Ivy Forster: The occupation heroine who led the way for women
Ivy Forster made history when she became Jersey's first ever female politician more than 75 years ago.But did she learn some of the resilience she would need in the states by helping escaped slave workers during the German Occupation?Ivy Forster was one of three siblings who showed great bravery during the five years of occupation.They all felt pity for the slave workers who were made to build the fortifications around the island in terrible conditions and with harsh punishments.
Loss and betrayal
Ivy's sister, Louisa Gould, is remembered for sheltering the escaped prisoner Russian Bill, above the little shop she ran in St Ouen.He had escaped from a working party at the bottom of Mont Pinel in St Ouen, and faced death if he was recaptured.For months Louisa hid him in her attic before she was eventually betrayed, and sent to Ravensbruck concentration camp where she was killed.
Russian Bill managed to evade the Germans and was hidden by Ivy and her brother Harold Le Druillenec.They had already looked after another Russian.But because of their connection to Louisa, they were quickly arrested, although Bill managed to get away once more.Harold was deported, and he is thought to be the only British person to survive Belsen.
A politician in the making
But Ivy Forster was lucky because a friendly doctor wrote a medical note to say she was not well enough to be taken away from the island, and she was allowed to serve her prison sentence in the island prison in Newgate Street, where the hospital now stands.She stayed there until the island was liberated.Emily Thomas, from the voting group Vote.je, has researched Ivy's story."I'm sure it was incredibly character building, and going through an experience like that can only serve to develop your sense of commitment to other human beings," she said.
Having lost a sister, and seeing the suffering of her brother, Ivy resolved that she would share her experiences with the people of Jersey, and became known as an after-dinner speaker.After one such event she was approached by the bailiff, who asked her if she would consider going into politics.Women had been able to stand for election since 1924, but none had yet been successful.Ivy was determined to stand; and in December 1948 she was duly elected as the Deputy for St Helier No 2 district.Newspaper photographs show her standing out amongst the other, all male, candidates.She was listed as Mrs A Forster because the tradition was to describe women under their husband's name rather than their own name.
Ivy went on to serve on several committees, including Public Health and Essential Commodities.Ms Thomas said: "She would have been certainly a very busy woman, definitely not sitting on her laurels not doing anything."She also said there has been a great improvement in women's representation in recent years, and now 43% of the politicians in the States were women.Ms Thomas said: "What we've been able to do at the States Greffe with Ivy's story and history is to use that to inspire other women to stand for election, and help them to feel that being a States member is something that is an achievable, attainable, and realistic option for women."Eighty years after the end of the Occupation which cost the life of her sister and the deportation of her brother, the determination of Ivy Forster to succeed in a political world dominated by men is still an inspiration for women across the island.
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