Ladies of Leisure

We all work very hard at whatever we do, so deserve some time off from the mundane demands of life. There are several independent productions coming up at York Theatre Royal (St Leonard’s Place, YO1) which may be of interest to our members and readers. All events are by and about women or issues of inequality. Held from the end of April into May in the studio space at 7.45pm and tickets cost 12.50 GBP each (unless otherwise stated). There is no formal group outing planned so go along – or not – whenever, to whatever you want. See below for details and booking links. We would be interested to hear what you think of the various performances.

York International Women’s Week

The 2018 YIWW programme has dozens of events across the city so there is something for everyone in the calendar. For more information see yorkinternationalwomensweek.wordpress.com or follow on @YorkWomen and YorkInternationalWomensWeek. For queries and bookings contact the organisers directly on yorkwomensvoices@gmail.com.

Suffragette (2015)

Broadcasting Sat 3rd Feb on C4 9pm

The film puts fictional protagonist Maud Watts (Carey Mulligan) into real documented situations. Well worth seeing to watch the struggles, strength and commitment of the activists. Not suitable for a younger or more sensitive audience; it is harrowing in places. The story includes everything that was done against the women who fought only to be heard. A Film4 production.

Vote100

This year (2018) marks the centenary of when women in the UK were first granted the right to vote (suffrage) in national parliamentary elections under the “Representation of the People Act“, released on 6 Feb. The Act allowed women to vote under the previous terms for men, so property owners over the age of 30. It affected about 8.4 million citizens.

2018 Reading

The York Feminist Reading Group meetings are held on the third Wednesday of the month from 7.30pm. At the moment we’re meeting at various member’s houses, so get in touch if you want the addresses! There is also a Facebook group which we use to gauge numbers for each meeting.

• 17th January – Women and Power: A Manifesto by Mary Beard
• 21st February – The Power by Naomi Alderman
• 21st March – Hunger: A Memoir of (My) Body by Roxane Gay
• 18th April – Of Bees and Mist by Erick Setiawan
• 16th May – I Love Dick by Chris Kraus
• 20th June – The Female Man by Joanna Russ
• 18th July – Coal by Audre Lorde
• 15th August – A Vindication of the Rights of Women by Mary Wollstonecraft
• 19th September – Riot Days by Maria Alyokhina
• 17th October – With Her in Ourland by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
• 21st November – The Pimping of Prostitution: Abolishing the Sex Work Myth by Julie Bindel
• 19th December – Whipping Girl: A Transsexual Woman on Sexism and the Scapegoating of Femininity by Julia Serrano

We hope to see you there!

Timeline for Centenary

Call for Entries

Next year (2018) marks the centenary of when women first received the vote in England and Wales. To commemorate this momentous political change, YFN intends to present a series of weekly blog posts to create a timeline of important events and people in women’s history with an emphasis on the York area specifically or Britain more generally.

The plan is to start at the beginning to explain the significance of so-called Venus figurines in prehistoric Europe, and end with a critique of recent news items such as lifting of the driving ban in Saudi Arabia and the Hollywood harassment allegations. In between would be whatever contributions members of the group, or even guest writers, wish to make. You will be fully credited.

I am not suggesting a full academic essay (although if you want to!) for each entry. Just a 4-ish paragraph popular introduction with ‘find out more’ links or sources is all that is expected.

by sherdnerdess (Seren Langley)

Reclaim the Night 2017

Saturday 25 Nov, 5.30pm

Held on United Nations Day to eliminate violence against women and begins 6 days of activism which aim to end all types of gender based violence. Following an IDAS candlelit vigil, gather at 5.30pm in St Helen’s Square, Central York – next to the big Bettys – for about 1/2 hour march on a wheelchair accessible route. Afterwards will be a speech by NUS NEC Second Place Women’s Officer Sarah Lasoye.

Women’s March, York

Gathering at 11:50am on Saturday 21 January by St Michael le Belfrey, High Petergate (outside Monster in the city centre). The route is about twenty minutes to half an hour, though with speakers at key points during the march, it should last for about an hour.

2017 Reading

The York Feminist Reading Group meetings are held on the third Wednesday of the month from 7.30pm. At the moment we’re meeting at various member’s houses, so get in touch if you want the addresses! There is also a Facebook group which we use to gauge numbers for each meeting.

• Jan 18 – Ain’t I a Woman?: Black Women and Feminism by bell hooks
• Feb 15 – We Were Feminists Once: From Riot Grrrl to Cover Girl, the Buying and Selling of a Political Movement by Andi Zeisler
• Mar 15 – The Collector by John Fowles
• Apr 19 – Herland by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
• May 17 – Gather Together in My Name by Maya Angelou (Autobiography #2)
• Jun 21 – Bad Feminist: Essays by Roxane Gay
• Jul 19 – Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K Le Guin
• Aug 16 – Behind a Mask, or A Woman’s Power by Louisa May Alcott
• Sep 20 – Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood
• Oct 18 – The Geek Feminist Revolution by Kameron Hurley
• Nov 15 – Pornland: How Porn Has Hijacked Our Sexuality by Gail Dines
• Dec 20 – Girls Will be Girls: Dressing Up, Playing Parts and Daring to Act Differently by Emer O’Toole

We hope to see you there!

York Suffragettes production

The 2017 new season of productions at York Theatre Royal includes Everything is Possible: The York Suffragettes, which may be of interest to you for one of the performances Tue 20 June — Sat 01 Jul at 7.30 daily (not Sundays) with 2pm Saturday matinees. Set in 1913, it is a large-scale community production which starts outdoors in the city before moving on to the main house stage. Time to raise the white, green and purple banners!

If enough people are keen for the same day(s), there could be an official YFN trip. Please email us or comment on Facebook post if interested – with your preferred time and any disability requirements (AD/BSL shows are available). Seren is coordinating.

If Brontë is more your thing, there are also runs of Jane Eyre and Tenant of Wildfell Hall, plus a one-off Women in Crime Fiction and more of relevance. See the full listings for What’s On 2017 at the venue.