PRESENTATION OUTLINE
Kate Sheppard, was born in Liverpool in 1847, she then migrated to Christchurch in her early 20's. There, she married Walter Sheppard when she turned 24. In 1887 at the age of 40, she became leader of the Woman's Christian Temperance Union suffrage campaign. Sheppard believed that the way women were treated was inequitable and they deserved to be treated as equals to men. She and other pioneering women campaigned so effectively that in 1893 New Zealand became the first self-governing nation in the world to grant the vote to all women over 21. Kate Sheppard is the reason women today have the right to vote, to be on the jury and for us to be able to make decisions for ourselves, instead of obeying the orders our husbands would command us to do.
Subsidiarity
Kate Sheppard made decisions that benefited women and the greater society by fighting for women's rights. Kate Sheppard fought for many years for what she believed in knowing that everyone would benefit from it as woman are just as capable of running a country and having just as good ideas as men. She wanted to show that women were able to do all of the things that men could do just as well, if not better.
Common Good
Kate Sheppard put others before herself and considered the well being of the women in the world that were under the despicable commands of men. She came to the decision to raise awareness of the brutal treatment women were experiencing. Kate held campaigns to allow for woman rights without expecting anything in return. She did it simply to help the needs of women, allowing them to be heard.
Human Dignity
Kate Sheppard demonstrated human dignity by believing that men and women should be treated the same unconditionally. Before women had rights men were able to overpower women as they were unable to fight back. Women were just as capable as men yet they were treated as if they were impotent to cope with situations. Sheppard strongly felt that she, herself needed to make a difference to prove that women needed to be heard.
Care for the poor and vulnerable
Woman were always under the tough commands of the men and were never allowed a say in anything and Kate Sheppard never ignored this and wanted all of that to change. The women were vulnerable towards the men because the men could easily overpower them and the women were afraid to speak up for what they believed in. Sheppard fought for the woman so they would no longer be vulnerable towards them and could be resilient and stand up for what they believed in.
Solidarity
Kate Sheppard demonstrated solidarity by putting herself in other women's shoes. Even though many people didn't believe her and were up against her, she gained resilience and stood up for herself and committed until the end. She considered all of the woman that had been neglected or ignored and fought for their rights. Kate showed empathy for the women who were under the harsh conditions and successfully gave them the power to stand up for themselves.
Participation
Kate Sheppard demonstrated participation by helping the women that were suffering get involved in making important decisions, voting and having important roles. She accomplished this by participating in a developing group which fought for what they believed in. Sheppard encouraged other women into joining her campaign so they could all enforce for woman rights. Kate always did more than what was required which is part of why she was very successful.
Overall
Society today has nominated her to be present on the New Zealand ten dollar note for having the courage to stand up for all women giving them rights. Kate showed us that we need to live in a world that is equal between both genders and we need to carry on her bravery to stand up for what we think is right. In 1873 women rate-payers were given the right to vote in local body elections and in 1877 women "householders" (that is, all adult women) were given the right to vote in and stand for school committees and education boards. Leading politicians including John Hall, Robert Stout, Julius Vogel, William Fox and John Ballance supported the cause.If it wasn't for Kate Sheppard, we, as women, would still be treated unfairly by the power of men.
Kate Sheppard did all of this for us not just for herself. She always puts others before herself which is a key point in all the Catholic Social Teachings.
‘WE ARE TIRED OF HAVING A “SPHERE” DOLED OUT TO US, AND OF BEING TOLD THAT ANYTHING OUTSIDE THAT SPHERE IS “UNWOMANLY”.’ - KATE SHEPPARD
Everyone was made in gods image and women are just as good a creation as men. Men were pushing women down and making us feel like we don't belong even though we do as we are all god creations and shouldn't be pushed down.
