Knowing our Past, Transforming our Future was the slogan announced by the Victorian Minister for Women's Affairs Maxine Morand. "2008 marks 100 years since women in Victoria won the right to vote - let's make it a year to remember" Morand 2008

The League has a strong interest in the history of the struggle for equity. We support the Jessie Street National Women's Library, Women's History Month, the Women's Register and the National Foundation for Australian Women's AWAP (Australian Women's Archives Project), and the Women's Map project. We encouraged a bi-partisan approach to the 2008 Suffrage Centenary program, and was referee for several of the projects to be funded under the Victoria Governments $1 million Suffrage Centenary Program.

The 1891 Women's Suffrage Petition - a very significant document in the development of Australia's democracy and the development of an international grassroots suffrage movement. When the Premier of the day said he would introduce a bill for women's suffrage if it could be demonstrated ordinary women wanted this right, the Victorian Woman's Christian Temperance Union and the Victorian Women's Suffrage Society took up the challenge, joining forces to organise a petition, 'that government of the People, by the People and for the People should mean all the People, not half'. Embarking on a door knocking campaign across Victoria, they collected almost 30,000 signatures in six weeks. As part of the 150th anniversary of the establishment of responsible government in Victoria, a joint PROV/Parliament of Victoria project to digitise the petition was completed in 2007. This led to the original petition being given additional protection by being placed on the Victorian Heritage Register (August 2007)

On February 20, 2008 it was announced that the 'Monster Petition' has been added to UNESCO's Memory of the World Australian register! To look at the names of the 30,000 women who signed click here

The Public Records Office of Victoria wants to hear stories of your ancestors or people from your locality who signed the 1891 Women's Suffrage petition. Email your stories to PROV with a subject line 'Suffrage Stories'

Projects page - 50/50 page - Reflection and Celebration