Sonja Margaret Loveday Davies (née Vile; 11 November 1923 – 12 June 2005) was a New Zealand trade unionist, peace campaigner, and Member of Parliament. On 6 February 1987, Davies was the third appointee to the

Order of New Zealand The Order of New Zealand is the highest honour in the New Zealand royal honours system, created "to recognise outstanding service to the Crown and people of New Zealand in a civil or military capacity". It was instituted by royal warrant on 6 F ...

."The Order of New Zealand" (12 February 1987) 20 ''

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'' 705 at 709.

Early life

Sonja Vile was born in the

Upper Hutt Upper Hutt () is a city in the Wellington Region of New Zealand and one of the four cities that constitute the Wellington#Wellington metropolitan area, Wellington metropolitan area. History Upper Hutt is in an area originally known as Orongo ...

suburb of

Wallaceville Wallaceville is a suburb of Upper Hutt (located in the lower (southern) North Island of New Zealand). It is named after John Howard Wallace, an early New Zealand settler, council politician, businessman and author of one of the first published ...

in 1923. Her mother was Gwladys Ilma Vile, a nurse, and a granddaughter of Job Vile. Sonja Vile learned of her father's identity, Gerald Dempsey, when she was 20, but never made any contact. She had four different foster homes before her grandparents took her in, and they lived in

Oamaru Oamaru (; ) is the largest town in North Otago, in the South Island of New Zealand, it is the main town in the Waitaki District. It is south of Timaru and north of Dunedin on the Pacific Ocean, Pacific coast; State Highway 1 (New Zealand), Sta ...

and Woodville. Aged seven, she went back to her mother in

Wellington Wellington is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the third-largest city in New Zealand (second largest in the North Island ...

to live with her younger sister and her new step-father. The family moved to

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, then

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, and, in 1939, back to Wellington. By this time, she also had a younger brother. The speeches by pacifists Ormond Burton and Archibald Barrington appealed to her social conscience but caused tension with her parents, and she consequently left home aged 16 supporting herself by work in bookshops. She married Lindsay Nathan in 1941, and began training as a nurse. She became pregnant after an affair with an American marine and her daughter Penny was born in 1944. Soon afterwards, Sonja was hospitalised for tuberculosis.

Nelson

After divorcing Nathan, she married Charlie Davies in late 1946, who she had known before the war. The following year she was discharged from hospital, and the couple moved to rural

Nelson Nelson may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Nelson'' (1918 film), a historical film directed by Maurice Elvey * ''Nelson'' (1926 film), a historical film directed by Walter Summers * ''Nelson'' (opera), an opera by Lennox Berkeley to a lib ...

. In 1953 they moved into the city, where she became politically active in a campaign to stop the closure of the railway. She was elected to the Nelson Hospital Board in 1956, and to the Nelson City Council in 1961. In 1963, she was appointed as a justice of the peace. She later returned to Nelson to seek the Labour candidacy for the seat in a

1976 by-election Events January * January 2 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 18 – Full diplomatic ...

, but was unsuccessful, finishing the second preference to grocer and Nelson City Councillor

Mel Courtney Melvyn Francis Courtney (born 2 October 1943) is a New Zealand politician. He is a Nelson City Councillor and a former Labour then Independent Member of Parliament for Nelson, in the South Island of New Zealand. Early life and family Courtne ...

Involvement in unions

Davies helped to found the

Working Women's Council Working may refer to: * Work (human activity), intentional activity people perform to support themselves, others, or the community Arts and media * ''Working'' (musical), a 1978 musical * ''Working'' (TV series), an American sitcom * ''Workin ...

, and in 1974 she became the first female executive of the Federation of Labour.

Involvement in early childhood education

On 14 October 1963 Davies, as president of the Nelson Day Nurseries Committee, organised a meeting of centre staff and managers which resulted in the formation of the New Zealand Association of Childcare Centres. The overall aim was to provide support and staff training to centres in order to increase the quality of care and education for preschool children. Davies also believed that the national Association would be influential in lobbying the government would also help centres to lobby the government over impending childcare regulations.

Member of Parliament

Davies became the Labour MP for Pencarrow in 1987 and served two terms. In November 1990 she was appointed as Labour's spokesperson for Women's Affairs by Labour leader

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. She retired in 1993 and

Trevor Mallard Sir Trevor Colin Mallard (born 17 June 1954) is a New Zealand politician and diplomat. Since 2023, he has served as Ambassador of New Zealand to Ireland. He was a Member of Parliament from 1984 to 1990 and again from 1993 to 2022. He served a ...

replaced her. In 1990, Davies received the

New Zealand 1990 Commemoration Medal The New Zealand 1990 Commemoration Medal was a commemorative medal awarded in New Zealand in 1990 to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi, and was awarded to 3,632 people. Background The New Zealand 1990 Com ...

, and in 1993 she was awarded the

New Zealand Suffrage Centennial Medal The New Zealand Suffrage Centennial Medal 1993 was established by Royal Warrant on 1 July 1993. It was created to commemorate Women's suffrage in New Zealand and to recognize those New Zealand and Commonwealth citizens who had made a significant ...

. Davies died in Wellington in 2005.

Media

Her autobiography, ''Bread and Roses: Her Story'', (), was turned into a film in 1994. Directed by

Gaylene Preston Dame Gaylene Mary Preston (born 1 June 1947) is a New Zealand filmmaker with a particular interest in documentary films. Early life and family Born in Greymouth on 1 June 1947, Preston was educated at Colenso High School (now William Colenso ...

, the film was also called ''Bread and Roses''. A second volume of autobiography, ''Marching On'' () was published in 1997.
''Bread and Roses'' (film, 1994) on IMDb

References

External links

Sonya Davies in 1986 (photo)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Davies, Sonja 1923 births 2005 deaths People from Upper Hutt Members of the New Zealand House of Representatives Nelson City Councillors New Zealand MPs for Hutt Valley electorates New Zealand Labour Party MPs New Zealand trade unionists Members of the Order of New Zealand New Zealand left-wing activists New Zealand feminists New Zealand socialist feminists Women members of the New Zealand House of Representatives Unsuccessful candidates in the 1966 New Zealand general election 20th-century New Zealand women politicians 20th-century New Zealand politicians Recipients of the New Zealand Suffrage Centennial Medal 1993 Members of district health boards in New Zealand New Zealand justices of the peace