As we edge into warmer weather it’s time to introduce our next monthly blogger, Sharon Jagger.
In her own words:
“I am white, working class and middle-aged. Growing up in the north of England in the 70s and 80s, I remember having a strong feminist instinct and raging against the injustice of girls not being allowed to play football, resisting being channelled into sewing and cooking classes at school and arguing with the local vicar about why women were not allowed to be priests.
Decades later, I find myself in the final year of a PhD, studying how women did, in fact, become priests in the Church of England and how they have fared in what is, frankly, a sexist institution.
I am based at the Centre for Women’s Studies at the University of York and teach sociology and social policy ‘on the side’ whilst writing my (troublesome) thesis. I work at a resettlement hostel for women vulnerable to homelessness and, because we all need to enjoy a bit of limelight every now and then, I perform in a feminist musical duo called Union Jill. If I could get paid for the number of hobbies I begin and then discard, I would be a wealthy woman.
It is a privilege to be April’s guest blogger and I hope you will find my choice of subjects stimulating, informative and perhaps entertaining — I will try my best. My PhD may get a mention, as I am now banned from talking about it in my local pub. Above all, my hope is to get the feminist discussion going.”
Welcome, Sharon!
Featured image by MJ S, from Unsplash. Used under Creative Commons Zero licence.
Image is a close-up of the golden nib of a vintage fountain pen. The nib sits against a blank white background
