A History of Lesbian Feminism: How Softball Became Activism

Talks on Tuesdays: Real lectures in your favourite venues. 45-min + Q&A with Dr Jacquelyn Baker Talks on Tuesdays is a live event series bringing big ideas, real experts, and curious minds together - at your favourite local venues. Think thought-provoking lectures, audience questions, and post-talk mingling over drinks and dinner. This isn’t a uni lecture. It’s a social, intelligent night out.Come alone or with friends, leave with something to talk about. Event Schedule: 6.30pm Arrival & Doors Open 7pm Lecuture Starts 7.45pm Q&A 8pm Talk Concludes 8.30pm Event Closes. *Please arrive close to 6.30pm A La Carte menu and full bar available throughout the night - pay as you go. Your Topic: A History of Lesbian Feminism: How Softball Became Activism Sport underpins Australia’s national identity. While sport can foster a sense of mateship and community, haters often point to the way it can be male-centric and “blokey”. During the 1980s, women’s liberationists and lesbian feminists attempted to rattle cultural norms. In particular, they attempted to use community women’s sport to disrupt what they saw as the dominant heterosexual masculine sporting culture. Join Dr Jacquelyn Baker as she explores community softball in Melbourne in the 1980s. Drawing on archival research, she examines accounts written by lesbian feminists to understand how sport was an important aspect of lesbian feminist activism. How did participation in community softball help lesbian feminists feel a strong a sense of community and ‘show pride to a heterosexual society’? Ultimately, by examining this overlooked aspect of women’s liberation and lesbian feminist activism, we can better understand the positive impact of sport for women and gender diverse athletes today. Your Speaker: Dr Jacquelyn Baker is a professional historian interested in feminism, gender and sexuality. Her PhD thesis traced the history of the Women’s Liberation Movement in Melbourne. Jacquelyn has had work published in Overland, Australian Policy and History, The Big Issue, 3RRR’s The Trip Magazine and VIDA: An Australian Women’s History Network Blog. She has worked as a casual academic at Deakin University and Charles Sturt University. She currently works in the GLAM sector and volunteers as a fills presenter on community radio.