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Claire Taylor, a University of St Andrews Laidlaw Scholar, on being a trailblazer, women empowerement and opportunities.

Research title: The Case for Women Esperantists in 1911 Scotland: Mapping the Songs, Lectures, and Lives of Scottish Dressmakers, Doctors, Chemists, and Journalists

My transnational and gender history project answered: Who were these doctors, journalists, dressmakers, typewriters and chemists who spoke Esperanto, a planned language created in 1887 by a Polish doctor, in Scotland? Why did working women travel internationally to discuss art, literature, social causes, and the potential of this universal language with Esperanto speakers from around the world? What else were these women interested in?

The archives reveal how Esperanto was a rewarding and enjoyable fraction of unmarried and married professional women’s lives, and that this language afforded Scots local internationalism in rather mundane gatherings and spaces. Esperanto speaking was not a male-dominated phenomenon, nor was it exclusively a hobby for the upper ranks of Scottish society. Women Esperanto speakers in Scotland purposely shared their contributions to science and medicine in Esperanto, and wrote about how Esperanto enabled scientific and medicinal discourse. They taught residents of local towns this international language that they wholeheartedly believed in, sang in this language, danced to Esperanto songs at Friday night socials, and wrote plays in this language that was no one’s native tongue.

Several of these historical actors, including Isabella Mears, were pioneering women with vast accomplishments, yet none of them appear centrally in traditional Scottish women’s history scholarship. Therefore, my research (which has continued and evolved long after my Laidlaw summer) bends and breaks from previous beliefs about the history of Scottish women and the history of Esperanto.

Where did your passion for this research originate?

To be honest, I had not heard of Esperanto before reading the pre-defined projects list on the St Andrews Laidlaw Website in December 2020. I knew I wanted to do historical research, so I scheduled a call with Dr. Struck who was the listed research supervisor. Before the call, I did some research on my own, and I was immediately fascinated by this planned language that most people my age (who grew up speaking English) have never heard of. From there, I dove head-first into the history of Esperanto, even attempting to learn the language. By the suggestion of Dr. Struck, I decided to focus my research on questions of gender within the Esperanto movement. I consider myself lucky that my first attempt at historical research went so well: I was able to go into archives in St Andrews and examine material that academics have never researched before. I found so much evidence that opened up a new area of history: women’s involvement in this internationalist movement.  

After this summer, I was hooked on transnational and gender history. I picked my classes at university accordingly, and continued working with Dr. Struck. If it wasn’t for my Laidlaw research summer, I wouldn’t have curated a historical exhibition with professors in the history department, presented at two academic conferences in my undergrad, or have the courage to start a women’s and queer history podcast. I certainly wouldn’t be applying for a P.h.D in History like I am right now! 

What is your most memorable Laidlaw experience?

Definitely my six weeks in Fiji with Think Pacific on the Health Promotion LiA Project. We participated in workshops on diabetes and mental health made for the people living in Jubairata and run by Fijian NGOs. Our LiA had its problems, but, overall, I learned more in six weeks about the world, myself, and leadership than in my entire life. Living with a host family was definitely the best aspect of the project as it allowed for cultural exchange in the smallest moments like preparing dinner or washing clothes together. I miss my host family and all our neighbors! I still keep in contact with my host family, we call every once in a while.

What is the biggest challenge you have come across?

In our LiA, we, as volunteers, decided to run our own workshops after the partner organizations would not listen to our feedback about what we felt needed to change for the sessions to be more formative. These self-made workshops tested our ability to put cultural and social awareness into practice. Even though we sat with the youth participants in the partner workshops, we were still (in theory) supposed to aid the partners in delivering health information to the youth. Because of this, anything we said in a workshop, whether on diabetes, mental health, or in the ones we ran, would be assumed correct and agreed with.

Mindful of this privilege, we went to the key youth and our Fijian Think Pacific leader, William, for guidance. We discussed potential topics, potential barriers, and logistics of various volunteer-run workshops. We decided to facilitate workshops on wound care, animal welfare, female empowerment, child protection, and mental health and religion. These workshops were super popular and successful in the village, and I learned that however much you desire to be culturally aware, before moving forward, you need to check with those who know more than you about the culture you are engaging with.

What does it mean for you to be a Laidlaw Scholar?

To me, being a Laidlaw Scholar means being a person who is passionate about improving themselves and the world in the ways they can. As annoying as it is to hear, you can’t change everything bad in the world at once, even if you really want to! But through six weeks of research and six weeks of Leadership-in-Action, you start to engage with the small ways you, as an individual and in a team, can have a real-life impact. As a Laidlaw Scholar, you also meet all sorts of like-minded people which reminds you that there are other people as committed and passionate as you are!

Which leaders inspire you and why?

Currently, it’s all the women aiding the effort to protect Ukraine from Russian imperialism, whether its on the border of Poland or in Ukrainian cities providing supplies to all who need it, or fundraising for women’s military efforts. Specifically, Ukrainian MP Maryna Bardina, who co-chairs the parliamentary Equal Opportunity Caucus, and is dedicated to supporting gender equality in Ukrainian daily life. She is making sure Ukrainian women serving in the military have everything they need including properly tailored uniforms. Such women, whether big names in the media or women never mentioned but working day-in and day-out, inspire me to remain vigilant against dangerous re-writings of history.

Briefly describe a scene from the future you are striving to create.

For old male professors to listen rather than scoff at the mention of women’s and queer history. For people outside of the gender binary to feel that their work is taken seriously in academic spaces. I believe as young people it is our responsibility to change exclusive, close-minded academic spaces into spaces where the quality of work is valued more than the status or identity of the person who is presenting the work. I hope to make this vision a reality by collaborating on projects that bring devalued or excluded histories to the forefront of discussion.

Something personal to add

⚡️ My podcast, Hot Girl Histories, explores women's histories and queer histories normally not found in textbooks. It is available on Spotify and Apple Podcasts. For the links to listen, rate episodes, and more about this project, click here.  

⚡️ To hear more about the Esperanto & Internationalism project at St Andrews, listen to “Esperanto Wor(l)ds and Girls: The Early Days of a Constructed Language ft. Dr Bernhard Stuck and Dr. Guilherme Fians.”

⚡️ I am an editor of the HERstory Project, a collaborative historical education project which aims to focus on women’s histories as well as queer and other underrepresented histories.

⚡️ The Feminist Workshop is a non-governmental organization founded in 2014 based in Lviv, Ukraine. Since the war began, they have helped create shelters for activists, women, and children; a program of humanitarian support for elderly women, psychological support, and a free babysitting service for refugees.

Quick-fire Questions

📚 My top book recommendation: More Work for Mother: The Ironies Of Household Technology From The Open Hearth To The Microwave by Ruth Schwartz Cowan 

🎵 Podcast obsession: Goes Without Saying by Sephy and Wing

🌈 Something that made me feel joy recently: I’ve become obsessed with reformer pilates during my time in Warsaw, I highly recommend!