Monthly Archives: March 2022

LGBT+ History Month 2022 – Round Up

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A UoR branded graphic with 'LGBT+ History Month' written on it and a heart with the LGBT+ progress flag designed in it.

LGBT+ History Month – ‘Round up’

There was a lot of activity across the University in February for LGBT+ History month. Here are some of the highlights to keep your LGBT+ inclusion going beyond the major celebratory months.

 

What is LGBT+ History month and why is it important?

LGBT+ History Month happens in February every year in the UK. It is important that we celebrate LGBT+ history to recognise and celebrate the contributions and achievements of LGBT+ people throughout history. Some historical figures could not be openly ‘out’ in their own time (Oscar Wilde, for example) and for this reason it is important to celebrate them today and recognise them as their whole selves.

The LGBT+ community also have a long history of having to fight for human rights. Still today, 70 countries criminalise same-sex relationships. This map shows the stark reality of current global rights for LGBT+ people, which makes it even more important that we critique, as well as celebrate the community’s history, and by doing this, we can look ahead to the future.

 

The Library’s D&I resources  

A message from Tim Chapman, D&I Lead, Library.

“Our online reading list system, which is widely used by academic staff for most taught courses across the University, has been of huge benefit to students since we adopted it in 2015. It gives direct links to the library catalogue and instant access to any material available to us online.  

We are also able to develop bespoke reading lists such as this one - highlighting some great YA and Children’s material that we hold in the library, covering a range of LGBTQ+ issues and themes. Check it out.   

Our online reading lists enable us to get the broadest reach possible and they help us to widen readership, which from a diversity perspective, must be a positive thing.  

We also produce a reading list that keeps track of all the material purchased from our Diversity Fund. Anyone can suggest a purchase that relates to any of our diversity and inclusion themes (LGBTQ+, race & ethnicity, disability & inclusion). It’s a great way for you to help us to shape your Library’s collections.  

If you want more information, or to suggest a book for purchase, contact your School Academic Liaison Librarian here.” 

 

Prepster: PrEParing and HIV

Dr Will Nutland, co-founder of prepster, talked about why testing for HIV is important, who should be thinking about testing, and how frequently. He talked to us about how testing has changed over time and in addition, talked about the available options -including PrEP for those who are negative and new options for those folks that test positive for HIV.

Re-watch the event here: Prepster:PrEParing and HIV

 

 

‘Ice and Fire’ – a rehearsed reading and Q&A 

Brought to us by Dr Ruvi Ziegler, Chair of the LGBT+ staff network on Wednesday 02 February. Prior to the reading, between 2-2.45pm, there was also an asylum mapping workshop open to interested law students and staff.

The event was a rehearsed reading of LGBT+ asylum testimonies by Ice and Fire followed by a Q&A moderated by Sebastian Aguirre, Director of Actors For Human Rights (a queer human rights activist and theatre practitioner from the Chilean refugee diaspora in the UK), with Ruvi Ziegler and a representative of the Reading Refugee Support Group.

Here is tweet about the event as well as some photos

 

 

LGBTQ+ Britain through Bishopsgate institute collections

Stef took participants at the university on a virtual tour of the collections at the Bishopsgate Institute, talking about the history of LGBT+ Britain. Covering many topics and moments over last 50 years in a light-hearted fashion for all the University Staff and Students.

Watch it again below:

LGBTQ+ Britain through Bishopsgate institute collections

 

 

the Pride in STEM logo

LGBT+ History Month Whiteknights Campus trail

The Central Diversity and Inclusion team released a University of Reading ‘talking or walking tour’, in collaboration with the LGBT+ Staff Network.

We reached out to the Diversity and Inclusion leads across the University and asked for an LGBT+ figure who they associate with their School, Function, or field of study. We collated these figures and mapped out a route through the University’s Whiteknights Campus.

Some departments are not located on Whiteknights campus, and these have been added at the end so that you can learn about the historical figures, without travelling to those locations physically.

Colleagues can listen to an audio version, read about the icons, use the ‘map’ to physically familiarise themselves with Whiteknights campus buildings and departments (and LGBT+ History).

