GRIT from the Trenches.....
A Quick Look at the News
- Festival of Resistance
- Women's Lives, Women's Voices, Women's Solutions
- Women Leaders 2000
- Feminist Expo 2000 for Women's Empowerment
- National Labor Committee Moves Against Abuse
- From Menwith Hill Women's Peace Camp
- Roman Catholic Church Status Under Attack
- Sister Jane Kelly Speaks Up
- Norplant Settlement
- Some Corporations are Getting the Message
- First and Only Woman in Professional Baseball
- Cancer Can't Stop This Outstanding Athlete
- Women of the Mountain and the Desert
- Tasmanian Angel
- Voice of the Dalits
- "Watch-Bitches" for Equality
- From Darknesses Come Humor
- Climbing to the Heights for Breast Cancer
Come to Seattle, Washington, November 29-December 3, '99 to Protest and Participate in direct action against the World Trade Organization's Summit! Tens of thousands of people are expected for this mass nonviolent action both in opposition to the WTO's "new world order" of corporate globalization, and in celebration of community through street theater, puppets, music -- a show of unity for a creative future that respects human rights.
Activities will begin with a teach-in tour of the Western U.S. and Canada from September 28 to October 18, cosponsored by Global Action, to educate the public about the outright greed and control tactics of the WTO. On November 30 in Seattle, participants will stage a mass nonviolent action using creative means to block the WTO delegates from attending their meeting. There is of course a danger of arrest for protesting, but this action will help to "catalyze a widespread mass movement in North America." The protest is being cosponsored by Direct Action Network, Earth First!, Global Exchange and the Rainforest Action Network. Join the action, be a part of the solution!
Source: Global Action: http://flag.blackened.net/~global
A National Teleconference for Women in Higher Education, sponsored by the University of Minnesota, is being held March 27-29, 2000. Topics to be presented include: Women and Technology; The Law, Public Policy and Affirmative Action; The Future of Women's Studies; Welfare Reform; Issues for Tribal Colleges, and Women Working with Women, to name just a few of the exciting areas of women's experience and knowledge being explored.
The deadline for submission of applications to present your ideas and research, and to be a part of one of the panel discussions, is November 15, 1999. Open to students and professors. The conference coordinator is Jennifer L. Longnion, M.A. She can be contacted by email at: longn001@tc.umn.edu. You are invited to visit the website at: http://www.umn.edu/women/wihe.html and learn more about shaping a national agenda for women in higher education. How can you contribute to the transformation of the future?
Sponsored by the Center for Gender Equity at the University of California, San Francisco, and focusing on three main tracks -- Leadership, Communication and Personal Development -- this symposium will "provide a forum for women to come together and explore ways to gain access to positions of leadership in higher education." The conference will be held on March 9, 2000 at the Cathedral Hill Hotel in San Francisco.
For more information, check the website at: http://www.ucsf.edu/cge
Usher in the new millennium along with women representatives from all sectors of life in America and the international community, March 31-April 1, 2000 in Baltimore, Maryland. Co-sponsors include AAUW Education Foundation, National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health, Coalition of Labor Union Women, National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, National Political Congress of Black Women -- 180 organization in all. Please spread the word!! It's not too late for your organization to join the Expo. You can fill out a form on-line at: http://www.feminist.org/forms/expospons.html. Register now and help "show the strength and depth of the feminist movement in the United States and throughout the world."
Multinational corporations have become increasingly exploitative in developing countries, particularly since President Clinton, with the support of a Republican Congress, pushed through the GATT treaty in 1994, allowing these corporate bodies to move operations to such places as Bangladesh, where a textile worker earns between 9 and 20 CENTS an hour at factories supplying clothes to Wal-Mart.
The director of the NLC, Charles Kernaghan, "has calculated that Salvadoran women are paid 74 cents for each $198.00 Liz Claiborne jacket they sew. That means their wages are less than one half of 1% of the retail price that American consumers pay for the jacket!
