Skip to main content
NEU job vacancy
A woman for all seasons
SYLVIA HIKINS is enthralled by a biography of an extraordinary, 19th-century mould-breaker who influenced policies regarding the status of women in society
PRESSING AGENDAS: A Punch cartoon from 1867 mocks John Stuart Mill's attempt to replace the term 'man' with 'person,' ie give women the right to vote: "Pray clear the way, there, for these – a – persons." (author unknown) [Public Domain]

Trailblazer: Barbara Leigh Smith Bodichon, The First Feminist to Change Our World
by Jane Robinson
Doubleday £11.58


 

OH MY goodness, here’s another game changer from the past who didn’t fit the bill regarding gender, establishment ideology, power elites, patriarchy, who has been erased by most historians writing his-story!

Barbara Leigh Smith Bodichon was born in 1827 and during her lifespan of 64 years, pioneered and developed far reaching concepts regarding feminism, women’s rights, equal opportunities, diversity, inclusion and mental health awareness.

The 95th Anniversary Appeal
Support the Morning Star
You have reached the free limit.
Subscribe to continue reading.
Similar stories
INSPIRING EXAMPLE: Celebrating the women's strike in Reykjav
Books / 3 April 2025
3 April 2025
SYLVIA HIKINS applauds a polemic against “cleanfluencers” and considers radical alternatives to current inequalities of housework
REMARKABLE: The Danish writer Karen Blixen as a recipient of
International Women's Day 2025 / 8 March 2025
8 March 2025
With most of recorded history dominated by the voices of men, LYNNE WALSH encourages sisters to read the memoirs of women – and to write their own too
SOLIDARITY WITH THE REVOLUTION: The presidium of the 9th Con
Book Review / 2 March 2025
2 March 2025
DAVID NICHOLSON is fascinated by one of the early pioneers of the women’s movement and of the early days of the Labour Party
ON THE SAME SIDE OF HISTORY: Audre Lorde, left, with Meridel
Book Review / 29 December 2024
29 December 2024
RON JACOBS reviews a new biography of the American poet who revolutionised the perception of black writers in the creative milieu of the day