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Above: The 2020 Rose Parade float commemorating the Women's Suffrage Centennial |
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Welcome to Sonoma County NOWMarch 2024
Photo above from Library of Congress stock, free to use and reuse
Vote March 5th!
Women's History Month!
Contents
1. Greetings from our President Greetings! The photo of Shirley Chisholm's campaign poster above ties in two important reminders for March: Voting and Women's History Month. First, there is a flurry of preparations before our California Primary election on March 5th! There are just a few days left before the Primary and if you haven't yet turned in your ballot, I encourage you to do so today so it can be counted. If you haven't registered, the February 20th deadline has passed for doing so, but you can still vote at the polls with a Same-Day conditional ballot. Click here for more information found on the California Secretary of State site. And here is a link to find your Election District.
**************************************** 2. Women's History Month As it is Women's History Month now, we are honoring our sisters in history, beginning with Jean O'Leary, who co-founded National Coming Out Day and worked tirelessly for lesbian and gay rights. We also honor Molly Murphy McGregor, co-founder of what is now the National Women's History Alliance, and one of the main advocates for having Women's History Month. Read about both of them and their successes further in the newsletter. **************************************** 3. March Meeting - Guest speaker Kirstyne Lange, Sonoma County NAACP After a very successful forum for our February event, we will host Kirstyne Lange, President of the Sonoma County NAACP branch, at our March 18th meeting. Kirstyne will speak to us of Black women who have contributed to our history and will also underscore the work that the branch is doing in and for our county. This promises to be another great community engagement and we encourage you to tell your friends to join us. Kirstyne appeared this week on the KBBF 89.1 FM radio program, Women's Spaces, where she was interviewed by Elaine B. Holtz, our treasurer. Click here for the recording. **************************************** March 18, 2024 Zoom Details **************************************** 4. Upcoming Broadcast by the National Women's Hall of Fame We received word today that the National Women's Hall of Fame 2024 Inductee Ceremony will be broadcast on Sunday, March 24th on the Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN). The hour-long ceremony will begin at 8 PM ET (5 PM PT). Among those being inducted are Ruby Bridges, Kimberlé Crenshaw, and Serena Williams. More details can be found on the site here. **************************************** 5. Special Days in March There are many special historical events and celebrations in March. We have listed a fraction of them below. **************************************** If you are interested in joining our board, please write to info@nowsonoma.org. We'd love to be able to do more in the county and need your skills for many different types of special projects, including planning upcoming events. --Amy Nykamp, President
Women's History Month!
*Jean O’Leary (1948–2005), lesbian and gay rights activist, founder of Lesbian Feminist Liberation, one of the first lesbian activist groups in the women’s movement, was an early member and co-director of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, and co-founded National Coming Out Day (first celebrated in the U.S. on October 11, 1988). Lesbian Feminist Liberation was originally the Lesbian Liberation Committee and a part of the Gay Activists Alliance (GAA). In 1972, when the members felt the GAA was not giving enough focus to lesbian and feminist issues, they left GAA and formed Lesbian Feminist Liberation. Source: Wikipedia
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In 1980, the National Women’s History Project (NWHP) was founded in
Santa Rosa, California by Molly Murphy MacGregor, Mary Ruthsdotter,
Maria Cuevas, Paula Hammett, and Bette Morgan to broadcast women’s
historical achievements.
The NWHP started by leading a coalition that successfully lobbied Congress to designate March as National Women’s History Month, now celebrated across the land. Since the beginning, the project has established a theme for women’s history studies each year and provided resources and materials for education and celebration of the women honored. In 2018, the project transitioned to the National Women’s History Alliance (NWHA) to better support the study and celebration of women’s history all year long. The NWHA continues to employ the collaborative spirit of the original project and works with women’s history organizations throughout the country to ensure that the contributions of women are remembered and celebrated. Today, NWHA is known nationally as the only clearinghouse providing information and training in multicultural women’s history for educators, community organizations, and parents—or anyone wanting to expand their understanding of women contributions to U.S. history. Source: Extracted from the National Women's History Alliance site. ****************************************
Sarah Latimer Finley (U. of Oregon Libraries photo)
6. March
Birthdays/Special Days
1 – Women’s History Week is first observed in Sonoma County, California in 1978 4 - Jeannette Rankin (R-MT) took her seat as the first female member of Congress, 1917 - Frances Perkins becomes United States Secretary of Labor, the first female member of the United States Cabinet, 1933 - Jean O'Leary (1948–2005), lesbian and gay rights activist, founder of National Coming Out Day 5 - Election Day—help get out the vote! 8 - International Women’s Day, whose origins trace back to protests in the U.S. and Europe to honor and fight for the political rights of working women 10 - Daylight Savings Time begins; spring forward! Harriet Tubman Day (c. 1822–1913) 12 - Maria Rifo (1908–2006), co-founder Alternatives to Violence Project 14 - Sylvia Beach (1887–1962), writer, publisher 15 - Ruth Bader Ginsburg (1932–2020), Supreme Court jurist, feminist hero 17 - St. Patrick's Day 18 - NOW event: Women's History and the Sonoma Co. NAACP - Elaine B. Holtz (1940– ), past president Sonoma County NOW, feminist leader, Host/co-Producer Women's Spaces Radio Show 19 - Spring begins 22 - Sarah Latimer Finley (1848–1937), Sonoma County suffragist, shown above 24 - Matilda Joslyn Gage (1826–1898), suffrage leader, native rights leader - Alma de Bretteville Spreckels (1881–1968), Bay Area philanthropist/reformer 25 - Gloria Steinem (1934– ), women's rights leader, author, activist - Barbara Jordan (1936–1996), US Representative, rights leader 28 - Wilhelmina Kekelaokalaninui Widemann Dowsett (1861–1929), Hawaiian suffrage leader **************************************** If you are not yet a NOW member or need to renew your membership, please join our growing organization! Our chapter's ID is CA0660 and you can select it when you sign up here. If you prefer to write a check, here is a form you can clip and mail.
---- Our proud Chapter
Above: Our Chapter celebrating the 50th Anniversary of NOW with the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors, October 2016. ---- August 26, 2020, the 19th Amendment Centennial and Women's Equality Day was celebrated in Sebastopol with the Women's Suffrage Banners.
---- The 2020 Rose Parade featured the We Heart float commemorating the Women's Suffrage Centennial and won the Theme Trophy. See video clip below for the passage of the float and the Women Suffragist marchers in front of KTLA cameras January 1, 2020. ----
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Let's Meet! Monthly Meetings are on the 3rd Monday of every month, 7:00 - 8:30 PM. See Events page for details.
---- LINKS: National NOW website ----
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National Organization for Women NOW Sonoma County Chapter
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Website Info
P.O. Box 6223 Santa Rosa, CA 95406 |
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