Claiming a New Era: A Conversation with Elizabeth Mawlam

In this episode of Dialogue Out Loud, Dialogue Editor Taylor Petrey speaks with historian Elizabeth Mawlam about her article, The Legacy of the 1960s “New Era” and Singing Mothers Tour on Latter-day Saint Gender Roles and the Family in Great Britain, published in the Winter 2024 issue of Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought. This special issue explores The Family in Latter-day Saint Culture and Thought, and Mawlam’s work offers a unique perspective on how British Latter-day Saint women navigated family, faith, and gender expectations.

Mawlam’s article examines how the British Singing Mothers Tour of the 1960s served as a key moment in the adaptation of American Mormon gender and family ideals within a British context. She explores how British Latter-day Saint women exercised agency, both embracing and reshaping institutional expectations to fit their unique cultural realities. The conversation delves into the ways these women resisted the dominant Utah-centric model of Mormon womanhood, forging a British Mormon identity that emphasized collaboration, personal agency, and a distinct approach to gender roles within the Church.

Mawlam also shares insights from her broader research on British Mormon history, discussing how the dynamics of faith, culture, and gender have evolved over time. Her work sheds light on an often-overlooked aspect of global Mormonism and challenges assumptions about the uniformity of LDS gender norms.

Tune in for a fascinating discussion on how history, faith, and agency intersect in the lives of British Latter-day Saint women.