Dame Stella Katherine Casey (née Wright; 22 May 1924 – 7 July 2000) was a New Zealand campaigner for social issues as well as a prominent member of various national organisations.

Early life and family

Stella Katherine Wright was born in

New Plymouth New Plymouth ( mi, Ngāmotu) is the major city of the Taranaki region on the west coast of the North Island of New Zealand. It is named after the English city of Plymouth, Devon from where the first English settlers to New Plymouth migrated. ...

on 22 May 1924, the daughter of Stella Regina Wright (née Hickey, 1887–1973), a schoolteacher prior to her wedding, and William James Wright (1883–1959). She was educated at Opunake District High School, and Sacred Heart College, Christchurch. She went on to study at

Victoria University College Victoria University of Wellington ( mi, Te Herenga Waka) is a university in Wellington, New Zealand. It was established in 1897 by Act of Parliament, and was a constituent college of the University of New Zealand. The university is well know ...

from 1947 to 1947, graduating

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 1948. In 1948, she married Maurice Eugene Casey, a lawyer born in 1923. The couple had either nine or ten children (sources vary).

Community activities

Casey was a member of the

Catholic Women's League The Catholic Women's League (CWL) is a Roman Catholic lay organisation founded in 1906 by Margaret Fletcher. Originally intended to bring together Catholic women in England, the organization has grown, and may be found in numerous Commonwealth ...

, the National Council of Women, the

Christchurch Polytechnic Ara Institute of Canterbury, often simply referred to as Ara, is an institute of technology in Canterbury, New Zealand. It was formed in 2016 from the merger of Christchurch Polytechnic Institute of Technology (CPIT) and Aoraki Polytechnic. Ara ...

Council and the New Zealand branch of the

Federation of University Women Graduate Women International (GWI), originally named the International Federation of University Women (IFUW), is an international organisation for women university graduates. IFUW was founded in 1919 following the First World War by both British and ...

. She started her first campaign in 1969 in Browns Bay on

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The List of New Zealand urban areas by population, most populous urban area in the country and the List of cities in Oceania by po ...

East Coast Bays East Coast Bays is a string of small suburbs that form the northernmost part of the North Shore, part of the contiguous Auckland metropolitan area in New Zealand. The suburbs line the north-east coast of the city along the shore of the Haurak ...

when she objected to pornography being on display in shops; this resulted in a nationwide debate.

Honours and awards

In the

1991 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 1991 were appointments by Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by people of the United Kingdom and Commonwealth. They were published on 28 December 1990 for the United Kingdom, N ...

, Casey was appointed a

Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

, for services to the community. Later that year, in the

Queen's Birthday Honours The Birthday Honours, in some Commonwealth realms, mark the reigning British monarch's official birthday by granting various individuals appointment into national or dynastic orders or the award of decorations and medals. The honours are present ...

, her husband, by then a

Court of Appeal A court of appeals, also called a court of appeal, appellate court, appeal court, court of second instance or second instance court, is any court of law that is empowered to hear an appeal of a trial court or other lower tribunal. In much of t ...

judge, was appointed a

Knight Bachelor The title of Knight Bachelor is the basic rank granted to a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not inducted as a member of one of the organised orders of chivalry; it is a part of the British honours system. Knights Bachelor are the ...

. In 1993, Stella Casey was awarded the

New Zealand Suffrage Centennial Medal The New Zealand Suffrage Centennial Medal 1993 was established by Royal Warrant on 1 July 1993. It was created to commemorate Women's suffrage in New Zealand and to recognize those New Zealand and Commonwealth citizens who had made a significant ...

Death

Casey died in

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by me ...

on 7 July 2000, aged 76. Her husband died in 2012.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Casey, Stella 1924 births 2000 deaths People from New Plymouth People educated at Opunake High School People educated at Catholic Cathedral College Victoria University of Wellington alumni Anti-pornography activists New Zealand Dames Commander of the Order of the British Empire New Zealand activists New Zealand women activists New Zealand people of Irish descent New Zealand Roman Catholics Recipients of the New Zealand Suffrage Centennial Medal 1993 Wives of knights