Nellie Weekes
Muriel Odessa "Nellie" Weekes (26 August 1896 – 11 May 1990) was a Bajan nurse and midwife who was active in women's rights issues. Campaigning for better pay and working in social welfare projects, she turned to politics in the 1940s at a time when most women were not politically active in Barbados. Though she unsuccessfully ran for a seat in the House of Assembly three times in the 1940s, she was elected to the Christ Church Vestry in 1958, serving for many years.
Nellie Weekes | |
|---|---|
 Weekes, 1982 | |
| Born | Muriel Odessa Walcott 26 August 1896 |
| Died | 11 May 1990 (aged 93) Bridgetown, Barbados |
| Nationality | British Barbadian |
| Other names | Muriel Odessa Weekes |
| Occupation | nurse, midwife, politician, activist |
| Years active | 1916–1982 |
Early life
Muriel Odessa "Nellie" Walcott was born on 26 August 1896 to Daniel Walcott in Saint Michael Parish in the British West Indies' colony of Barbados.[1][2] Her parents owned and operated a grocery store.[2] She grew up in My Lord's Hill as one of 13 children and attended Belmont Girls' School.[1] After completing her secondary education at Lynch's Secondary School, she studied nursing while working at the Old Barbados General Hospital and midwifery at St. Michael's Almshouse.[1][2]
Career
Walcott worked as a nurse and midwife. Wanting to improve the care available in the community, she founded the School of Bedside Nursing and the Culinary School for Women.[2][3] She was also active in the Choir for the Animation of the Sick and Incapacitated,[2] an organization founded by Harold Rock, which used music therapy to cheer patients confined in children's homes, hospitals, at home or in prison.[4] Participating in many social welfare projects, including the Dorcas League, which championed trade skills for workers, and the Universal Negro Improvement Association, she campaigned for better salaries for teachers and nurses.[1][2] Walcott married Charles Nathaniel Weekes, a World War I veteran[2] and hotelier. Together they operated a catering business. They were involved in the operations of the Colonial Hotel, the Ritz Hotel, the Standard Hotel, and Weekes' Canteen.[3]
After decades of working as a nurse and caterer, Weekes recognized that if women's status were to be improved, they had to be involved in policy-making. Though widely criticized for her outspoken belief in equality, she ran as a candidate for the House of Assembly representing the St. George constituency in 1942.[1] Unsuccessful, she ran again in 1944 as a representative for the City of Bridgetown.[2] That year women were granted the right both to vote and to stand for election for either house of Parliament, if they met the property requirement or had income of £20 per year.[5][6] At her rally on 13 October, all the speakers were women, but again she was defeated.[1] She contested but lost her bid for the St. George seat again in 1946 but was successful in being elected to the Christ Church Vestry in 1958.[2] In 1959, she became a founder and served as the first vice president for the Barbados Labour Party's Women's League.[2]
Issues that she pushed during her time on the vestry included minimum wage standards; higher salaries for civil servants including firemen, nurses, policemen, postmen, and teachers; establishment of public utilities; and measures to require the government to provide proper nutritional meals to those people who were under government care. She also was vocal about the need to provide teaching on African heritage.[3] An active member of the Barbados Women's Alliance, she also advocated for amendments to the Bastardy Act and for rape trials to be held in private chambers, equal opportunities in girls' education, and adequate training in family planning.[2][3] She remained active in social issues in Barbados into the early 1980s, when she had to have her legs amputated.[3]
Death and legacy
Weekes died on 11 May 1990 in Bridgetown, Barbados.[2] She is remembered as a pioneer and "trailblazer" in the struggle for women's rights in the country.[2] [1]
References
Citations
- Burrowes 1982, p. 14.
- Jemmott 2016.
- Burrowes 1982, p. 15.
- Bourne 2012.
- Nation News 2018.
- Alexander & Parker 2004, p. 263.
Bibliography
- Alexander, Robert J.; Parker, Eldon M. (2004). A History of Organized Labor in the English-speaking West Indies. Westport, Connecticut: Praeger Publishing. ISBN 978-0-275-97743-6.
- Bourne, A. (30 November 2012). "2012 Independence Day Honours List – Chief Justice Knighted, Please Do Not Let Fame Spoil You?". The Bajan Reporter. St Michael, Barbados. Archived from the original on 12 October 2018. Retrieved 7 September 2020.
- Burrowes, Avonda (1982). "Profile: Nellie Weekes—Activist, Organizer and Champion". Woman Speak!. Pinelands, St. Michael, Barbados: University of the West Indies for the Caribbean Women's Association (7): 14–15. LCCN 89649470. OCLC 12795393. Retrieved 6 September 2020 – via Library of Congress.
- Jemmott, Jenny (2016). "Weekes, Muriel Odessa "Nellie" (1897–1990), registered nurse, businesswoman, and women's rights activist". In Knight, Franklin W.; Gates, Jr., Henry Louis (eds.). Dictionary of Caribbean and Afro–Latin American Biography. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-199-93580-2. – via Oxford University Press's Reference Online (subscription required)
- "Women in Politics in Barbados". Nation News. Fontabelle, Saint Michael, Barbados. June 2018. Archived from the original on 4 September 2019. Retrieved 7 September 2020.