Stella Browne | |
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Born | Frances Worsley Stella Browne 9 May 1880 Halifax, Nova Scotia |
Died | 8 May 1955 | (aged 74)
Nationality | British Canadian |
Alma mater | Sommervile College, Oxford |
Known for | Women's rights activism |
Movement | Suffragettes |
Stella Browne (9 May 1880 – 8 May 1955) was a Canadian-born British feminist, socialist, sex radical, and birth control campaigner. She was one of the primary women in the fight for women's right to control and make decisions regarding their sexual choices.[1] Active mainly in Britain, her principal focus was on sexual law reform, including the right for women to both access knowledge on and use birth control, as well as the right to abortion.[2] She was also involved in labour parties, communist parties, as well as a number of women's societies.
Stella Browne was one of the first women to speak out in somewhat offensive ways about her beliefs with a "Forward, Charge!" approach.[3] She did this through attacks in her articles and letters that kept her in the public's eye and added to the debates around many controversial topics surrounding women's rights.[4] She is famous for her lectures and her work with the Abortion Law Reform Association. As a women's rights activist, Browne was able to keep questions of women's rights to their body and sexuality in the public eye long enough to get other people interested enough to keep the cause going even after her death.[citation needed]