Who was Vida Goldstein?
Vida Goldstein (1869 – 1949) was a suffragist, pacifist, feminist and social activist; a tireless and charismatic campaigner for women's equality, universal suffrage and equal pay. She helped women gain the right to vote in Australia. She was also an international figure in the fight for women’s equality.
In 1903, she was one of the first women to run for Australia parliament and ran four times throughout her life. Though unsuccessful, through her pioneering efforts, her successes and failures, she was a trail-blazer who provided leadership and inspiration to countless people.
Born on 13 April 1869 in Portland, Victoria, Vida was the eldest child of Jacob and Isabella (née Hawkins) Goldstein. Both of her parents were social reformers and encouraged their daughters to be independent. Goldstein’s career as an activist began around 1890 when she helped her mother collect signatures for the Women’s Suffrage Petition. The petition asked the government to allow women in Victoria to vote, and Goldstein soon joined and advocated for other social welfare activities and attended sessions at Victoria’s parliament.
Goldstein became an impressive public speaker and was active internationally – attending the International Woman Suffrage Conference in the United States in 1902 and representing Australian women at a Women’s Peace Conference in Switzerland in 1919. On her return to Australia three years later, she retired from her political work.
Goldstein’s advocacy and reform work has had a lasting effect on the Melbourne community.
Goldstein died on August 15, 1949, in South Yarra, Victoria. She received numerous posthumous honours – including having an electoral division named after her in 1984 and she was inducted into the Victorian Honour Roll of Women in 2001.