Being a Women's Adviser at the State Level
Deborah McCulloch and Don Dunstan in 1970s South Australia
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 5854253 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Angela Woollacott |
| Year | 2018 |
| Volume | 33 |
| Issue | 95 |
| Pages | 97-113 |
| Publication date | 2018-01-02 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Australian Feminist Studies (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1321-7568 • E-ISSN: 1465-3303 |
| Publisher | Informa UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/08164649.2018.1498736 |
| OpenAlex | W2886148505 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 1 |
| References cited | 4 |
When Gough Whitlam appointed Elizabeth Reid in 1973, she was the first Women’s Adviser to a head of government anywhere. But the idea took off quickly across Australia. Between 1976 and 1986 all seven Australian states and territories appointed women’s advisers. In South Australia, in April 1976 the influential, reforming ALP Premier Don Dunstan appointed Deborah McCulloch as his Women’s Adviser; the third appointed at the state level following Victoria and Tasmania. This article draws on oral history interviews with McCulloch to assess what being South Australia’s first Women’s Adviser meant; and what both McCulloch and Dunstan considered her (and his) major achievements. It also looks briefly at several key women in Dunstan’s life who influenced his views. If Dunstan was slow to prioritize women’s rights, in some areas, such as the 1975 Sex Discrimination Act, SA led the way and the Commonwealth followed in 1984. Dunstan came to see women’s rights as ‘the challenge of social democracy,’ whereas McCulloch took great satisfaction in improving women’s lives. McCulloch went beyond her brief to focus on the public service, to provide innovative social services to all women. We can see too the significance of networking amongst femocrats, particularly among women’s advisers
Political science · Sociology · State (computer science · Australian History and Society · Computer Science · Gender Politics and Representation · Political and Economic history of UK and US
| Unique citing works | 1 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 0,33 |
| Citation span | 2023 - 2023 (1) |
| Citation velocity | historical |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 1 |