Jane Phillips-Gay CCH (2 November 1913 – 21 February 1994) was an

Afro-Guyanese Afro-Guyanese, also known as Black Guyanese, are generally descended from the enslaved African people brought to Guyana from the coast of West Africa to work on sugar plantations during the era of the Atlantic slave trade. Coming from a wide arr ...

trade unionist and an ordained minister. She was an advocate of women's rights, formed one of the first women's political organizations in the country and served as one of the first women to be elected as a Member of British Guiana Parliament. She was recognized with the national service honor, the Cacique Crown of Honor in 1975.

Early life

Jane Henrietta Phillips was born on 2 November 1913, in Georgetown,

British Guiana British Guiana was a British colony, part of the mainland British West Indies. It was located on the northern coast of South America. Since 1966 it has been known as the independent nation of Guyana. The first known Europeans to encounter Guia ...

, to James Adolphus Phillips She attended St. Ambrose Primary, Brickdam Roman Catholic School and Christ Church Anglican School, winning the primary school scholarship in 1925, which allowed her to continue her schooling. She attended Collegiate High School, completing her Junior Cambridge certification in 1929.

Career

That same year, Phillips preached her first sermon, "Blessed are thou among women", at St. Stephens Church. She began preaching regularly and laid the foundation for her own church. In 1933, she was ordained as a Baptist preacher in

Barbados Barbados, officially the Republic of Barbados, is an island country in the Atlantic Ocean. It is part of the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies and the easternmost island of the Caribbean region. It lies on the boundary of the South American ...

. She joined the African Development Association, a Guyanese organization formed in 1938 to empower and improve the lives of Afro-Guyanese. In 1942, Phillips married Ivan Gay and affixed his surname to her own, becoming Phillips-Gay. Labor disputes in the

sugar industry The sugar industry subsumes the production, Sugar refinery, processing and marketing of sugars (mostly sucrose and fructose). Globally, about 80% of sugar is extracted from sugar cane, grown predominantly in the tropics, and 20% from sugar beet, ...

of British Guiana had historically led to shootings on various

plantations Plantations are farms specializing in cash crops, usually mainly planting a single crop, with perhaps ancillary areas for vegetables for eating and so on. Plantations, centered on a plantation house, grow crops including cotton, cannabis, tobacco ...

. One such incident at the Emerald plantation in the 1940s, led Phillips-Gay to seek out Joseph P. Lachmansingh, who would become the head of the Guiana Industrial Workers Union (GIWU) to try to understand the roots of the problem. He invited her to participate with him at a meeting on one of the plantations. She began working with Lachmansingh as a volunteer, visiting plantations throughout the colony and recording grievances and injuries of the cane workers. Phillips-Gay joined the Women's Political and Economic Organization (WPEO) when it formed in 1946. The first political organization of women in British Guiana, the group sought civic, economic and political parity for women. The following year, when the People's Progressive Party (PPP), formed she joined it as well. In 1948, Phillips-Gay became the assistant general secretary of the GIWU and was an active participant in the Enmore strike, which resulted in workers being martyred for their involvement. The following year, Phillips-Gay, a recognized labor leader, became the general secretary of GIWU, with the responsibility of managing the organization. In 1953, she was one of the group of women of the PPP, who formed the Women’s Progressive Organisation (WPO). That same year, she ran for a seat in the

House of Assembly House of Assembly is a name given to the legislature or lower house of a bicameral parliament. In some countries this may be at a subnational level. Historically, in British Crown colonies as the colony gained more internal responsible g ...

for the East Central Demerara district and successfully gained 63 percent of the sugar constituent's vote. Ironically, her voting base was predominantly

Indo-Guyanese Indo-Guyanese or Guyanese Indians, are Guyanese nationals of Indian origin who trace their ancestry to India and the wider subcontinent. They are the descendants of indentured servants and settlers who migrated from India beginning in 1838, a ...

, while another successful politician in the race, Chandra Persaud, was elected by a predominantly

constituency. The election marked the first time women were allowed to vote, and Phillips-Gay, along with

Janet Jagan Janet Rosenberg Jagan (née Rosenberg; 20 October 1920 – 28 March 2009) was an American-born Guyanese politician who served as the President of Guyana, serving from December 19, 1997, to August 11, 1999. She was the first female president of Gu ...

and Jessica Burnham became the first three women elected to the parliament. In 1955, the PPP split and Phillips-Gay joined the faction led by

Forbes Burnham Linden Forbes Sampson Burnham (20 February 1923 – 6 August 1985) was a Guyanese politician and the leader of the Co-operative Republic of Guyana from 1964 until his death in 1985. He served as Prime Minister of Guyana, Premier of British Guia ...

, which became the People's National Congress (PNC). She led an unsuccessful bid to keep her seat on the PNC ticket in 1957, and lost both subsequent attempts in 1961, and 1964. In 1957, she led the founding of the Women's Auxiliary of the PNC and served as the chair of the group for the next nineteen years. Phillips-Gay continued her community service work becoming involved in various measures aimed at protecting children and the elderly, as well as continuing her efforts with workers and the unemployed. Her work with women’s organizations expanded region wide and in 1970, she helped found Caribbean Women’s Association (CARIWA). In 1975, she was awarded Guyana's second highest national honor, the Cacique Crown of Honor (CCH).

Death and legacy

Phillips-Gay died on 21 February 1994 in Georgetown. At the time of her death, the legislature recognized her commitment to her service to the nation and she is remembered each

International Women's Day International Women's Day (IWD) is celebrated on 8 March, commemorating women's fight for equality and liberation along with the women's rights movement. International Women's Day gives focus to issues such as gender equality, reproductive righ ...

for her contributions.

References

Citations

Bibliography

* * * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Phillips-Gay, Jane 1913 births 1994 deaths People from Georgetown, Guyana British Guiana people Women educators Guyanese trade unionists Guyanese women's rights activists Guyanese politicians