By: Daneene Monroe Rusnak, 2^nd Vice President of Advocacy, NFBPWC 2020-2024

Platform Proposals 

Your Platform Proposals have been received! Thank you for your submissions. 

We will discuss and vote on the proposed changes at the Biennial Conference.  

To prepare, please take a moment to reviewthe information here.  

Discharge Petition Update 

We now have 212 signatures on the discharge petition for HJ Res 25. Representative Timothy Kennedy [D-Ny26] added his signature on May 21^st. We know need only 6 more signatures!!!  

Please continue to spread the word and encourage other representatives to sign.  

To review which legislators have signed the discharge petition and which legislators we still need to encourage, check this list to see who the current signatories are.   

Wondering what to say to your legislators??? 

Click the link below for suggested verbiage to use when connecting with your representative about the Discharge Petition for HJ Res 25 

Suggested Verbiage for Discharge Petition Support 

Share this information with folks you know who are constituents of the representatives who have not yet signed. 

OCP Update and Reminders: 

• Be an advocate for menstrual equity! We have a new OCP campaign supporting the Menstrual Equity for All Act introduced by Rep. Grace Meng  [D-NY-6]. Click hereto contact your MOC today (and beyond!) 

• Don’t forget to use our digital advocacy platform to show your support for the ERAand Voting Rightswhile encouraging your MOC’s to do the same! You can complete these actions multiple times. Consider making it a weekly (or daily?????) habit. The more messages received, the more they listen…..and hopefully, take favorable action! 

• Sign up for our Advocacy Text Alerts oText the keyword “advocate1919” to the number 313131 

▪You should instantly receive a “Welcome” message oIf you do NOT receive a Welcome message, try texting the keyword “advocate1919” to the number 716-271-7872 

If neither of those options work, please email VP of Advocacy, Daneene Monroe Rusnak at vpadvocacy@nfbpwc.org   

By: Sandra Thompson,
NFBPWC’s Immediate Past President 

In Memory – as is our tradition at the Biennial General Assembly we will remember those that have passed away. 

President Megan has asked me to conduct this memorial.    

So, as we gather in July, let us take a moment to remember and honor those who are no longer with us. 

Please send to me at immpastpresident@nfbpwc.org the names of any members who have passed away since August 2022.   Please include a short bio and a picture. 

PLEASE PROVIDE THIS INFORMATION BY JUNE 20, 2024. 

Let us recall the moments we shared and the lessons we learned from those who have departed.  Each life that touched ours has left an indelible mark.

By: Sondra Nunez, NFBPWC Secretary 2022-2024 
Still I Rise 
BY MAYA ANGELOU  

You may write me down in history 

With your bitter, twisted lies, You may trod me in the very dirt 

But still, like dust, I'll rise. 

 

Does my sassiness upset you? 

Why are you beset with gloom? ’Cause I walk like I've got oil wells Pumping in my living room. 

 

Just like moons and like suns, 

With the certainty of tides, Just like hopes springing high, 

Still I'll rise. 

 

Did you want to see me broken? 

Bowed head and lowered eyes? Shoulders falling down like teardrops, Weakened by my soulful cries? 

 

Does my haughtiness offend you? 

Don't you take it awful hard 

’Cause I laugh like I've got gold mines Diggin’ in my own backyard. 

 

You may shoot me with your words, 

You may cut me with your eyes, You may kill me with your hatefulness, 

But still, like air, I’ll rise. 

 

Does my sexiness upset you? 

Does it come as a surprise 

That I dance like I've got diamonds At the meeting of my thighs? 

 

Out of the huts of history’s shame 

I rise 

Up from a past that’s rooted in pain 

I rise 

I'm a black ocean, leaping and wide, Welling and swelling I bear in the tide. 

 

Leaving behind nights of terror and fear 

I rise 

Into a daybreak that’s wondrously clear 

I rise 

Bringing the gifts that my ancestors gave, I am the dream and the hope of the slave. 

I rise 

I rise 

I rise. 

