Let’s extend the deadline to ratify the ERA

Ask Senator Schumer to co-sponsor the extension

ERA Button

The ERA, as you know, is not dead. Nor has it been ratified.

Last year Tammy Baldwin (WI) submitted a resolution to remove the seven year deadline. This spring my Sen. Ben Cardin (D-MD) submitted SJ Res. 39 to remove the deadline. Recently he was here at my retirement community and spoke eloquently about the need for ERA and that he believes the deadline can be removed. The Resolution will be heard in the Senate Judiciary Committee in a few months. Florida is working furiously to ratify.Earlier this year the House in Virginia ratified.

Getting the three states is not out of the question.

WHAT WE NEED: Sen. Schumer is on the Judiciary Committee and has not signed on as a co-sponsor. We need calls to his office 202-224-6542 as soon as possible.

– Susan Hoover, AAUW NYS Public Policy Chair.

The ERA was written in 1923 by Alice Paul, suffragist leader and founder of the National Woman’s Party.  She and the NWP considered the ERA to be the next necessary step after the 19th Amendment (affirming women’s right to vote) in guaranteeing “equal justice under law” to all citizens.

bullet Section 1. Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of sex.
bullet Section 2. The Congress shall have the power to enforce, by appropriate legislation, the provisions of this article.
bullet Section 3. This amendment shall take effect two years after the date of ratification.

AAUW Kingston at the Women’s Health & Fitness Expo

AAUW Kingston's Women's Health Expo Booth 2012

Several branch volunteers spend a great day talking with many of the thousands of women at the Expo Saturday. We heard lots of concern that the country is moving backwards when it comes to the issues women care about. Here’s a picture of our booth.

Thanks to volunteers Susan Holland, Vivi Hlavsa, Susan Hirsch, Dhere Dorian, Lydia Mellos, Erica Weiss, Marge Roberts who worked the booth with Ruth Wahtera, and Ruth Bean and Delores LaChance who helped set up on Friday night.

Play Games for Scholarships

Bridge / Cards & Games Social

Fun and Games & Fabulous Desserts

Bring Your Friends, Cards and Games

(Scrabble, Mahjong, Trivial Pursuit, Monopoly, etc.)

Wed. May 16th, 1:00-4:00 PM

At the

Kingston Library Community Room

Sponsored by AAUW Education Fund

$10 per person for scholarships

Reservations by Monday 5/14/2012: 246-4507

The Good Guys and the Bad Guys: the Pay Equity Vote

Top Row Good Guys: Didi Barrett, Kevin Cahill
Bottom Row Bad Guys: Clifford Crouch, Peter Lopez

The Good Guys

Kudos to Assemblyman Kevin Cahill who not only voted for A06130, the NYS pay equity bill, he co-sponsored it. And, to new Red Hook-based Assemblywoman Didi Barrett. They support equal pay for equal work. Thank you.

The Bad Guys

You should know, however, that Assemblypeople Peter Lopez (Saugerties and Greene Cty) and Clifford Crouch (western Ulster) both voted against the pay equity bill last week.

Senator Bonacic didn’t have to vote. The NYS Senate didn’t even bother to bring a pay equity bill out of committee. It was clear, however, when we visited his office in Albany on Pay Equity Day, that the Senator is opposed to the pay equity bill.

The Kingston AAUW wants our elected representatives to know that
how they vote effects how we vote.

 

 

“Who Needs Feminism?” Microbloggers Answer the Question

Microblogs and internet memes are not often the medium of choice for social commentary. More often, they host flighty trends like this year’s “Breading Cats,” last year’s “Batmanning,” or the antique (at least in internet years), “Socially Awkward Penguin.” Still, the Arab Spring proved to the world how effectively social media, including microblogs, can be used to effect social change. So it’s not surprising that 16 Duke University undergrads took to Tumblr when assigned a final project focused on social change in their Women in the Public Sphere class.

The students started the Tumblr blog, “Who Needs Feminism?” as a platform to discuss gender equity and a “PR campaign” to rehabilitate the word “feminism” in the Duke Community. In an interview with Mashable, senior Amy Fryt said, “[w]e discussed this extensively and concluded that there is a disturbingly apathetic sentiment toward feminism, both on campus and on a broader societal scale.” The blog was started as a way to “aim to challenge existing stereotypes surrounding feminists and assert the importance of feminism today.”

“Who Needs Feminism?” took off, spreading fast and far. A diverse audience contributes to the wide array of posts which range in scope from very personal and individual issues to systematic and international matters. It is definitely worth reading, sharing, and maybe even contributing to. And, for a more tongue-in-cheek feminist Tumblr, you should also check out “Feminist Ryan Gosling.”

Spend an UnHappy Hour with AAUW on Pay Equity Day

AAUW Kingston wants you to moan, groan, and scowl with us next Tuesday, April 17, Pay Equity Day. That’s the  symbolic day when women’s wages catch up with what men made last year.  In NYS women earn only 82 cents for every dollar a man earns.

