Women and Equality

'The suffragette Emily Wilding Davison is buried at Morpeth,  quite near my home. Emily was killed when she ran in front of the King’s horse at the 1913 Epsom Derby.'

For 18 year old Millie Whiteford, Emily’s tragic death is an inspiration.

'She gave her whole life to what she thought was right and what she thought needed to be demanded and that’s something I take into my own life.'

With the help of Fixers, Millie has created a GIF to get across her message about the need for gender equality.

Millie told her story to ITV Tyne Tees in October '18.

'Its main message is to say that women don’t have to conform to just one thing' says Millie, from Washington, Tyne and Wear. 'They can be whatever they want to be. They can do anything they want and their dreams are endless.'

Millie got some input into her project from Karen Ross, Professor of Gender and Media at Newcastle University.

Says Karen: 'I think what we have seen over the past 100 years is progress. We can see examples of women achieving success. Here in Newcastle. We have women MPs in the city, we have got a woman bishop. So women are achieving positions of authority but they are single examples in many ways. So I think we still have a long way to go before we actually see gender equality.'

Millie sums up her message: 'I think the Suffragettes would be quite confused in the modern world. We have moved forward but in a sense we are standing still as well. We have got the vote but there are things like equal pay which we don’t have and traditional roles for men and women are still in place. I think we shouldn’t be discriminated at just because of our gender. We are all human, we need to be equal.'

via GIPHY

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