Ref NoUKPA/SEBE
CollectionAmanda Sebestyen Papers
TitleAmanda Sebestyen Papers
Name of creatorSebestyen, Jane Amanda, 1946-, philanthropist
Date1968-2002
Extent11 boxes
DescriptionThe papers of Jane Amanda Sebestyen (known as Amanda) consist of documents relating to her family settlement, set up by her father in 1968 and based in Australia; and archives relating to Amanda’s participation in the Network for Social Change in the UK.

The papers relating to her family settlement include correspondence about the settlement, how the trust funds were invested by the trustees, and Amanda's concerns about ethical investment. The papers chart the process by which Amanda worked to wind the trusts down to enable the balance of funds to be distributed to her preferred charitable causes in Australia.

The papers relating to the Network for Social Change include some of the early papers about the founding of the Network, and the projects that Amanda sponsored and supported through the Network. The Network for Social Change is a group of individuals who act together to provide funding for progressive social change.
PhysicalDescriptionThe papers consist of paper files, including some documents on rolled fax paper, some of which are faded.
Admin historyAmanda Sebestyen is a writer, editor and campaigner with a focus on human rights, women rights, refugees, and asylum seekers. Amanda was involved in the Women’s Liberation Movement in the 1970s writing and editing books and other publications. She was a member of the Spare Rib Collective from 1977-1981, and was an art and books reviewer for City Limits and the New Statesman between 1984 and 1993. She published SPLIT magazine (an offshoot of the International Times) from 1986-1987, and edited and published Casablanca magazine from 1991 to 1998, and also published the International Roma Calendar in 1997/8.

She acted as an expert witness in a number of human rights cases, and actively supports many organisations on human rights and the rights of refugees.

In April 1998 Amanda set up the Asylum Education and Legal Fund – to assist with English lessons and transport for asylum seekers to meet their legal representatives. She has worked with the Roma Refugee Organisation (1998-1999), and the Europe-Roma Organisation for Roma refugees in the UK (1999-2004). She joined the Council for European Dialogue in October 2000.

Amanda was a founding member of the Network for Social Change, and is also a member of the Edge Fund.
Access conditionsThis material is under restricted access due to personal data held in the collection. Please contact us at the University of Kent's Special Collections & Archives reading room, Templeman Library, University of Kent, Canterbury, CT2 7NU (specialcollections@kent.ac.uk) for further information and to request access.
LevelCollection
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