Julie Tan (activist)

Julie Tan was born in 1930[1] and was trained as a lawyer.[2] She is known for her role as a leading women's rights activist in Singapore.[3]

Tan began her activism by volunteering with the Young Women's Christian Association in Singapore.[4][5][6] She then was elected to serve as president of the organization from 1972 to 1976 and subsequently from 1978 to 1982, the longest-serving leader in its history.[1][4] As president, her work included efforts to support working mothers, such as through the foundation of the first YWCA day care in Singapore in 1977.[1][4] She went on to serve on the executive council of the World YWCA.[4]

In 1980, she co-founded the Singapore Council of Women's Organisations, serving as its first president from 1980 to 1982.[3][5][7] The organization aimed to represent the breadth of women's groups in the country and jointly support women's economic independence.[8] She also spearheaded the foundation of the D.E.W. Credit Cooperative, Singapore's first and only credit union specifically aimed at empowering women, in 1981.[1][6] She served as president of the credit union until her death.[6]

Tan was appointed a justice of the peace in 1989.[1] Her other volunteer work included serving on the National Advisory Board for the Disabled and advocating for the rights of elderly women.[1][4]

She died of lung cancer in 1995 at age 65.[3][9] In 2014, she was inducted into the Singapore Women's Hall of Fame "because of her tireless work to see to it that women in Singapore receive the same opportunities as the men."[1][6]