The NLC is now gathering detailed documentation of these labor abuses, which include the escalating use of child labor, children who, "in many cases under indentured servitude". This information needs to be broadcast so that Americans don't unwittingly buy products from certain manufacturers.
This fall on colleges campuses throughout America, the NLC will be helping students organize to boycott producers of goods using exploited labor, supplying them with names of companies and strategies for protest. To join the effort and get an action kit, write to the National Labor Committee, 275 Seventh Ave. New York, NY 10001, USA. Visit the website at: http://www.nlcnet.org. Make a difference with your dollars!
On September 3, 1999, Helen John of Trident Ploughshares 2000, a Scottish group protesting the presence in Scotland of a nuclear defense arsenal housing Trident missiles, was arrested for writing bold statements of truth on the face of the new Scottish Parliament building in Edinburgh. She offered the following slogans "I hope to use," she said:
- DO NOT COLLUDE WITH GENOCIDE
- BAN TRIDENT
- BAN DEPLETED URANIUM
- RECOGNISE INTERNATIONAL HUMANITARIAN LAW
- RESIST NUCLEAR AMERICAN TAKE OVER
She believes in the sanctity of life, "shared by the majority of Scottish people, who have consistently shown in all polls that they are opposed to Trident." The government however, has been falling in line with U.S. defense policy, determined not to comply with the International Non-Proliferation Treaty. "...to prepare for genocide is a crime against humanity...when our senior politicians and our courts fail us, it is the duty of all law-abiding citizens to prevent crimes committed in our name."
Trident Ploughshares 2000 is committed to nonviolent direct action such as John's attempt to paint the parliament with truth. As their slogan says:
"Nuclear weapons are immoral, dangerous, polluting, a terrible waste of resources and were found to be generally illegal by the International Court of Justice on 8th July 1996."
Contact: tp2000@gn.apc.org
Website: http://www.plowshares/english/
The government of the Roman Catholic church, the so-called Holy See, has had the unique status in the United Nations of a recognized, independent country, not like all other international religions who are part of the World Council of churches, and have no official vote. They are in the category of non-governmental organizations, in an advisory capacity.
Because of the Holy See's powerful voice in decision making, it has influenced international policy in limiting access to family planning, safe abortion "even in countries where abortion is legal, and emergency contraception - even for women who have been raped as an act of war." It has also opposed and attempted to block policies that would make condom education available to help stop the ferocious spread of HIV/AIDS in developing countries.
Catholics for a Free Choice has joined hundred of organizations worldwide in a campaign to change the status of the Roman Catholic church, ensuring that only countries decide policy, not religions. Too many people suffer and die needlessly every year because the Pope and his "holymen" wield too much power.
Please help challenge the Holy See's status. Visit the website at: http://www.seechange.org
Known to some critics as a troublemaker, Sister Kelly, a 69 year old nun, has decided that the ongoing cover-up of serious crimes committed by priests within the six-county diocese that encompasses much of Northern California, must be exposed. She attempted to deal with problems, of which she had first hand knowledge, directly through the church hierarchy, but was met with silence and denial, so she has finally gone public with her knowledge. To the local Catholic laity she is a hero who has finally stood up to the male-dominated hierarchy.
"For this lady to do what she's done is mind-boggling," says Don Hoard, whose son is one of several youths who were sexually molested by a local priest. "If you don't have a Catholic background, I don't think you can conceive of the amount of courage it took."
Although the allegations and cross allegations of sexual misconduct, theft and exploitation present a murky and inconclusive picture, it became obvious to Sister Kelly that the real problem was the church's denial and extremely costly cover-up procedures. The diocese is in deep financial trouble as a result. As well, estimates run as high as $1 billion paid out in sexual misconduct settlements nationwide.
Locally, in Sonoma County, the Santa Rosa Police Department is currently conducting a criminal investigation into the allegations of theft and sexual abuse of minors. Kelly feels that her decision to force the diocese into the open was right.
"Evil survives because good people don't speak out," she says. "Like anything that is painful, like lancing a boil, once you get all that poison out, we can start healing."