Maya Angelou, "Still I Rise" from And Still I Rise: A Book of Poems.  Copyright © 1978 by Maya Angelou.  Used by permission of Random House, an imprint and division of Penguin Random House LLC. All rights reserved. 

By: Kathy Kelly 1^st Vice President of Membership

WELCOME NEW AND RENEWING MEMBERS IN MARCH! 

STATUS	NAME	LOCATION	SPONSER
Renew	Angie Jackson-Wilson	Virtual - Louisiana	N/A
New	Jackie Probst	Cali - Sacramento	Kathryn Winans
Renew	Paola Del Zotto Ferrari	Virtual - Louisiana	N/A
New	Marchelle Stahl	Virtual - North Carolina	Barbara Bozeman
Renew	Lynn Dalbeck	Virtual - Massachusetts	N/A
Renew	Amber Farley	Virtual - Tennessee	N/A
Renew	Khatera Herawie	AWP - Minnesota	N/A
New	Sandra Stephenson	Michigan	N/A
New	Vittoria Jimerson	Michigan	N/A
New	Katelyn Reccardi	Michigan	N/A
New	Kathy Schmaltz	Michigan	N/A

Membership Tool of the Month! 

Check out the NEW 10-minute video from VP Daneene Monroe Rusnak on our current advocacy efforts.  Use this when promoting the benefits of membership in NFBPWC.  It’s parked on our New Member Welcome page at NFBPWC - New Member Welcome Guide.  (While you’re there, please re-familiarize yourself with the tools we’ve made available to new members.  Please follow up with your new members to ensure they are aware of them.  Nothing takes the place of personal contact with a new member!) (Megan needs to add that or else change verbiage to “it will be parked soon on….”) 

THANK YOU BPW MICHIGAN! 

It was a pleasure to attend the BPW Michigan convention in Mackinaw City, Michigan, May 3-4.  I was delighted to meet so many members from all over the state and I learned so much about Michigan in the process.  In fact, we were so far north that Canada was south of us!   

A very special thank you to President Lynn Card, IPP General Amy Courter, Sue Oser and my wonderful “roomie” Shirley Zeller for the special treats, gifts, private transportation, beautiful room with a view of Lake Michigan, day trip to Mackinac Island, and networking at the Pink Pony!  I was so pleased to have these special women join NFBPWC last year, and I was extremely honored to present BPW Michigan with the Nike statue for Largest Affiliate in the United States, topping out at 146 members, last count!   

DOUBLE or MORE in ’24 

Join us for our BIG membership drive! 

Prizes for Everyone! 

  1 member “Classic” gold NFBPWC lapel pin ($10 value) 

  3 members Large NFBPWC Bling lapel pin ($20 value) 

  5 members Above plus one NFBPWC scarf ($50 value)  

Affiliate/Club levels 

Top prize: Large Nike statue and large NFBPWC Bling pins for executive team 

  2nd prize: Small Nike statue and classic lapel pins for executive team  Third prize: Small Nike statue  

Chances to win BPW Bling!  Prizes will be awarded mid-year at the NFBPWC Biennial Convention in July and again in January of 2025. 

Rules of the content: 

The Affiliate or Club President (or Membership VP/Chair) will verify and forward the information to the NFBPWC VP Membership before the deadline JULY 15, 2024 (vpmembership@nfbpwc.org).  Please do not have individual members for the information.  It’s okay to send the information as you receive it.  We’d like it condensed per Affiliate/Club so we can keep better records, and we’ll reconcile our information with yours before the Convention. 

DONATION GIFTS NOW OPEN ON THE WEBSITE! 

Do you love our new “BPW Bling” pin?  Want one?  Be sure you are getting credit for new member referrals!  We will list sponsors in the e-magazine each month. 

We’ve also launched our DONATION GIFTS – STORE online!  Please see our page on the website DONATION page, or email Kathy Kelly at vpmembership@nfbpwc.org with your order. 

