Feminism and Voluntary Action

Eglantyne Jebb, like half a million other women, was drawn into what was called philanthropy, charity work or slumming. A grammar school teacher, publicist and fundraiser for Macedonian Relief Fund, Agricultural Organization Society, Fight the Famine Council and co-founder of Save the Children, Jebb [...]
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Eglantyne Jebb, like half a million other women, was drawn into what was called philanthropy, charity work or slumming. A grammar school teacher, publicist and fundraiser for Macedonian Relief Fund, Agricultural Organization Society, Fight the Famine Council and co-founder of Save the Children, Jebb led a group of feminists and pacifists to collaborate on the Declaration of the Rights of the Child. Women born late in Victoria's reign were beneficiaries of expanded educational opportunities; however, legal and social conventions stifled many ambitions. Charity work represented a chance for adventure and rebellion, but it was also thankless work that could be physically and morally exhausting. Feminism and Voluntary Action uses Jebb's life as a lens through which to view the role volunteering played in women's lives before and after WWI. By ousting the Lady Bountiful, and promising to give aid to children regardless of race or creed, Jebb created the first international child welfare charity and brought a professional ethos to unpaid social work.