American Home Products Corporation, manufacturers of the contraceptive device Norplant, which is inserted under the skin in silicone rods, has finally agreed to pay more than $50 million to thousands of women who have been waiting over 5 years for the lawsuit to be settled. The birth control method has caused numerous illnesses, including irregular bleeding, headaches and depression in the women who used it.American Home Products is a a subsidiary of Wyeth-Ayerst, a $60 billion corporation, that is also being sued by patients who took fen-phen, a popular diet drug which was taken mostly by women. Suits allege that the company withheld evidence that the drug caused heart valve damage and lung disorders. It has since been removed from circulation. It is estimated that the company will have to pay $3-$5 billion to settle claims arising from the use of fen-phen.
Source: The Dallas Morning News, Aug. 26, 1999
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Some Corporations are Getting the Message According to Working Mother magazine's 14th annual list of the best 100 companies for working mom's, the top 10 "exceptionally progressive" companies include Bank of America, CIGNA, IBM, Eli Lilly and Lotus Development. "Companies are really listening to what their employees have to say," said Deborah Wilburn, executive editor of the magazine.
IBM, for example, has launched a pilot program in New York and North Carolina that helps screen nannies for their employees who prefer in-home child care. Chase Manhattan Bank provides a back up day care center for employees whose regular care provider may be sick. The center won "prestigious accreditation by the National Association for the Education of Young Children."
Although the battle for change is far from over, considering that only 9% of companies nationwide offer child care at or near the workplace, the signs of change are becoming more noticeable.
Source: Associated Press, New York, Sept. 1, 1999
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Ila Borders, 24 year old pitcher, has been honored as the first woman to play men's pro baseball in the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York. Her career began in La Mirada California, where Borders' dad Phil, a former minor-league player, encouraged and trained his Little Leaguer to follow in his footsteps. In a highly competitive and highly paid sport, she became, in 1993, the first woman to be awarded a college baseball scholarship at Southern California College of Costa Mesa, going on to Whittier College where she received a degree in kinesiology and is a substitute teacher in the off-season."With all this baseball, finishing my degree was a challenge," she said, "and that's fine with me. I like people telling me I can't do something, and then proving them wrong." She's determined to accomplish yet another "first" -- "I want to be a major league pitcher. It's what I've wanted ever since I was 10 years old."
Source: Christian Science Monitor, August 30, 1999, by William Charland
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Cancer Can't Stop This Outstanding Athlete Ludmila Engqvist stunned cancer specialists by recovering from a mastectomy in only three months and winning third place in the 100m hurdles this August at the world championships in Spain. "She has forced myself and Doctor Engel (her doctor) to totally re-evaluate cancer and how people react to the treatment while giving hope to maillions of cancer sufferers who are in desperate need of it," said the head of the IAFF Medical Commission, Arne Ljungqvist.
First place winner, American Gail Devers, who also underwent chemotherapy and radiation treatments for Grave's Disease, afterwards winning an Olympic gold medal in 1992, proudly said of Ludmila, "What she has accomplished just shows that if you believe in yourself, dreams can come true."
Source: AFP, Seville, Spain, Aug. 28, 1999
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Women of the Mountain and the Desert
New Hampshire's most popular landmark and symbol, the Old Man of the Mountain, has got to go with the times and share his craggy position with the wise women who are now the first in America to hold all the top elected positions in any state. Senator Beverly Hollingworth completes the triumverate by becoming the first female state Senate president. The other two women are Governor Jeanne Shaheen, the first female governor of the state, and Representative Donna Sytek, first female Speaker of the House.
The three women have served together in the past in the House and Senate. "It helps us," Hollingworth said, "We all know each other and how the process works."
Arizona has another "first", in that the line of succession to the governor's office is all female: the elected offices of governor, secretary of state, attorney general, treasurer and superintendent of public instruction.
