Ada Norris (1901–1989): Champion of the Impossible
Judith Smart
Abstract
This chapter discusses the leadership of Ada Norris in the context of her impact on respectable mainstream Australian feminism before 1980. It refers to the many areas of activism in which she engaged but focuses on her roles in immigration and status of women issues. As president of the Victorian and Australian National Councils of Women in the early 1950s and late 1960s respectively, she led the major umbrella organisation for women. Her special expertise in migration issues was recognised by appointment to the Commonwealth Immigration Advisory Council and as convener of the International Council of Women’s standing committee on migration, while her wider commitment to improving the status of women saw her selected as Australia’s delegate to the UN Status of Women Commission from 1961 to 1963, and as chair of the United Nations Association of Australia’s national committee for International Women’s Year and, subsequently, its committee for the Status of Women and Decade.
Keywords
Women, leadership, Ada Norris, mainstream feminism, National Council of Women, aging, disability, migration, United Nations, equal pay, status of women
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