Senator Christine Milne has resigned as leader of the Greens, leaving behind a legacy as the only woman to have led a political party at both state and national level.
The Tasmanian Senator, who has served in politics for 25 years, was also the first woman to lead a Tasmania political party.
Senator Milne spoke with SBS reporter Stephanie Anderson about feminism, role models and her advice for young women in March.
What’s your definition of feminism?
Feminism is standing up for women's equality here and around the world. It’s about saying: “I want to live in an equal society where everybody is recognised for the contribution that they can make, and where they are not in any way discouraged or discriminated against on the basis of their gender.”
What is the single biggest issue facing women today?
The same as it has always been, and that is: many men still regard women as their property to do with as they wish. So the lack of financial independence for many women denies them the choices they would like to make to assert their equality and independence and achieve their full potential.
That's why as Parliamentarians we have the power and responsibility to promote equality of opportunity and end practices that result in participation and wage gaps. Zero tolerance of violence must become a social norm.
We need to create a framework that enables equality and get on the front foot in getting rid of discrimination and violence against women.
Have you ever felt disadvantaged for being a woman?
I was brought up to believe I could achieve whatever I wanted and that barriers meant you had to work harder.
Going to university was rare for women of my generation, particularly in rural areas like where I grew up in north west Tasmania.
"When I got married I gave up my superannuation... It truly institutionalised women’s dependence on men."
When I started teaching, there were social barriers like the faculty going to a men-only club after work and leaving the female staff at the door.
When I got married I gave up my superannuation. Everyone said you didn’t need it, your husband has it, you can depend on that and there’s no reason to pay into your super. It truly institutionalised women’s dependence on men, based on this idea that women are male accessories rather than individuals with any sort of autonomy.
As a result, there are now so many women in their late 50s and 60s whose relationships ended and who now find themselves at the end of their professional lives with no, or very little, superannuation. This is one of the legacy issues of my generation and getting justice for these women is another reason I am a feminist.
"Women deserve better than a society that asks us to prove them all wrong."
Today I’m proud to have been the first woman to lead a political party in Tasmania, and to be the federal leader of a political party in which seven of the 11 elected representatives are women.
Who’s your role model?
My mum and the other women of her generation born in the 1920s who argued and worked for their baby-boomer daughters to be educated, and who, against the odds, instilled in us the idea that women can do anything. Their sacrifices have enabled us to do so much.
What advice would you give to younger women?
Believe that women can do anything, but don’t assume that barriers don’t exist or that the struggle for equal rights is over. Look through the talk – look at the figures on political representation, corporate boards, workplace inequality and domestic violence – and see the challenges that need you to step up.
Women deserve better than a society that asks us to prove them all wrong. From the outset women must be recognised, and recognise themselves, as equally capable and valuable for their differences, not in spite of them.
