The Jamaica Federation of Women (JFW) is a Jamaican
women's organization. Established in 1944, it was the first island-wide women's organization.
History
The JFW was founded by
Lady Molly Huggins, who had come to Jamaica in 1943 as the wife of the
Governor of Jamaica
This is a list of viceroys in Jamaica from its initial occupation by Spain in 1509, to its independence from the United Kingdom in 1962. For a list of viceroys after independence, see Governor-General of Jamaica. For context, see History of Jamai ...
,
John Huggins
John Jerome Huggins Jr. (February 11, 1945 – January 17, 1969) was an American activist. He was the leader in the Los Angeles chapter of the Black Panther Party who was killed by black nationalist US Organization members at the University o ...
.
Other founder-members included
Rose Leon
Rose Agatha Leon (20 October 1911 – 16 August 1999) was a Jamaican businesswoman and politician. In August 1999, she was murdered in her home.
Biography
Leon was born to a pharmacist, Benjamin Joseph Huie, and Adella née Murray Hui on 20 Oc ...
and
Mary Morris Knibb
Mary Morris Knibb, MBE (28 February 1886 – 21 September 1964) was a Jamaican teacher, social reformer and philanthropist. She founded the Morris Knibb Preparatory School and donated a building which is used as the headquarters of the Moravian ...
. The federation drew on a legacy of pro-imperial white-dominated conservative women's associations, active in Jamaica from the late 19th century,
[ Linnette Vassell, 'Voluntary Women's Associations in Jamaica: The Jamaica Federation of Women 1944-1962', unpublished MPhil thesis, ]University of the West Indies
The University of the West Indies (UWI), originally University College of the West Indies, is a public university system established to serve the higher education needs of the residents of 17 English-speaking countries and territories in th ...
, 1993. Abstrac
online
and on the
Women's Institutes of
Great Britain. Its executive committee included representatives of the Women's Liberal Club, the Women's Social Service Association and the Jamaica Women's League.
The JFW neutralized more Afro-centric feminism in Jamaica. It attracted a large membership, including poor
rural women
Rural women are a fundamental part of rural communities around the world. They play an important part in rural society, providing care and being involved in number of economic pursuits such as subsistence farming, petty trading and off-farm work. ...
:
[ by 1948 there were 30,000 members. After Lady Huggins left in 1950, local leadership took over.]National Library of Jamaica
The National Library of Jamaica is the national library of Jamaica. It is located at 12 East Street in Kingston, Jamaica. The library provides access to various collection of Jamaican literature, maps, films, newspapers, photographs, and more.
...
.[
]
Current activities
The Jamaica Federation of Women celebrated its 70th anniversary in 2014.[Jean Lowrie-Chin]
Jamaica's Federation of courageous women
, ''Jamaica Observer'', 27 July 2014. Accessed 19 April 2020. "Today the JFW still represents a broad-based organization, with a wide network of rural branches, a leadership of elite, largely urban women, and a home-maker orientation".[
]
References
1944 establishments in Jamaica
Women's organizations based in Jamaica
Women in Jamaica
History of women in Jamaica
{{Jamaica-stub