Patricia Jessie Giles (; 16 November 1928 – 9 August 2017) was a women's activist and

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

Senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

. She was the President of the

International Alliance of Women The International Alliance of Women (IAW; french: Alliance Internationale des Femmes, AIF) is an international non-governmental organization that works to promote women's rights and gender equality. It was historically the main international org ...

for three terms, the last ending in 2004.

Life

A qualified

nurse Nursing is a profession within the health care sector focused on the care of individuals, families, and communities so they may attain, maintain, or recover optimal health and quality of life. Nurses may be differentiated from other health c ...

, she founded the Women's Electoral Lobby branch in

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...

in 1973. She also returned to study at the University of Western Australia, where she received her

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

in 1974. She later became an organiser for the Hospital Employees Union of Western Australia, and she was the first woman on the executive of the West Australian Trades and Labor Council. In 1981 she was elected as an

Australian Labor Party The Australian Labor Party (ALP), also simply known as Labor, is the major centre-left political party in Australia, one of two major parties in Australian politics, along with the centre-right Liberal Party of Australia. The party forms the f ...

Senator for Western Australia. During her twelve years as a senator she was active in issues related to women, she led the Australian delegation to the United Nations Decade for Women meetings in the 1980s. She and Sara Dowse contributed the piece "Women in a Warrior Society" to the 1984 anthology '' Sisterhood Is Global: The International Women's Movement Anthology'', edited by

Robin Morgan Robin Morgan (born January 29, 1941) is an American poet, writer, activist, journalist, lecturer and former child actor. Since the early 1960s, she has been a key radical feminist member of the American Women's Movement, and a leader in the ...

. Following her retirement from politics, she continued to be active in women's rights, serving three terms as president of the

. On

Australia Day Australia Day is the official national day of Australia. Observed annually on 26 January, it marks the 1788 landing of the First Fleet at Sydney Cove and raising of the Union Flag by Arthur Phillip following days of exploration of Port Ja ...

, 2010, she was named a Member of the

Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Gove ...

, "For service to the community through organisations and advisory bodies that promote the interests of women, and to the Parliament of Australia". She died on 9 August 2017.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Giles, Patricia 1928 births 2017 deaths International Alliance of Women people Australian Labor Party members of the Parliament of Australia Australian feminists Members of the Australian Senate Members of the Australian Senate for Western Australia Members of the Order of Australia Women members of the Australian Senate University of Western Australia alumni 20th-century Australian politicians 20th-century Australian women politicians