Interview with Sue Kedgley

Abstract

Sue Kedgley was one of the early leaders of the women's liberation movement in New Zealand._She set up the Auckland University women's liberation group in 1971 and the National Organisation for Women in 1972. She helped organise a high-profile tour of internationally acclaimed feminist Germaine Greer to New Zealand in 1972 and co-authored the first book about women's liberation in New Zealand, entitled Sexist Society._Kedgley attended the first international feminist conference at Boston in 1973 and then worked as a Communications Officer in the Women's Secretariat at the United Nations, New York, helping to organise the first international women's conference at Mexico City in 1975 and coordinate International Women's Year 1975. She helped set up the UN women's group and was active in it for the 8 years she worked at the United Nations. She was Assistant Secretary of the second United Nations Conference for Women, which was held in Copenhagen in 1980._Returning to New Zealand in 1982, she worked for a decade as a television reporter, director, and producer, then entered local politics as a Wellington City Councillor from 1992 until 1999 when she was elected a Member of Parliament (MP) for the Green Party, serving as an MP from 1999 until 2011. She was women's spokesperson for the Green party and Deputy Chairperson (1999-2005) and subsequently Chairperson of the New Zealand Parliament Health Select Committee (2005-2008). Sue was a Wellington Regional Councillor for six years and has served on several boards, including the National Board of UN Women Aotearoa New Zealand. She continues to be active in women's issues and is a Convenor at the National Organisation for Women New Zealand._Kedgley has written six books on feminist issues, including Sexist Society (1972; co-edited with Sharon Cederman), Mum's the Word: The Untold Story of Motherhood in New Zealand (1996), and most recently, a memoir entitled Fifty Years a Feminist (2021). In 2016, she received a New Zealand Women of Influence Award in recognition of her work towards greater gender diversity in the workplace, and in 2020, she was appointed an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit (ONZM) for services to women and governance._