The Importance of Feminist History in a Global Pandemic

• Published in: Lilith (Fitzroy, Vic.) Vic.), 2020-10 (26), p.3-8
• Main Authors: Harris, Rachel, Staff, Michelle
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: COVID-19; Domestic service; Feminism; Museums; Pandemics; Women
• ISSN: 0813-8990

The responsibility to entertain children, at home due to school closures, also fell entirely on women. [...]war widows or those with husbands still overseas who became ill were still expected to carry out their caregiving roles.2 Almost exactly a century later, the context in which COVID-19 is occurring is vastly different; but there are similarities. Opinion pieces proclaim that its flow-on effects have left women 'anxious, overworked [and] insecure' and that lockdowns are a 'disaster for feminism' as they have placed the burden on women to balance full-time employment with home-schooling and domestic chores.3 Household isolation has also led to a worldwide increase in domestic violence, prompting the United Nations to urge governments to 'prevent and redress' violence against women in their pandemic response plans.4 More broadly, it has warned that as a result of COVID-19 and its associated economic impact, 'even the limited gains [towards gender equality] made in the past decades are at risk of being rolled back'.5 Women in academia have not been immune. Just yesterday, the University of New South Wales announced the closure of one of its early childhood centres as a result of lost revenue due to a rapid decline in international students-a decision that will disproportionately affect the women who work at and attend the university.7 For academic historians more broadly, travel restrictions and the closure of key archives and research institutions will see valuable projects delayed or abandoned. Clarke's article takes an opposing stance as it advocates for the inclusion of women's maternal experiences in museum programs, but at its core also disrupts thinking about traditional museum practice, arguing that museums need to pay more attention to important 'stories of quiet heroism' such as those of mothers, in addition to their traditional focus on grand narratives and national events.