Suggested donation (includes shipping, minimum order of 5 or more please): 

$10 each (CLASSIC plain gold NFBPWC, magnet clasp) $20 each (New BPW bling pin, magnetic clasp) 

$25 each (NFBPWC scarf)  

THANK YOU to the 2022-2024 National Membership Committee.   

These members have been dedicated over the term to developing and improving our membership experience, from onboarding instructions and videos, membership retention outreach, Donation Gifts, and efforts to reconnect with our “Heritage” sisters around the country.  If your club is not represented, please consider encouraging someone to join this committee so you are aware of all the tools to increase your membership! 

Sandy Thompson	California
Angie Layton	Colorado
Emily VanVleck	New York
Lynn Brandstater	California
Marsha Riibner-Cady	North Carolina
Sue Oser	Michigan
Nancy Werner	Pennsylvania
Linda Wilson	California
Marjory Hopper	California
Cathy Collins	Pennsylvania
Bessie Hironimus	California
Barbara Bozeman	Virtual
Maria DeSousa	California

And with special appreciation to President Megan Shellman Rickard for her support with all our efforts over the term. 

As we wrap up another term, I’d like to note the progress the Membership Committee has made, including: 

• Created a New Member Onboarding page on the website with short videos on how to create your membership directory page, our 100+ year history, current advocacy programs and a welcome video from President Megan.   

• Updated the Membership flyer and 3-fold pamphlet 

• Conducted a dues analysis that put NFBPWC as one of the lowest for women’s organizations. 

• Created a “lapsed member” email to re-engage nonrenewing members 

• Updated Charter documents for Heritage Affiliates 

• Added “Donation Gift” page to purchase BPW Bling (more to come!) 

The National Membership Committee meets on the first and third Mondays of each month, holidays excluded.  

In June we will meet on the 3^rd and 17^th. 

Contact Kathy Kelly, vpmembership@nfbpwc.org for more information.

Mental Health and Women’s Health Care

May is both Mental Health Awareness and Women’s Health Care Month. As women we often end up in the care taking role of those with mental health issues of all ages. There are many business and professional women who quietly juggle the mental health of their family members. There is still so much stigma attached to mental illness and it often results in a lack of discussion about the struggles that both caregivers and patients go through on a daily, sometimes hourly, basis. Mental illness often has a medical component to it, an underlying cause that results in complex treatment scenarios. According to the Mental Health Foundation, women are three times more likely to be diagnosed with a mental illness in their lifetime.

As an individual, I have more than a few close family members and friends struggling with mental health. Over the past few months, I have wondered what my peers would say if I let them know about my struggles as a caregiver in the same vein that we talk about other illnesses, like cancer. As a new mother, I struggled with postpartum depression, and I still deal with anxiety attacks. Let’s take this component of Women’s Health and put some light on it. It is my hope that our small community can try to reduce the stigma of mental health, at least within our organization.

Our organization has the propensity to inspire, empower, and connect members as we work together for gender equity. We can nurture our connections by starting with compassion, grace, and active listening. Members of this organization motivate others by finding a path in BPW that makes this community a vibrant part of their lives. A simple spark of an idea can turn into an international project, a national initiative, or an influential local program. As business and professional women, we can nurture each other’s ideas and potential while acknowledging our limitations. Our network connects us to phenomenal people and unique opportunities. We have a community of members on which we can rely for both expertise on subjects and ears to listen.

Please remember, you have an opportunity to provide constructive input and to find your own unique path in this organization. This is a chance to develop your potential, and that of NFBPWC, in a safe and welcoming space. Please continue to bring your ideas, projects, and your own light forward. Let us celebrate our successes as individuals and as an organization! Please accept my personal invitation to all BPW Michigan members to join us at our Biennial Conference in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania, or our Hybrid option, July 18-21, 2024. Look for details on our website: www.nfbpwc.org.

We offer a community to each other, one in which we can find solace and solutions. And let us not forget to be kind and accepting of each member’s journey in this organization as we endure these extraordinary moments of history (and herstory). NFBPWC is truly living our theme for this biennium: Cultivate Connections, Create Community. Sending personal wishes of celebration, health, and progress around the globe!

