Melissa Parke (Fremantle, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I would like to say a few words in honour of Ruby Violet Wilson, a long-time member of the Labor Party, who died in March aged 95. Ruby joined the Labor Party when she moved from the country to Fremantle at the age of 17. When she passed away she was the longest serving member of the Fremantle branch. Her first experience of attending meetings was with her father and from that time on she became an essential part of every state and federal election campaign in WA. In recent years, Ruby was a much-loved and inspiring fixture at the White Gum Valley Primary School booth, where she handed out how-to-vote cards and rallied the troops.

In honouring Ruby’s commitment, I want to make the general point that, while politics and political parties in Australia are often regarded with a good deal of cynicism, the truth is that those who become engaged in grassroots politics, whatever their stripe or flavour, are making a contribution to the strength of our democracy. Ruby Wilson raised her children as a single mother in a time when there was much less support or understanding for women in that position. It is no surprise then that she made a significant contribution to women’s policy and to women’s rights, particularly in her role as a founding member of the Fremantle women’s Labor movement. I know that my predecessor, Carmen Lawrence, had a great fondness and respect for Ruby. It is with the greatest respect and gratitude that I recognise the lifelong dedication of Ruby Wilson to the Labor Party in Western Australia and to Australian politics.