The Common Cause (NUWSS newspaper)

The Common Cause was a weekly publication that supported the National Union of Women's Suffrage Societies[1] first published on 15 April 1909 mainly financed by Margaret Ashton.[2] Its last issue was published on Friday, 30 January 1920, in which it announced its successor The Woman's Leader.[3]

The Common Cause
Edition of The Common Cause for Friday, March 8 1918
TypeWeekly newspaper
Founder(s)Margaret Ashton
PublisherCommon Cause Publishing Co. Ltd.
EditorHelena Swanwick, Clementina Black, Maude Royden and Ray Strachey
Founded15 April 1909 as The Common Cause of Humanity, then renamed to The Common Cause
Political alignmentSuffragist
LanguageEnglish
Ceased publication30 January 1920 (replaced by The Women's Leader
HeadquartersManchester

History

In 1908, the Manchester councillor Margaret Ashton sold her house in Didsbury to fund the creation of a newspaper,[4][5] which was eventually founded in an office in Manchester in 1912. The intention was that it would represent the policies of and publish news from the NUWSS, but for legal reasons it could not be an organ of the NUWSS .[6] Instead The Common Cause Publishing Co. Ltd was founded with an initial capital of £2,000 to publish the new paper.[7]

Its first editor was Helena Swanwick, [8] who chose the name "Common Cause" because she believed that humanity was "bi-sexual", in other words that there were not "women's causes" or "men's causes".[6]

She resigned in June 1912 because of the policy of the NUWSS not to criticise the WSPU, the main suffragette organization, because she felt its militancy was hindering the progress of women's suffrage[9] and regarding them as "the greatest danger we have".[6] She wrote to C. P. Scott on 19 July 1912, saying[10] "I have much sympathy for feminine rebellion. For their claptrap and dishonesty, for their persecution and terrorism, I have loathing."

From 1912 to 1913, Clementina Black was editor.[11] In April 1913, Maude Royden, who had been a regular contributor to the paper, took up the post of editor[12] which she held until 1914.[13] Its last editor was Ray Strachey, who became editor after the end of the First World War.[14]

References
  1. "Common Cause". Women's Print Media in Interwar Britain. Department of English and Film Studies, Wilfrid Laurier University (Ontario, Canada). Retrieved 2020-06-30.
  2. Simkin, John (1909-04-15). "The Common Cause". Spartacus Educational. Retrieved 2020-06-30.
  3. ""The Woman's Leader" and "The Common Cause"". The Common Cause. 11 (564). 1920-01-30. Retrieved 2020-06-30.
  4. "WoManchester Project No 1 -Margaret Ashton". About Manchester. 2015-05-29. Retrieved 2020-06-30.
  5. "Margaret Ashton". Suffrage Pioneers 1918 - 2018. 2018.
  6. "Vale". The Common Cause. 4 (182). 1912-10-03. Retrieved 2020-06-30.
  7. Tusan, M.E. (2005). Women Making News: Gender and Journalism in Modern Britain. History of communication. University of Illinois Press. p. 161. ISBN 978-0-252-03015-4. Retrieved 2020-06-30.
  8. Crawford, Elizabeth (2001). The women's suffrage movement : a reference guide, 1866-1928. London New York: Routledge. p. 438. ISBN 978-0-415-23926-4. OCLC 44914288.
  9. Crawford, Elizabeth (2001). The women's suffrage movement : a reference guide, 1866-1928. London New York: Routledge. p. 668. ISBN 978-0-415-23926-4. OCLC 44914288.
  10. Holborn, Margaret (2015-09-01). "Helena Swanwick and Evelyn Sharp". the Guardian. Retrieved 2020-06-30.
  11. Simkin, John (1922-12-19). "Clementina Black". Spartacus Educational. Retrieved 2020-06-30.
  12. Crawford, Elizabeth (2001). The women's suffrage movement : a reference guide, 1866-1928. London New York: Routledge. p. 610. ISBN 978-0-415-23926-4. OCLC 44914288.
  13. Simkin, John (1956-07-30). "Maude Royden". Spartacus Educational. Retrieved 2020-06-30.
  14. Crawford, Elizabeth (2001). The women's suffrage movement : a reference guide, 1866-1928. London New York: Routledge. p. 659. ISBN 978-0-415-23926-4. OCLC 44914288.
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