Graduation Round-up
Last week my husband and I had the parental gratification of cheering two daughters as they received Bachelor of Science in Nursing pins. The commencement speaker took as his theme their college’s tag line “Find your purpose.” It’s a lofty rhetorical exhortation and the newly minted nurses seemed inspired by it.
It also set me to thinking about the importance of taking the next step–after finding our purpose we must embrace our power to achieve it.
College graduates today are often most worried about very practical matters like whether they can find jobs of any kind, let along jobs that represent the fulfillment of their purpose. Fortunately, for that one graduation day, or at least for a few hours, they can immerse themselves in the joy of accomplishing something significant, and they can feel unlimited. My wish for them is to hold onto that feeling and actualize in their lives as they go forward.
My original title for the book that became No Excuses was in fact Unlimited. Because honestly I believe women are now–or can be–unlimited in every way. So this week’s roundup highlights commencement speeches that emphasize those messages. I’ll start with a few current and past here:
Megan Seely to Sierra College-2010
Gloria Steinmen to Smith College-2007
Ursula LeGuin to Mills College-1983
AAUW’s pick of best graduation speeches-2010
And since it’s still commencement week, would you please share below links to any speeches you hear–or hear of–that inspire you to be unlimited? I’ll add them to the post as they come in.
Read MoreEmerge Arizona Event
Phoenix, AZ Fri. 5/13 @ 6:00pm
Keynote and book signing, Emerge Arizona Event
“Power Unused, Power Useless” in Women’s Financial Choices, Says Jacki Zehner
Among the many impressive women I interviewed for No Excuses, Jacki Zehner stands out. The youngest woman and first female trader to become a partner at Goldman Sachs in 1996, Zehner is a founding partner of Circle Financial Group. She matches her business acumen and success with her strong commitment to philanthropy, including the Women’s Funding Network and Women Moving Millions groups that focus on women and girls.
But Jacki Zehner doesn’t stop with making and giving money; she’s on a mission to gain gender parity in the financial industry where women in leadership roles have traditionally been few, and to encourage women to invest their money in ways that help other women get a fair shake in the business world. We both spoke at the Women’s Funding Network conference in New York in April. I was honored when she subsequently quoted my belief that “power unused is power useless” in her blog.
I had a chance to talk with Zehner about her latest endeavors to advance women through financial power. Here’s what she had to say:
GF: Women have obviously always worked–whether at home or in the paid workforce, but our work has not always been valued accordingly. Now that we are 50% of the paid workforce, what are the most important one or two things women should do in your opinion to make sure their work is valued at the same financial level as men’s work, individually or collectively?
JZ: Though we are now over 50% of the workforce, we are still the vast majority in lower paid jobs without benefits and make on average only 80% of the male wage. Women at all economic levels have to become more active players to create a better collective financial future. How they can do that varies dramatically – from organizing locally to advocate for change, to funding organizations that fight for our rights in courts, to at the most senior level women CEOS and executives taking the lead in their organizations to finally, truly, drive for talented women to be represented in critical mass. (30%) We have power, we are just not fully using it. (No excuses…right Gloria??)
Read MoreAAUW Keynote
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Phoenix, AZ Tues. 5/10 @ 6 pm Keynote and booksigning AAUW Phoenix Chapter Beatitudes Campus |
Mother's Day Round-up
This week’s roundup not surprisingly centers on Mother’s Day. The links are to a small selection of posts I liked because each has a special take on honoring our mothers by living feminist values, proudly and with no excuses:
Viva la Feminista Gift Guide. Viva la Feminista. (Veronica Areola)
Mother’s Day should last all month. The Pink and Blue Diaries. (Deborah Siegel)
A Mother’s Day Gift: A future without violence. Ms. Magazine. (Carol King)
Make your Mom a star: send a customized video. Moms Rising.
“Its Her Choice”–Really? Heartfeldt Blog.(Ann Crittenden)
Have you written a special Mother’s Day post? Feel free to share the link in the comments section.
Have you read a Mother’s Day post that you particularly liked? Please share that too.
Read MoreGabourey Sidibe, Jane Fonda: Two Courageous Sisters Employ Every Medium
The Women’s Media Center Board and special guests. From left to right: Jodi Evans, Jewelle Bickford, Jane Fonda, Gabourey Sidibe, Julie Burton, me, Carol Jenkins, Robin Morgan, Marlo Thomas, Gloria Steinem, Jamia Wilson, Michaela Monaha.
Before she began her remarks at the podium, Jane Fonda pointed her digital camera at the 500 women and a few men packing the Paley Center auditorium on April 20th. We’d all paid somewhere between $50 and $5,000 to see D. A. Pennebaker’s 50-year old documentary Jane.
The film tracks Jane’s dismal flop in her first Broadway play at age 23. Afterward, we were to hear the actress discuss women’s self image with Precious star Gabourey Sidibe in a panel moderated by feminist star Gloria Steinem.
But first, Jane’s blog had to be fed, so she snapped her photo. She does her own blogging and a good bit of her own tweeting, and those social media are always hungry for content. I could relate. After posting at least daily during Women’s History Month, I have not been feeding my 9Ways blog properly. Today I begin anew with a promise to post at least twice a week so we can keep the conversation about women’s relationship with power that was started with the launch of No Excuses going.
But back to the evening’s program…Widely divergent in age and race, Jane and Gabourey found their key differences to be in their relationship with power, the locus of their power (inside versus looking outward for affirmation), and their concern about body image. Most notably, Gabby expressed love for herself whereas Jane still obsesses about her weight and appearance.
As Jane reported in her blog afterward: “Gabby was really amazing. I wish I had recorded some of the things she said. So wise and strong.”
The screening and panel discussion were a benefit for the Women’s Media Center, a nonprofit dedicated to making women visible and powerful in the media. Women currently make up only 16 percent of the expert “talking heads” on news and public affairs shows, and 3 percent of the top level positions that decide what the stories will be. I’m honored to serve on the WMC board to support women employing every medium to get their messages out and change those dismal statistics to 50/50.
What stories about women do you see in the media you watch or read?
How has the prevailing media narrative affected your self-image and sense of power?
I’m interested in your thoughts. Please share them here.
Read MoreKeynote address: Women’s Power Summit on Law and Leadership
Austin, TX, Fri. 4/29 @ 8:00 am
Keynote Address, 2011 Women’s Power Summit on Law & Leadership.
Four Seasons Hotel
Wear jeans for more than comfort
Did you know that today you can turn your favorite pair of jeans into a powerful statement against sexual assault? That’s because today is Denim Day, part of the week-long Sexual Assault Week of Action being observed across the globe.
Denim Day was started in response to a 1998 Italian Parliament decision overturn a rape conviction because the victim was wearing tight jeans at the time of her assault. Believe it or not, the court’s official statement on the case read: “it is a fact of common experience that it is nearly impossible to slip off tight jeans even partly without the active collaboration of the person who is wearing them.”
It’s no wonder that the decision prompted an international movement. By the next year Denim Day was observed in California, and has grown to be a worldwide protest against victim blaming and rape apologism.
The movement is yet another example of the power of feminist activism. Visit the Change.org site to learn how you can get involved.
Be sure to check out the wonderful poet and musician Brooke Elise Axtell telling her personal story and why she is committed to nurturing healing through feminist leadership as she speaks on Fox TV in Austin TX.
I am wearing jeans, what about you?
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Book signing at Brazos Bookstore
On April 26th I returned to Houston’s Brazos Bookstore to read from No Excuses. I was lucky to also have a chance to sign copies and connect with those in attendance.
The coolest thing about this event was how it brought together disparate parts of my history…
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