Newsletter - June 16, 2022 - League of Women Voters of Indiana

Meet Paulette Vandegriff, 2nd Vice President
A member of the League of Women Voters since 1977, Paulette held several positions on the LWVIN State Board from 1988-2003 including President. She served has the Leagues’ Advocacy Coordinator from 2007-2013. She represented the LWVIN on the Indiana Coalition for Human Services Board of Directors, serving as President from 2015-2017. Paulette is a member of the League of Women Voters of Hancock County. She resides in Greenfield, IN where she serves on the Advisory Plan Commission and the Board of Zoning Appeals. She is a graduate of Indiana University, School of Public and Environmental Affairs.

Meet Jerri Martin, Director
Jerri Martin earned an Associate degree in Computer Programming, a Bachelor degree in Business Management and a Masters degree in Project Management. She spent the majority of her career in the Information Technology field from which she retired several years ago. Jerri has been a member of the League of Women Voters Fort Wayne Area since 2017 and currently serves as the secretary.

Meet Hiba Alalami, LWVIN Intern
A Hoosier by choice, Hiba Alalami begins an American Studies Ph.D. program at IUPUI this fall. Her research focuses on how the League of Women Voters shaped the civic and political landscape in Indiana over the last century. To that work she brings Bachelor and Masters degrees from the University of Jordan and a Masters from the O'Neill School of Public and Environmental Aff airs. She recently resigned as Executive Director of the Indiana Muslim Advocacy Network but has also served as the Fund Development Coordinator for the Islamic Society of North America and the Communications Director of the Muslim Philanthropy Network at the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy. As her sponsoring organization for the next four years, we will benefit significantly from her experience and expertise—with fundraising, communications, grant writing—as she learns how the League works and who has made it work over the last century.

IT’S THE 40TH ANNIVERSARY OF TITLE IX !!!

Indiana Senator Birch Bayh authored Title IX.

President Richard Nixon signed Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 into law. Title IX is a comprehensive federal law that removed many barriers that once prevented people, on the basis of sex, from participating in educational opportunities and careers of their choice. Other than the 19th Amendment giving women the right to vote, this is a landmark law for the advancement of women.

What did it say and what did it do? In brief, “No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation, in be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance.” *

Congress enacted Title IX with two principal objectives in mind: to avoid the use of federal funds to support discriminatory practices in education programs, and to provide individual citizens protection against those practices. This came about as the women’s civil rights movement gained momentum in the late 60’s and early 70’s as sex bias and discrimination emerged as a major public policy concern.

Passage of Title IX opened doors for women in college admissions, sports and many other areas in which they were previously denied opportunity or participation. Although Title IX opened many doors, women are still fighting for equal pay for equal work and other matters not settled under this law.
(*From the Department of Justice)

Paulette Vandegriff, LWVIN Second VP

LWVIN 2022 Virtual Documentary Series

The two documentaries presented this year focused on voter suppression methods beyond gerrymandering, and each concluded with actions we can take to remove barriers and expand access to the ballot box.

Speakers Shruti Rana (Hamilton Lugar School of Global and International Studies, IU) and Sheila Kennedy (Emerita Professor of Law and Public Policy, IUPUI) contributed to understanding how voter suppression is playing out in Indiana as well as nationwide. League members Barb Domer, (LWV Porter County), Ken Jones (LWV Greater Lafayette), Gina Iacobucci (LWV Hancock County), and Mark Fraley (IU) provided successful methods for registering high school and college students following Rigged, the Voter Suppression Playbook.

Following Suppressed and Sabotaged, Julia Vaughn (Common Cause) talked about volunteer opportunities with the Election Protection Project, Jorgena Watson (LWV Henry County) focused on the local election process, and Sharon Busick-Howell (LWV Fort Wayne Area) focused on VOTE411—all in need of volunteers to ensure the future of our democracy. Video of the discussion following Suppressed and Sabotaged is available here: https://lwvin.org/content.aspx?page_id=22&club_id=42001&module_id=501078

Registrants forRigged, the Voter Suppression Playbook(120) andSuppressed and Sabotaged: The Fight to Vote(220) each received a follow-up message with resources and calls to action pertinent to the discussion following each film.

Both Rigged and Suppressed reached a statewide audience, but our reach could have been broader. If you have not seen the films, do so! And then share them with your neighbors or local civic groups. Use them as part of the Local League Challenge!

Rigged is available on YouTube HERE.

The original Suppressed is available on YouTube HERE. You can easily register with Brave New Films, however, to show the updated Suppressed and Sabotaged by emailing Screenings@bravenewfilms.org

YOU ARE INVITED TO JOIN THE LOCAL LEAGUE SUMMER CHALLENGE!

It’s easy. Here’s what you need to do:

1. Meet with members of your League and choose a book, documentary or podcast that deals with any voting rights issue which interests your members. We are offering a resource list to make it easier for you.

2. The Summer Challenge will run from June 15 to September 1.

3. If you are reading a book, set a date to discuss the book and create an action plan.

4. If you are viewing a documentary or listening to a podcast, set a date to watch or listen, discuss, and create an action plan.

5.The discussion leader should prepare questions to aid participation and lead discussion toward creating an attainable and needed action follow-up.

6. Please email Barbara Schilling with your choice, short report of your discussion and your League’s action plan by September 5. We will put your report in the state’s September newsletter, “THE LWVIN VOTER.”

7. Click on the link below to access Local League Summer Challenge Resources!

Summer Challenge - 2022

FORGOTTEN FOREMOTHERS:

Profiles of lesser-known heroines in the fight for women’s rights

The Army of Three

The Army of Three helped an estimated 12,000 pregnant people receive safe medical care before the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision ruled that the United States Constitution protects the right to abortion. The national progress didn’t feel like a victory to Pat [Maginnis], but rather like the next obvious step forward. “For me it wasn’t a big relief,” she said. “I thought, yeah, that is a good thing. Now, let’s hope we can at least maintain the healthy ideas of it being available. We don’t have to sneak; we don’t have to beg.”

Here is a link to the FULL ARTICLE on the LWVIN website.

by Kathryn S Gardiner | Published on 5/14/2022

Each month we will be highlighting one of our Forgotten Foremothers.

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Newsletter - June 16, 2022