So, we encourage you to join us at our UnHappy Hour. It’s an informal networking opportunity for women and men who care about equity for women and girls. And, if you belong to a group that serves women and girls, bring some of your literature.  And bring your friends. And all the men who quietly support equity for their wives, mothers, and daughters.

Some of us will be spending the day in Albany at AAUW-NYS’s Public Policy Day meeting with Senators Bonacic and Larkin and Assemblymen Cahill and Lopez.  By 5pm we’ll be ready to toast their commitments to support the state legislation that will help further our agenda, so do join us.

Where? Keegan Ales, 20 Saint James Street, Kingston, NY 12401.

When: Pay Equity Day, Tuesday, April 17, 2012 5-7 pm

Open to all. Cash bar. (Kitchen is closed on Tues. nights.)

AAUW Kingston Receives Planning Grant

Enjoy Omega!

Congratulations to us and thanks to Omega!We’re grateful to receive a grant for the branch to attend the Omega Women Serving Women Summit in May.

We’ll use the time to set priorities and plan for the coming year — especially following up on the Miss Representation/media literacy project.  We have reserved space for 25 people, members and people interested in collaborating with us. You can read about the details here. Call or email Adele Calcavecchio, Susan Holland, or Ruth Wahtera to reserve your space.

International Panel Sparks Discussion

Jenn Mayfield, Joan Monk, Joanne Meyer, and Sarah Shue

The April Branch Meeting brought together three terrific women with very different expertise.  Jenn Mayfield, our International Chair hosted the panel.

Joan Monk discussed My Sister’s Keeper, AAUW-NYS’ project that grew out of reading Half the Sky. Joan encouraged each of us individually and as a branch to get informed, inspired, and involved. Her best quip of the day — “Comfort the troubled and trouble the comfortable.”

Sarah Hsu, Assistant Professor of Economics at SUNY New Paltz, specializes in the economics of women and poverty and crisis economics. She provided a fast round the world discussion of the impact of the worldwide recession.

JoAnne Myers, Professor of Political Science and Co-director of Women’s Studies at Marist, brought it all closer to home. Her message: that every issue impacting women and families around the globe impact us locally as well — from water to health, infant mortality and food insecurity, and transportation, to mention just a few issues. She cautioned us against “checkbook philanthropy” and encouraged us to action.

Those in attendance left thinking about what issues we’re most passionate about.

Planning for Pay Equity Day – April 17

It takes almost 15 months for women to earn what a man in a comparable position earns in Equal pay button12 months. That gap begin straight out of school and can mean thousands of dollars.

Today, when most families depend on two bread winners and single mothers are often one paycheck away from homelessness, AAUW is taking a leadership position on the state and national level to advocate for pay equity and comparable worth.

The Kingston Branch will be holding two events on April 17, Pay Equity Day.

  • AAUW-NYS Public Policy Day: Join us as we join other AAUW members in Albany to meet with our state Senator and Assembly Reps about pay equity and other public policy issues. The more the merrier – register at AAUW Public Policy Day 2012 and let Susan Holland know so we can travel together.
  • Bring your friends, neighbors, and adult children to the “Unhappy Hour” — an informal networking event for people who care about pay equity for women and minorities or want to learn more. We’ll gather at Keegan Ale from 5-7 pm.

Join Us this Saturday for Conversation about Women’s Issues Around the World!

You’re probably quite familiar with the pay gap here in the United States. But did you realize that the pay gap is global? Women in OECD countries make, on average, 75% of the amount their male counterparts make. We often look at Scandinavian countries as extremely progressive, but Denmark and Finland have pay gaps, too. There, women make 78% and 75.5% (respectively) of what men make.

Join us on Saturday at 1:30 pm for a panel discussion and refreshments at the Kingston Library. We will be talking about women’s issues around the world. We have three fantastic speakers:

  • Dr. Sara Hsu, Assistant Professor of Economics at SUNY New Paltz. Dr. Hsu also serves as the News Editor for the International Association of Feminist Economics (IAFFE) and was formerly Assistant Director of the Gender and Macro International Working Group (GEM-IWG).
  • Joan Monk, New York State AAUW Board Member and District Council Director. Mrs. Monk is one of the co-creators of NYS My Sister’s Keeper Program (MSK); a program focused on women’s issues throughout the world. In February, she and Cecilia Dinio Durkin were awarded the Committee on Teaching About the United Nations (CTAUN) Best Practices Award in recognition of their successes as co-chairs of the Poughkeepsie MSK Program.
  • Dr. JoAnne Myers, Associate Professor of Political Science and Co-director of Women’s Studies at Marist. She is also the Director of Public Administration Concentration, Political Science Internship Coordinator, and the Coordinator of the Women and Society Conference. Dr. Myers serves as Chair of the Board of the Eleanor Roosevelt Center at Val Kill and has also served as President of the Board of the Hudson River Sloop Clearwater, and on the Board of the Grace Smith House.