Politics

Federal

The Dismissal

Opinion

Why Whitlam’s dismissal was a blow to women’s rights

Michelle Arrow Professor of Modern History November 10, 2025 — 2.30pm Advertisement

We rightly remember the dismissal of the Whitlam government – 50 years ago – as our most extraordinary political crisis. But the dismissal was also a big setback for women’s rights. Whitlam offered new political recognition to women, and his policies transformed many women’s lives. The women’s movement campaigned for Whitlam in the post-dismissal election because they knew that the gains they had made under Labor could easily be lost.

Gough Whitlam, with wife Margaret, addresses a crowd in Sydney after winning the federal election, December 2, 1972. Credit: Lipman

Even though Australia was the fi

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