Jessie Stephen facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Jessie Stephen
MBE |
|
|---|---|
1930 portrait (aged 36–37)
|
|
| Born | 19 April 1893 |
| Died | 12 June 1979 (aged 86) |
| Nationality | British |
| Occupation | Journalist |
| Known for |
|
Jessie Stephen, who received the MBE, was an important British activist. She was born on April 19, 1893, and passed away on June 12, 1979. Jessie was a suffragette, which means she fought for women's right to vote. She was also a labour activist, working to improve conditions for workers. Later, she became a local councillor, helping to make decisions for her community.
Jessie grew up in Scotland. She won a scholarship to train as a teacher. However, her family's money problems meant she had to become a domestic worker at age 15. This meant she worked in someone's home, doing chores. Even as a teenager, she became involved in important national issues. She joined groups like the Independent Labour Party and the Women's Social and Political Union. She later traveled to the United States and Canada. There, she met with people, including English domestic workers who had moved abroad.
Jessie Stephen became more involved in official political parties. She was elected as a local councillor. She also ran as a candidate in general elections. After moving to Bristol, she made history. She became the first woman president of the Bristol Trades Council. In 1977, she was given the MBE award for her work. Her life is remembered with a special blue plaque in Bristol.
Contents
Who Was Jessie Stephen?
Jessie Stephen is known as a "suffragette and labour activist." She came from a working-class background. This means her family earned their living through manual work.
Her Early Life
Jessie Stephen was born on April 19, 1893. Some records say she was born in Marylebone, London. Others say she was born in Glasgow, Scotland. She was the oldest of eleven children in a close-knit family. Her father worked as a tailor.
Jessie was one of the few working-class Scottish members of the Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU) that we know much about. She went to Sunday schools linked to both the church and socialism. She also attended North Kelvinside School. She earned a scholarship to train as a pupil-teacher. This would have allowed her to become a teacher.
However, her father's income was low and changed often. Because of this, she could not afford to become a teacher. Instead, she became a domestic worker at age 15. Her father was a founding member of the Independent Labour Party (ILP) in 1893. Jessie described her mother as "so quiet and the very opposite of dad."
Unfortunately for my dreams, unemployment became worse so there was nothing for it but to leave [scholarship as a pupil teacher].
Starting Her Activism
Jessie was a young activist in the Maryhill Branch of the ILP. In 1909, at age 16, she joined the WSPU. Around 1911-1912, she started the Scottish Federation of Domestic Workers. This group helped maids organize and fight for better rights. She held meetings for them, first on the streets and later in tea rooms. This organization later joined with a London-based group in 1913.
In 1912, Jessie was the youngest member of the WSPU group from Glasgow. They met with David Lloyd George, who was in charge of the country's money. In February 1913, she led the first of the "Scottish Outrages" in Glasgow. This involved attacking pillar boxes, which are mailboxes. Her job as a maid helped her during these attacks. She explained in an interview:
"I was able to drop acid into the postal pillar boxes without being suspected, because I walked down from where I was employed in my cap, muslin apron and black frock... nobody would ever suspect me of dropping acid through the box."
Sylvia Pankhurst asked Jessie to move from Glasgow to London. There, Jessie became one of the most active members of the Workers' Suffrage Federation. In April 1919, Jessie spoke to about 10,000 people in Trafalgar Square. She spoke against the Blockade of Germany, which was stopping food and supplies from reaching Germany. She was also active in the Women's Peace Crusade. In 1920, she argued against using force in events leading up to the Treaty on the Creation of the USSR.
In the 1920s, she visited the United States. She held public meetings with people who had moved there from Scotland and Wales. She also raised money for the Socialist Party of America. She visited Vancouver, Canada, too. There, she encouraged English domestic workers to form unions.
Her Work in Politics and Unions
Jessie later lived in Lancashire and London. In London, she became involved with the East London Federation. She also sold the Women's Dreadnought newspaper. In 1922, she was elected as a Labour borough councillor for Bermondsey. This happened after she tried but failed to become a candidate for Parliament. She then worked for Alfred Salter, who was the Bermondsey MP.
Jessie ran as a Labour candidate for Parliament several times. She ran for Portsmouth South in the general elections of 1923, 1924, and 1929. She also ran for Kidderminster in 1931.
From 1924, she worked as a freelance journalist. In 1935, she started a secretarial agency in Lewes. In 1938, she joined the National Union of Clerks. During the Second World War, she worked for Murphy Radio.
She later moved to Bedminster, Bristol. There, she worked at a branch of the Co-operative Wholesale Society (CWS). She also continued her work with the National Union of Clerks. She became the chair of the local CWS management committee. She was also elected to the city council. In 1952, she became the first woman president of Bristol Trades Council.
Her Later Years
In the 1964 general election, Jessie was a candidate for the Labour Party. She ran in the Weston-super-Mare constituency. In June 1977, she was awarded the MBE. This was for her important "services to the trade union movement."
Jessie Stephen passed away in 1979 at Bristol General Hospital. Her life and achievements are remembered with a blue plaque in Bedminster.
See also
In Spanish: Jessie Stephen para niños
