Former Prime Minister Julia Gillard calls for monument to celebrate SA women winning right to vote

South Australia led the nation in granting women the vote, but former Prime Minister Julia Gillard says existing tributes to this victory are not enough – we need something “beautiful and long-lasting”.

• Celebrating South Australia’s glass ceiling smashers
• Trailblazers take over The Advertiser for International Women’s Day

Former prime minister Julia Gillard has urged South Australia to erect an “impressive” monument commemorating the fight to give women the right to vote 125 years ago.

Speaking at a state dinner in Adelaide on Tuesday night, Ms Gillard said SA should build a “lasting tribute” to outshine monuments to women’s suffrage in cities such as London, Calgary, Melbourne and Canberra. New York has also commissioned a memorial for its famous Central Park.

South Australia led the nation and was among the first in the world to enable women to vote and run for Parliament but Ms Gillard said “we aren’t bold enough, loud enough, in-your-face enough about our ach-ievements”.

“Surely it is here, in South Australia, that the most comprehensive and impressive memorial should reside,” she told an audience at the Adelaide Town Hall, which included host Premier Steven Marshall.

Former Australian prime minister Julia Gillard said SA should build a “lasting tribute” to outshine monuments to women’s suffrage. Picture: AAP / Brendan Esposito

“Young people learning about our history for the first time should be able stand in front of a grand monument in the heart of our city that shouts out that South Australia was a leader.”

In December 1894, the SA Parliament passed laws making local women the first in Australia able to vote in elections and stand as MPs.

It was the result of years of fierce campaigning by women and men, including gathering 11,600 signatures for a petition that stretched 120m.

Adelaide’s Light Square hosts a statue of well-known campaigner Catherine Helen Spence, while a bust of fellow reformer Mary Lee stands on North Tce but Ms Gillard said but these were “not enough”.

A “beautiful, long-lasting tribute” was important because “it demonstrates that we are serious about achieving real equality and that we respect and celebrate those who fought to get us this far”.

However, Ms Gillard argued any monument must also acknowledge “past injustices front and centre”, such as the fact that, despite South Australia’s reforms, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people were excluded from voting in federal elections until 1962.

*** LATEST SUBSCRIPTION OFFER ***
50c/day for the first six months
Find out more and sign up here

Originally published as Former Prime Minister Julia Gillard calls for monument to celebrate SA women winning right to vote