Kind Regards,

Megan Shellman-Rickard

NBPWC President (2020-2024)

By: Sandra Thompson, NFBPWC’s Immediate Past President  

As we approach our Biennial Conference, I would like to encourage all of you to consider running for an office or volunteering to serve as a committee chair or on a committee.  It is a wonderful way to serve our organization, but the personal rewards are even more rewarding. 

I am going to share a little story that I like to help encourage you to serve. 

LESSONS OF THE GEESE 

In the fall, when you see geese heading south for the winter, flying along in the “V” formation, you might be interested in knowing what science has discovered about why they fly that way. It has been learned that as each bird flaps his wings it creates uplift to the bird immediately following.  

By flying in a “V” formation, the whole flock adds at least 71% greater flying range than if each bird flew on its own. 

Quite similar to people who are part of a team and share a common direction get where they are going quicker and easier because they are traveling on the trust of one another and lift one another along the way.  

Whenever a goose falls out of formation it suddenly feels the drag and resistance of trying to go through it alone and quickly gets back into formation to take advantage of the power of the flock. 

If we have as much sense a goose, we will stay in formation and share information with those who are headed in the same way that we are going.  

When the lead goose gets tired, he rotates back in the formation and another goose takes over. 

It pays to share leadership and take turns doing hard jobs. 

The geese honk from behind to encourage those up front to keep up their speed. 

Words of support and inspiration help energize those on the front line helping them to keep pace in spite of the day-to-day pressures and fatigue. 

It is important that our honk is encouraging otherwise it’s just a ..well.. just honking. 

Finally when a goose gets sick or is wounded and falls out, two geese fall out of the formation and follow the injured one down to help and protect him until he is either able to fly or until he is dead. 

Then they launch out with another formation to catch up with their group. When one of us is down, it’s up to the others to stand by us in our time of trouble.  

If we have the sense of a goose, we’ll stand by each other when things get rough.  We will stay in formation with those headed where we want to go. 

The next time you see a formation of geese remember their message... That it is Indeed a Reward, a Challenge, and a Privilege to be a contributing member of a team!    Author unknown  

Lifelong, Leadership & Learning Report 

THREE LIFELONG LEADERSHIP & LEARNING WEBINARS 

FREE ~ Open to All  Registration Open! 

Via Zoom: April 23, May 28, June 25 7:00 PM to 8:00 PM Eastern Time (register for each event) 

Presented by Kathy Kelly, NFBPWC Vice President and Nancy Werner, NFBPWC Facilitator 

These facilitator-led education and training webinars build relevant personal and professional leadership skills to keep you current in the workplace, community, and the world.  Funded and sponsored by BPW/MD, these courses are updated versions of the Individual Development Program (IDP) that was offered to BPW members years ago.  NFBPWC's Lifelong Leadership & Learning (L3) Committee has worked hard to bring us these current modules. 

Tuesday, April 23: Business Etiquette – Representing Yourself and Your Organization Well - Provides guidelines and protocols used in business settings that include verbal and written communication, meetings and exhibiting a professional image. (Recording available upon request.)   

Tuesday, May 28: Setting Goals for Personal and Professional Success - No matter what your age or stage in your career, learn how to establish and create strategies to develop and break down a goal into executable steps. Register at:  https://nfbpwc.wildapricot.org/event-5708529 

Tuesday, June 25: Being an Effective Negotiator - Learn how to negotiate in every human interaction including dealing with difficult situations and people.  Negotiation theory, elements, techniques, and practice scenarios.  Negotiate your position, your salary, and your future with confidence.  Register at:  

https://nfbpwc.wildapricot.org/event-5708553

By: Sondra Nunez, NFBPWC Secretary 2022-2024 Hello fellow NFBPW sisters! 

