Professor to retell the details of Scottish suffragettes

Professor Sarah Pedersen, from RGU’s School of Creative and Cultural Business, will deliver this year’s Sue Innes Memorial Lecture for Women’s History Scotland – an annual event held to honour feminist historian and journalist Sue Innes.

Running for the past 11 years, this year’s public talk will be held at Abertay University and take place at 4pm on Saturday 29 September.

Professor Pedersen talk is titled ‘The Scottish Suffragettes and the Press: Use and Abuse’ and will discuss both the ways in which suffragettes made use of the press and also how this new kind of journalism benefitted from reporting on the actions of the suffragettes.

She said: “The press gave the suffragettes the ‘oxygen of publicity’. Reports of their meetings often gave detailed accounts of the arguments presented by suffragette speakers and pro-suffrage letters were published in many newspapers – even those that disagreed with the campaign.

“While the press themselves learned quickly that reporting on demonstrations, disruptions and militancy sold newspapers. This was particularly important to the new mass readership dailies, which offered their readers sensational stories.

“I look forward to sharing more with everyone who attends the Sue Innes Memorial Lecture and raising the public’s awareness of the activities of their own local suffragettes – without whom we would likely not be where we are today.”

Professor Pedersen will pay particular attention to some events that occurred in Dundee and the Tayside region, such as the 1908 by-election that saw Winston Churchill stand in the city.

Professor Pedersen’s talk will take place from 4pm on Saturday 29 September, in the Events Area of the Kydd Building, Abertay University.