Source: Holly Ramer, Associated Press, Concord, NH, 9/10/99
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Tasmanian Angel The newly established office of Anti-Discrimination Commissioner in Tasmania will be filled by Dr. Jocelyn Scutt, an internationaly acclaimed lawyer in the area of human rights. Human rights advocates have, in fact, declared Tasmania's new legislation the "Best in the World". At the appointment on September 5, Attorney General Peter Patmore stated that, "Dr. Scutt has made a very significant impact upon the development of human rights law in this country. I look forward to the impact that the legislation and the new Commissioner can have on the State."
Source: www.aviva.org online newsmagazine
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Voice of the Dalits Ms. Mayawati, a real fighter for the lowest caste of people in India, the former Untouchables, rose from a life as a cobbler to that of a school teacher and finally to Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh. In this most populous state of India's heartland, the Dalits represent 22% of the population. Although officially abolished almost 50 years ago, the taint of untouchability still relegates the Dalits to an outcast position in society. They must use their own wells and temples and live in segregated neighborhoods. Ms. Mayawati speaks for them and they flock to hear her, particularly women. A typical woman follower, 25-year-old mother of two, Babli, said at a recent rally in Lucknow, "She has done a lot for the villages, making the roads better and providing water pumps. She has really fought for the rights of the lover classes." The most important thing that Ms. Mayawati has given them, however, is a "sense of identity - a feeling of status they never had before."
Source: David Orr, The Times, London, 9/4/99
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"Watch-Bitches" for Equality On International Women's Day, March 8th, a group of French feminists created a new activist movement dedicated to uprooting the political and social sexism still prevalent in the country. The "Chiennes de garde" recently accused the Force Ouvriere, one of the biggest trade unions in the country, of "racist insults" in a pamphlet distributed by them. In the FO's pamphlet, a well-known journalist, Laure Adler, was warned to "move her high heels out of the way" and compared to a "brothel keeper ". Adler is the newly appointed head of France-Culture radio. Although she received an apology from FO as a result of the "Watch-bitches" complaint, the idea that women who succeed in the professional world do so because they have been "sleeping with someone" is a common accusation against them.
The group's platform states that "We pledge to show support for all women in public life who are attacked on the grounds of their womanhood." Meanwhile, the French government, in an attempt to establish political equality for women, plans legislation declaring that it would only subsidize political parties that put up at least 40% women candidates for office.
Source: AFP, Paris, 9/9/99
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From Darknesses Come Humor Ruby Dee, 74 year old award-winning actress and humorist, brings her own perspective to the entertainment world with her one-woman show "My One Good Nerve", which debuted in LosAngles earlier this year. "I act and I write as an African-American, as a woman, as a member of the species. It's all from the perspective of being a human being in this maddeningly hurried, enticing community." The show is based on her best selling book of the same name. She says that the material came from things she'd been writing down for a few years, things she had been thinking about for a long time. And these are not the thoughts of a kindly old woman -- her subject matter includes war, murder, rape, racism, world changes. "It's from the darknesses that I find humor," she said.
Ruby is the wife of Ossie Davis, 81, a well known actor. They've been married for over 50 years, no small accomplishment in the entertainment world. They've written a book about their lives entitled With Ossie and Ruby: In This Life Together, which has also become a best seller. They have both acted in Spike Lee films and co-produced specials on PBS, among them "Martin Luther King: The Dream and the Drum."
Source: Louinn Lota, Associated Press, Los Angeles, 9/1/99
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Climbing to the Heights for Breast Cancer You can support breast cancer awareness by buying a copy of the award winning documentary "Climb Against the Odds", originally broadcast on PBS in September, and due out in video stores this November. The outstanding soundtrack from the documentary, which includes songs donated from recording artists k.d. lang, The Indigo Girls, Sweet Honey in the Rock, and Nancy Griffith/Kate Wolf among many others, is now available in reocrd stores nationwide, but can be ordered directly through The Breast Cancer Fund at: http://www.breastcancerfund.org/store.html . The documentary records the courageous climb up Mt. McKinley by 12 women, including five survivors of breast cancer, last year. The Breast Cancer Fund also offers a special package to educators, librarians and health care professionals which includes the film. Call 1-800-314-8822 for more information.
Source: The Breast Cancer Fund
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