Tag Archives: equality
International Women’s Day
The world marks International Women’s Day today, an annual celebration that highlights the economic, political and social achievements of women.
“International Women’s Day is the story of ordinary women as makers of history; it is rooted in the centuries-old struggle of women to participate in society on an equal footing with men,” the United Nations says.
The day was marked for the first time in the early 1900s. More than one million women and men attended rallies in Austria, Denmark, Germany and Switzerland in 1911. They demanded the right to vote and hold public office, and for an end to job discrimination.
‘It is a time to reflect on progress made, to call for change and to celebrate acts of courage and determination by ordinary women who have played an extraordinary role in the history of women’s rights,” the United Nations says.
Filed under Woman Power, World Politics
Monday, 1/18/10, Public Square
Martin Luther King Jr. Day marks the birthday of Rev. King who was the chief spokesman for nonviolent activism in the civil rights movement, which successfully protested racial discrimination in federal and state law. He is a human-rights icon. “I Have a Dream“ is the popular name given to the public speech in which he called for racial equality and an end to discrimination.
The campaign for a federal holiday in King’s honor began soon after his assassination. Ronald Reagan signed the holiday into law in 1983, and it was first observed in 1986.
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Filed under The Public Square
Friday, 08/28/09, Public Square
Talk about persistent! When women decide to form picket lines, they don’t give up easily!
Ten suffragists were arrested on August 28, 1917, as they picketed the White House. Daily picketing began on January 10, 1917. During that year, more than 1,000 women from across the country joined the picket line outside the White House. Between June and November, 218 protesters from 26 states were arrested and charged with “obstructing sidewalk traffic.”
Women achieved the right to vote with the August 18, 1920, ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment, which is commemorated by Women’s Equality Day.
And, ya know what? We are still fighting for equality! 🙂
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Filed under The Public Square
Ruth Bader Ginsburg
In an interview with the New York Times, 76-year-old Ruth Bader Ginsburg reiterates the need for a stronger female presence on the Supreme Court and says the pro-life movement is fighting a “losing battle.” Ginsburg, the sole woman serving on the Supreme Court, eagerly awaits the confirmation of Sonia Sotomayor and says that throughout her career, she has noticed the stereotypes that affect how her actions are perceived. In the interview, she recalls how an unintended interruption of former Justice Sandra Day O’Connor became a news story about rising tensions between the two, despite the fact that the male justices interrupt one another constantly. Lastly, Ginsburg says that the anti-abortion movement is “fighting a losing battle” by trying to make a woman’s right to choose a decision for each state, adding, “Time is on the side of change.”
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Filed under U. S. Supreme Court, Woman Power
Maine Is the Fifth State to
PASS MARRIAGE EQUALITY LEGISLATION!
New Hampshire’s congress may send their governor a similar bill.
Filed under GLBT Rights, Marriage Equality