 

Listen to/watch the presentation here: Whiteknights_campus_LGBT_tour_2022.mp4

Whiteknights Campus map here Campuses Map & Key (reading.ac.uk)

We also ran training including an LGBT+ Ally recruitment and information session. You can still sign up to our Trans inclusion training, as it is at the end of March:

A Trans flag being held up against a blue background

Trans inclusion training 

Thursday 31st March 2022 – 10am-12pm (via Microsoft Teams)

Register here

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Introducing… Mary Turner Wolstenholme

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During Women’s History Month we often focus on great women and women pioneers. But for Women’s History Month 2022, here at the Department of History, we are privileged to be able to concentrate on one of our own, Mary Turner Wolstenholme. Mary represents so many women who might have considered themselves ordinary but whose achievements tell us so much about women’s lives and opportunities.  With the kind permission her daughters Gilly Pinner and Julie Wolstenholme and through their generous donation of their mother’s documents and photographs from her time at Reading we present:  Mary Turner Wolstenholme.

Mary Turner completed a BA Hons in Geography and graduated on 1st July 1948. She graduated in the same year that the eminent historian Doris Stenton received her doctorate in History. 1948 was also an auspicious year that saw the founding of the NHS. After graduating from Reading in 1948 with a BA Hons in Geography, Mary (known as Molly) went on to complete her teacher’s diploma at Manchester Victoria University. She subsequently became a teacher at a local high school in the Rossendale Valley, Lancashire, known as Whitewell Bottom. She married Robert Wolstenholme in 1952 and her daughter Gilly was born in 1956 and Julie in 1959. Mary retuned to teaching when her own daughters started school, as a primary school teacher, first at Stubbins County Primary then Edenfield CofE Primary. She continued teaching at Edenfield, later becoming Deputy Head, until taking early retirement in the 1980s. Through the kind gift of Mary’s personal papers we can see her journey to becoming an educator herself though her time at Reading.

 

An image of female staff and students posed together outside a university building in Reading.

Female undergraduates and academic staff at Reading, 1947

 

Rag Week 12th March 1947

Rag week is almost a lost tradition, it was a designated week when the university and the town came together; students organised fayres and a procession of floats to raise money for local charities.

An image of a horse drawn carriage and people surrounding it An image of people marching in the streets. An image of a float going down a busy street. An image of people driving a car.

An image of Kimber, Bill Ashton, The Mayor, Brian Robinson, Roger Williams in the Berkshire Records Office.

Kimber, Bill Ashton, The Mayor, Brian Robinson, Roger Williams
Students attempt to kidnap Phoebe Cusden, first female mayor of Reading and eminent peace campaigner. Read more about Phoebe Cusden at the Berkshire Records Office where her papers are held The Berkshire Record Office

 

Final Examinations

BA Geography examinations consisted of eight 3-hour papers.  How would you have done?

An image of a scanned geography final exam paper from June 1948

Other papers included: Human and Historical Geography, Geography (PRACTICAL), Physical Geography, Regional Geography (EUROPE), Regional Geography (BRITISH ISLES AND FRANCE), Economic Geography, Cartography

 

Graduands for presentation

When Mary graduated there were a surprising number of women gaining a Bachelor of Arts degree from the Faculty of Letters.  For the Bachelor of Science degrees however the number of women dwindles hugely!

An image of a scanned graduands for presentation document.

Doris Mary Stenton (Lady Stenton), was awarded her doctoral degree D. Litt. from the Faculty of Letters at the same presentation.

An image of a scanned graduates document.

An image of graduates in 1948

Graduation, July 1st, 1948 (Geography Group):
Mike Banyon, Shirley Jones, Frank Pierce
Isobel Ayers, Sheila Knight, Mary Turner, Ron Waters
Ron Stone, Margaret Lawes, Mags Johnson, Frances Pilling

 

 

Reference in application for Education Methods (modern PGCE)

What Mary made of her reference from Professor Austen Miller in 1949 we do not know but it is eye-wateringly misogynistic by C21st standards! While Mary was of a ‘frank, cheerful and warm-hearted disposition’, she might not make ‘a great scholar’. In fact

‘The qualities that recommend her are the more

 personal ones of appearance and presence…’

 

An image of a scanned letter dates 1949

In 1878, the University of London was the first to award degrees to women. Both Oxbridge universities were among the last to grant women degrees on the same terms as men: Oxford in 1920 but not until 1948 at Cambridge, the same year that Mary Turner graduated from Reading. The granting of degrees by Cambridge caused a huge amount of unrest with male undergraduates burning effigies of women students and throwing fireworks at the windows of women’s colleges. Even then, the university was allowed to limit the numbers of female students relative to men and continued to exercise that power to the full. The University of Reading awarded degrees to women on the same terms as men from its inception in 1926.

 

Mary Turner, BA Geography, 1st July 1948

An image of Mary Turner, BA Geography on 01 July 1948