Welcome to the Saturday piece on Lismore Women in Politics, those who have run the gauntlet of Local, State or Federal Government Elections, their experiences, observations of political happenings, wisdom gained in the process and advice for women who may choose to put their hat in the ring in the future.

Today, Christmas Day 2021, we chat with Member for Lismore Janelle Saffin.

Janelle has lived most of her life here, over 40 years, and has too many achievements to count. Not the least of which was being the first woman in both Federal and State Seats.

Janelle has been a politician since 23 March 2019. She was the Member for Page in the Australian House of Representatives from 2007 to 2013, and a Member of the New South Wales Legislative Council from 1995 to 2003. In the 2019 NSW State Election, Janelle was elected as the State Member for Lismore. The first Labor Member in 50 years and the first female Member for the electorate of Lismore.

Janelle told us about how she emerged into her political career “I was active in community events organisation around issues supporting the community, trying to secure changes particularly, in the early years, with women and children, youth and people with a disability. It's all about community for me. I hadn’t even thought about politics.

I soon realised that to affect real change I needed to work within the political system, I had worked at the women's refuge here in Lismore, I was on the board, and could see that the law reforms, and systemic changes we needed to do our work, were huge. 

Such as in society, there was in-built sexism in politics and the ways in which we could deliver these services, so I worked to change things like that. 

(Janelle with the new Mayor of Lismore Steve Krieg at the opening of the Dudgeon Bridge at Keerong)

An example of a clear grey area I sought to fix locally in the early days was that we had a lot of homeless youth and at that time. Under the rules (which were common practice rather than the law) you needed to be 18 to apply for housing, which meant they were constantly being left vulnerable and unable to access housing services, I worked hard to change this, so now youth can access housing, and like many of the changes I have implemented, this doesn’t just support youth here, but across the state and wider Australia.

When asked about some of the changes Janelle has made which supported the community she said “We set up The Sexual Assualt Centre, and I was founding secretary of the Far North Coast Domestic Violence Liason Committee, the first one set up outside Sydney. We never wanted to deliver services as such but wanted funding for out-of-pocket admin, and to be able to work as an advocacy committee”. 

I was successful in lobbying for this and later increased the funds to deliver more services. We were so visible in the community, we would be out and about in the shopping centres and at events, so we became a part and parcel of the community, and then we started setting up safe houses. This affected change across the board for women. We introduced a policy for the NSW North Coast, which was around asking women who present into hospital if they had been a victim of domestic violence (DV) to remove barriers, as we knew from research that if you don’t ask the question, women often won’t speak up and won’t be able to access relevant support.

“I was also on the NSW council for disability, on the board of adult education, there are just so many to list, it’s been such wonderful work” Janelle mused.

“I used to get the train a few times a month to go to Sydney to go to meetings and I started to consider what we were missing out on as a region, and then I started to work on this. In that work, I was able to secure much-needed funding for better services in Cancer support, Housing support and many other areas”.

When asked of her experiences as a woman in the political workplace Janelle recalled that “in the early days our ‘models’ were mostly men, and for so many, they didn’t even think about women-specific issues. I remember being told things such as “Don’t call yourself Ms or they will think you are a feminist” and “don’t wear your hair long you will look like a Hippy”. I was not only a woman, but a little woman, surrounded by these big men in suits,” Janelle laughs. 

When asked what impact this had on her in her role she said “I did have to work a lot harder to be noticed and was often the only woman in the room. I was the first Federal Member for Page and the first woman for my current seat, and I know that is similar to what was shared by Annabel Crabb time and time again. I would bring something to the floor, a great idea, but no one would say anything, then 5 minutes later, a man would say it, as though it was his idea!”. 

Her voice warms and she says “the way I would handle it is, I would say “oh yes when I said that 5 minutes ago, you didn’t say much, perhaps you didn’t hear me?”

Being the first woman elected not just once but twice, she says she has “often been at the forefront of change, but what else would I do? I see things that need to be changed, so I go and put the effort in and change them! I still have the same motivation that I always have. I still care for the people who are the most vulnerable in our society and of course anyone who needs a job, based on the rights of all of us to have dignity and respect and to be treated as real human beings. Everything flows from that place. I believe it’s from there, that leads us towards sustainability and everything else”. 



Speaking about how Janelle felt she was supported by the community, she stated “I was always well supported, but that is because I was a community person with community achievements, and I find as a woman in politics, people often talk to you more and often tell you more personal and intimate things, which builds stronger, longer-lasting connections”.

“Things have improved in the political workplace, but there is still a lot of work to do. You don’t leave society at the door, you bring it into parliament with you. We expect our leaders to lead by example, but they still have the values, thoughts and ways of being as they do in wider society, so it’s about a change in attitude”. 

“What happens to women in politics is just like in society where we adapt and accept the poor treatment to a degree, where we feel as though if we challenge too much we may not get anywhere, and I wanted to represent the whole community, which means the woman experiencing DV and the farmer who wants a stable bridge to get his grain to market. I have always been a bit outspoken, even when I was in primary school, so I brought that with me to parliament and to challenge what is needed to make the difference”. 

“But if you look at the journey of women, historically it has been one of oppression, denial of equal opportunities and violence, and that all still exists. The most painful thing is the DV for me, it’s horrific for all involved, and when we can change that, when we no longer see it, we will know we will have come to an equal place because it comes from these attitudes and that’s what we have to keep challenging”.

When asked about what she can share about her supporters and mentors, Janelle spoke first about her reading, “a book I have been reading “Look what you made me do” is such an important text, one that all people in leadership and society, in general, should read.

“In the community I have individuals coming up to me saying “you are doing a great job”. I love that, it’s very encouraging”.

“My early mentor, Anthony Albanese, was very supportive of me and encouraged me to run from early on. I also read Miles Franklin's book “My Brilliant Career’ which spoke to me as a woman in life, to set ambitions and for Women considering entering politics, I say go for it!

“It’s very rewarding for women in politics, to see the law change, and know you have been one of the driving forces behind it, driving on the road and knowing you got the money to fix it, such as when I drive on the Pacific Highway, I still smile and get that feeling. Seeing hospitals and halls that I helped fund, is so rewarding and seeing the great impact on the whole community.”