labor senator, Pat Giles, and Jo Vallentine, the anti-nuclear parliamentarian, also view leadership in politics within a collectivist model where women work cooperatively and in partnership. Carmen Lawrence would agree – but, not surprisingly, her piece discusses the role of the media in creating and demolishing leaders. Rachel Cleland, environmental activist, also suggests collectivism is the way forward to social change. The second section – “my place, my work” - looks at issues of place and space, and extends some of these issues of collective leadership in a variety of contexts. Josie Boyle presents an evocative and powerful Aboriginal story of resilient, proud, womanhood. Shirley De la Hunty (née Strickland) discusses her involvement in athletics and discrimination against women in that sphere, but moves to a discussion of environmentalism and broad-based activism. Helen Creed relates her experience of women within the union movement, whilst Mary Patetsos explores the challenges in bringing together Greek and Australian cultures. The exercise of management skills and the establishment of a more egalitarian workplace in the context of two male-dominated professions is explored by Lyn Sherwood (building and construction) and Debra Shorter (marketing communications). Another key theme is that the exercise of power also involves the ability to give it away and empower others. Faye Gale reflects on her role in promoting women academics. The supportive relationship that can exist between women is also emphasised by Antoinette Kennedy as she suggests that women's collective action can be effective in tempering male dominance in the law. Donella Caspersz, Ann Ghisalberti in her discussion of science, Patricia Crawford as feminist historian, and Val Marsden in regard to her involvement in WEL (Women's Electoral Lobby), all stress the importance of collectivism. This theme of collectivism and unity amongst women also runs throughout the final section, in which Joan Winch discusses the experiences of Aboriginal women and education, and Barbara Buick talks about Indigenous peoples, equal opportunity, and WEL. Issues of equality and discrimination in terms of ethnicity and sexuality are raised by Mail Valamanesh and Annie Goldflam respectively, while Veronica Brady condemns the “hairy individualism” of many management models as both inappropriate and ineffective. This genre, of documenting women's achievements through personalised stories, continues to hold an important place in feminist scholarship and endeavour. The writing in these pieces is immediate, accessible, fresh and relevant. They serve as engaging historical documents, as women reflect on the obstacles and opportunities available to them, and on the feminist vision that has propelled them into politics and activism throughout their lives. These stories are drawn from women in Western Australia who have been involved in a range of local and government institutions. Despite this impressive breadth, the voices of younger women could have been included. There are no women under 36. Such an inclusion could have added a further contrast of how women of another generation are now grappling with these issues of power, leadership, and activism. Similarly, there are no women represented from the arts - drama, film, art, literature - where particularly masculinist notions of leadership operate in subtle, but no less powerful, ways. Veronica Brady exhorts us to remember that the “most potent force in the world is surely the power to imagine things differently”. After reading this collection, the powerful message is that women do and can make a creative difference in remodelling power dynamics and the structures within which they are active. These testimonies point to the challenges confronting women in trying to invent and re-invent new ways in a constantly changing and dynamic environment. Joy Damousi teaches Women's Studies at the University of Melbourne and is a widely-published feminist historian.