Jessie Aitken (née Fraser; 14 April 1867 – 18 January 1934) was a New Zealand community worker and political activist. She was born in

Ecclesmachan Ecclesmachan (Gaelic: ''Eaglais Mhachain'') (Welsh: ''Eglwys Machan'') (NT058736) is an historic village in West Lothian. It lies just north of Uphall on the B8046 road. The village is notable for its medieval origin parish church. As at 2001, ...

West Lothian West Lothian ( sco, Wast Lowden; gd, Lodainn an Iar) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland, and was one of its shires of Scotland, historic counties. The county was called Linlithgowshire until 1925. The historic county was bounded geogra ...

, Scotland, on 14 April 1867.

Personal life

Aitken was born to Janet Hearne and Walter Fraser. Fraser, her parents and her three younger sisters, arrived at Lyttleton on 2 September 1874 after emigrating to New Zealand aboard the ''Cantebury''. By 1884, the family lived in Denniston,

Westland Westland or Westlands may refer to: Places *Westlands, an affluent neighbourhood in the city of Nairobi, Kenya * Westlands, Staffordshire, a suburban area and ward in Newcastle-under-Lyme *Westland, a peninsula of the Shetland Mainland near Vaila ...

. Aitken married John Barr Aitken, a

coal miner Coal mining is the process of resource extraction, extracting coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its Energy value of coal, energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use c ...

, when she was seventeen, on the 25 July 1884. They lived at Burnett's Face until around 1902, moving shortly after to the mining town of Kaitangata. John Barr Aitken died in 1907 in

Nelson Nelson may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Nelson'' (1918 film), a historical film directed by Maurice Elvey * ''Nelson'' (1926 film), a historical film directed by Walter Summers * ''Nelson'' (opera), an opera by Lennox Berkeley to a lib ...

, leaving Aitken to move in with her son Hugh 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 ...

. After her political career, she lived in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

, moving back to Wellington in 1928. She died on the 18 January 1934 in Wellington.

Activism and political career

Aitken was part of many women's groups in Wellington. She was a member of the Wellington Housewive's Union, a

feminist Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...

organisation closely associated with the Social Democratic Party, which later became the

New Zealand Labour Party The New Zealand Labour Party ( mi, Rōpū Reipa o Aotearoa), or simply Labour (), is a centre-left political party in New Zealand. The party's platform programme describes its founding principle as democratic socialism, while observers descr ...

Anti-war activism

Aitken was a member of the Women's Anti-Conscription League during the

first world war World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. She was a key speaker in the large protest the league organised to wait on Prime Minister William Massey. She believed that military service was "a matter of individual conscience". Massey was dismissive of and angered by the women, and the Military Service Bill passed shortly after. Aitken was president of the Wellington branch of the Women's International League from 1916-1918. The League promoted

international cooperation In international relations, multilateralism refers to an alliance of multiple countries pursuing a common goal. Definitions Multilateralism, in the form of membership in international institutions, serves to bind powerful nations, discourage u ...

, better treatment of

conscientious objectors A conscientious objector (often shortened to conchie) is an "individual who has claimed the right to refuse to perform military service" on the grounds of freedom of thought, conscience, or religion. The term has also been extended to object ...

, and

women's rights Women's rights are the rights and entitlements claimed for women and girls worldwide. They formed the basis for the women's rights movement in the 19th century and the feminist movements during the 20th and 21st centuries. In some countries, ...

Labour Party

In 1917, Aitken was elected as a Labour candidate to the Wellington Hospital and Charitable Aid Board. She enhanced welfare of women and children while in this position, and worked to improve

public health Public health is "the science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life and promoting health through the organized efforts and informed choices of society, organizations, public and private, communities and individuals". Analyzing the det ...

and provide assistance to families in need. In 1918, she worked hard to deal with the

influenza epidemic Flu season is an annually recurring time period characterized by the prevalence of an outbreak of influenza (flu). The season occurs during the cold half of the year in each hemisphere. It takes approximately two days to show symptoms. Influen ...

, and in 1919, worked to help the widows, widowers and orphans created by the epidemic. Aitken attended two New Zealand Labour Party conferences. In 1917, she attended as a delegate for the Women's International League, and in 1918, for the Wellington Labour Representation Committee, where she fought for higher state allowances for widows and more women delegates at party conferences. Together with Sarah Beck, Jane Donaldson and

Sarah Snow Sarah Ellen Oliver Snow (née Murphy, 16 February 1864 – 13 February 1939) was a New Zealand political activist, feminist and welfare worker. She was born in Wellington, New Zealand in 1864. She was on the national executive of the Social D ...

, Aitken urged Labour MPs to introduce legislation that would allow women to stand as parliamentary candidates. The Women's Parliamentary Rights Act was passed in 1919. Aitken stood for election to the

Wellington City Council Wellington City Council is a territorial authority in New Zealand, governing the country's capital city Wellington, and ''de facto'' second-largest city (if the commonly considered parts of Wellington, the Upper Hutt, Porirua, Lower Hutt and ...

as a Labour candidate in 1919. She was the first woman to do this. She promised to improve housing conditions and sanitation, provide public bathrooms for women and playgrounds for children. She was not elected. Later that year, Aitken was on the committee that discussed women's and children's issues for the first New Zealand

Town-planning Urban planning, also known as town planning, city planning, regional planning, or rural planning, is a technical and political process that is focused on the development and design of land use and the built environment, including air, water, ...

Conference and Exhibition. She resigned from the Labour Party in 1920.

References

{{NewZealand-Labour-politician-stub 1867 births 1934 deaths New Zealand Labour Party politicians New Zealand social workers New Zealand activists New Zealand women activists Scottish emigrants to New Zealand Social Democratic Party (New Zealand) politicians Wellington Hospital Board members