Minority Ethnic History
Aberdeen Women’s Center
Minority Ethnic Women- Aberdeen Women’s Center
This research was started by Jolanta Gajewska. This blog was written by Jolanta Gajewska and Louise Henrard.
The Aberdeen Women’s Center provided a safe space for women in the city, offered various classes, provided specialised information and organised events and conferences on women’s issues. It opened in 1989 and successfully ran for more than 10 years finally closing its doors in 2004.
It was one of the first organisations in the city dedicated to supporting women from minority ethnic backgrounds. Indeed, of the three paid workers in the center, one was an Ethnic Minorities Development Worker who started working in 1990.

(detail) Used by King Permission of DC Thomson & Co Ltd
Press and Journal, 1997

Aberdeen Women’s Center, “St Katherine Building”, Shoe lane. Date Unknown, c 1989-2004
Aberdeen City and Aberdeenshire Archives
English classes were provided every week, and sometimes twice a week. There were international cooking classes and group discussions for black and minority ethnic women were publicised regularly in the newspapers.

(detail) Used by King Permission of DC Thomson & Co Ltd
Evening Express, 1994

(detail) Used by King Permission of DC Thomson & Co Ltd
Evening Express, 1997
In 1995, a group of women from the center organised “A Step Forward”, a one-day conference giving voice to the challenges and difficulties facing Black and Minority Women at the grass-roots level. They wanted for Black and Ethnic Minority women’s needs to be taken seriously by service providers around the city.
The Center also organised the Aberdeen Women’s Festival, a yearly festival celebrating women’s achievements, inviting women artists and organising workshops and talks for women.

Aberdeen Women’s Festival programme 2002
Aberdeen City & Aberdeenshire Archives

Aberdeen Women’s Festival programme 1996
Aberdeen City & Aberdeenshire Archives

Aberdeen Women’s Center leaflet, date circa. 2001
Aberdeen City & Aberdeenshire Archives

Aberdeen Women’s Festival programme 2000
Aberdeen City & Aberdeenshire Archives

Aberdeen Women’s Festival programme 1998
Aberdeen City & Aberdeenshire Archives

Aberdeen Women’s Festival programme 1994
Aberdeen City & Aberdeenshire Archives
We can all be inspired by Aberdeen Women’s Center powerful philosophy statement:
“We believe in creating a world in which all women can achieve their full potential free from oppression”.
The prospect of reestablishing a Women’s Centre in Aberdeen is encouraged; it would not only represent active liberation from the shackles of patriarchal history but it would also serve as a sanctuary of solidarity and empowerment for women’s rights, restoring awareness of women’s physical, spiritual, and mental wellbeing, which has often been silenced in history.
For more information about the Aberdeen Women’s Center, visit the Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire Archives collection and book a space in their search room.
This article was adapted from a blog originally written for International Women’s Day 2024.
Minority Ethnic Women in Aberdeen © 2024 by Jolanta & PATH Project is licensed under CC BY 4.0