Episode 21 | A Woman's Body is not a Lesson

In every corner of history, desperation has driven women into impossible choices.

From the lonely banks of the Paterson River to the locked wards of the Newcastle Industrial School. From whispered agreements on Oakhampton Road to courtroom trials designed to shame. We trace the hidden stories of women like Ada Murray and Mary Ann Hughes.

We look back, not because history is a lesson, but because it is a mirror.

And because, as Margaret Atwood reminds us: "Better never means better for everyone. It always means worse, for some." 

This is not just the past. This is still our fight.

'The Firth Sisters' article by Newcastle Industrial School for Girls. Available at:

http://nis.wikidot.com/firth#toc6

'Newcastle Industrial School' article by Wikipedia. Available at:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newcastle_Industrial_School_for_Girls

'Paterson River Mystery' article by  

Northern Star (Lismore, NSW) Mon 6 Nov 1916 

 Page 3 

 Available at:

https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/92951500

 'Woman's body Found' article by Daily Examiner,  Fri 20 Oct 1916. Available at:

https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/195310151