Award-winning biographer and political historian, emeritus professor, Judith Brett AM, recently discussed her latest book, Fearless Beatrice Faust: Sex, Feminism and Body Politics, with highly-acclaimed Canberra journalist, broadcaster and former ABC News Anchor, Virginia Haussegger AM, at the ANU’s Kambri Centre. A staunch civil-rights activist, advocate for women’s rights, feminist, academic, writer and intellectual, Beatrice Faust founded the Women’s Electoral Lobby in Melbourne in 1972, an organisation of women whose initiatives in the lead-up to the 1972 federal election included surveying and highlighting the stances of political candidates on issues relevant to women. Many of Beatrice Faust’s life experiences and those of her mother, helped shape her understanding of the dynamics in society between men and women. Her later writing particularly that related to pornography and paedophilia, has set her at odds with many feminists. Professor Brett drew on public records and private writings to produce this very readable book, and among Professor Brett’s other notable books is The Enigmatic Mr Deakin, about Australia’s second prime minister, Alfred Deakin, a book which was a winner of the 2018 National Biography Award. Virginia Haussegger is an adjunct professor at the University of Canberra and deputy chair of the media think-tank PIJI, the Public Interest Journalism Initiative. In 2019 she was the ACT Australian of The Year in recognition of her community leadership and women’s rights advocacy. ANU history professor and president of the Council for Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences, Frank Bongiorno AM, gave a vote of thanks at the ANU’s Kambri Centre.