As the end quarter of the 2022-2024 term approaches, I sometimes feel overwhelmed and frustrated because there is so much I want to do, and don’t know how to make the time to do it. When these feelings wash over me, I turn to one of my favorite poems, as it reminds me that ups and downs and twists and turns are a natural part of the journey of life. If you are feeling lost or unsure, may these words bring you hope.  

Don’t Quit by Edgar Guest  

When things go wrong, as they sometimes will, when the road you're trudging seems all uphill, when the funds are low and the debts are high, and you want to smile but you have to sigh, when care is pressing you down a bit - rest if you must, but don't you quit. 

Life is queer with its twists and turns. As everyone of us sometimes learns. And many a fellow turns about when he might have won had he stuck it out. 

Don't give up though the pace seems slow - you may succeed with another blow. Often the goal is nearer than it seems to a faint and faltering man;

Often the struggler has given up when he might have captured the victor's cup; and he learned too late when the night came down, how close he was to the golden crown.  

Success is failure turned inside out - the silver tint of the clouds of doubt, and when you never can tell how close you are, it may be near when it seems afar; so stick to the fight when you're hardest hit - it's when things seem worst, you must not quit. 

By: Daneene Monroe Rusnak, 2^nd Vice President of Advocacy, NFBPWC 2020-2024 

Advocacy Committee Calls for Platform Proposals  

Our Biennial Assembly is fast approaching and we are looking forward to gathering together again. As a reminder, the Biennial Assembly is also the time for us to review and update our advocacy platform.  

Chapters/Affiliates/Federations 

interested in proposing changes have until May 25^th to submit their request(s) via our online submission form.  

Click the link or scan the QR code  https://bit.ly/2024AdvocacyPlatformProposalForm 

SCOTUS and Mifepristone

On March 26, the Supreme Court heard oral argument in FDA v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine (AHM), otherwise known as the abortion pill case. There appear to be reasons to be optimistic but we can’t take anything for granted in this “post-Roe era”.  

 

Some of the Justices’ lines of questioning appear to indicate there are concerns with: 

• a nationwide injunction of a medication 

• whether AHM truly has the right to sue 

• the lack of real examples of harm caused by the medication  

• whether this case could destroy the FDA’s drug regulating system for medications, vaccines, etc.  

View the replay of the oral arguments (with highlights denoted) here 

Discharge Petition Update

Representative Gabe Vasquez [D-NM-2] added his signature to HJ Res 25. We now have 211 signatures on the discharge petition and only need 7 more signatures. Please continue to spread the word and encourage other representatives to sign. 

Are you curious about which legislators have signed the discharge petition and which legislators we still need to encourage?  You can check this list to see who the current signatories are. 

Here’s some suggested verbiage when connecting with your representative about the Discharge Petition for HJ Res 25=>  

Suggested Verbiage for Discharge Petition Support 

Share this information with folks you know who are constituents of the representatives who have not yet signed. 

Reminders: 

• Don’t forget to use our digital advocacy platform to show your support for the ERAand Voting Rightswhile encouraging your MOC’s to do the same! You can complete these actions multiple times. Consider making it a weekly (or daily?????) habit. The more messages received, the more they listen…..and hopefully, take favorable action! 

• Sign up for our Advocacy Text Alerts oText the keyword “advocate1919” to the number 313131 

▪You should instantly receive a “Welcome” message oIf you do NOT receive a Welcome message, try texting the keyword “advocate1919” to the number 716-271-7872 

If neither of those options work, please email VP of Advocacy, Daneene Monroe Rusnak at vpadvocacy@nfbpwc.org 

Renewal, Transformation, and Growth

Each season brings us a new perspective. Spring, for me, has always been a time of renewal, transformation, and growth. All the seeds of information and empowerment that were planted through the winter months are ready to sprout. NFBPWC leaders work tirelessly to bring our membership engaging and intriguing content throughout the year with a focus on learning more in the downtime of the winter months. Our online meetings continue to attract new people and ideas. NFBPWC members utilize the darker times of the year to discover ways to improve themselves both personally and professionally and prepare for growth as the season changes to summer. Our organization has offered these opportunities for over 5 years, as we had already adopted the online meeting platform long before many organizations when the pandemic hit in 2020.

Our event, Global Collaboration to Tackle Period Poverty, at this year’s United Nations 68^th Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) garnered more than 100 participants, over 70 people attended in-person. Congratulations to Young BPW Executive, Emily VanVleck, on a successful event and a huge amount of appreciation for all her hard work. A special thank you to BPW Canada, specifically Karin Gorgerat, for partnering with NFBPWC for this year’s event. Addition thanks to BPW Canada for including Past National President Sandra Thompson and President Megan Shellman-Rickard to receive delegate passes to the United Nations for this year’s CSW event. Congratulations to our Young BPW member, Djenabou Bah, for presenting on behalf of BPW International’s Young BPWs. NFBPWC had great representation at this year’s CSW event, and we look forward to including even more members in 2025!

Upcoming events for the National organization are not quite slowing down yet. In the month of April we have “Pitch Like a Pro” presented by the Entrepreneur and Small Business Committee on April 10^th (https://www.nfbpwc.org/event-5266589), “Earth Day Café” celebrating Earth Day presented by the Environment and Sustainable Development Committee on April 22^nd (https://www.nfbpwc.org/event-5592088), and the annual Heart of a Woman Conference in partnership with the Houston Methodist Hospital and the Health Committee on April 27^th (https://www.nfbpwc.org/event-5687048). Please take a moment to check your schedule and participate as a member. Supporting our committees and the hard work put into these events only serves to strengthen our organization now and in the future.

Our organization has the propensity to inspire, empower, and connect members as we work together for gender equity. We can nurture our connections by starting with compassion, grace, and active listening. Members of this organization motivate others by finding a path in BPW that makes this community a vibrant part of their lives. A simple spark of an idea can turn into an international project, a national initiative, or an influential local program. As business and professional women, we can nurture each other’s ideas and potential while acknowledging our limitations. Our network connects us to phenomenal people and unique opportunities. We have a community of members on which we can rely for both expertise on subjects and ears to listen.

Let us take a moment as we celebrate Earth Day, and this beautiful world in which we live, to remember that all of the members of this organization do their part to make a difference. We offer a community to each other, one in which we can find solace and solutions. And let us not forget to be kind and accepting of each member’s journey in this organization as we endure these extraordinary moments of history (and herstory).

Please remember, you have an opportunity to provide constructive input and to find your own unique path in this organization. This is a chance to develop your potential, and that of NFBPWC, in a safe and welcoming space. Please continue to bring your ideas, projects, and your own light forward. Let us celebrate our successes as individuals and as an organization!

NFBPWC is living our theme for this biennium: Cultivate Connections, Create Community. Sending personal wishes of celebration, health, and progress around the globe!

Kind Regards,

Megan Shellman-Rickard, NBPWC President (2020-2024)

By: Sandra Thompson, NFBPWC’s Immediate Past President  

I am sure you all know who Alice Paul is, but do you know much about her.   She was a suffragist, feminist, and political strategist.  I thought I would share a little about her since at our Biennial Meeting in July on Friday afternoon, we will be visiting her house.  This trip is included in your registration.  If you are like me, 

you enjoy visiting old houses and finding out about the people who lived there.   Especially ones who did so much to advance women’s rights. 

Alice Paul was the architect of some of the most outstanding political achievements on behalf of women in the 20th century. Born on January 11, 1885, to Quaker parents in Mount Laurel, New Jersey, Alice Paul dedicated her life to the single cause of securing equal rights for all.  

A leader in the fight to ratify the 19th Amendment in 1920 to extend voting rights to women, Alice Paul authored the Equal Rights Amendment 1923 and spent the rest of her life fighting for its ratification to ensure the U.S. Constitution protects women and men equally. 

Alice Paul attended a Quaker school in nearby Moorestown. She graduated first in her class in 1901.  As Paul said years later, “When the Quakers were founded…one of their principles was, and is, equality of the sexes.  So, I never had any other idea…the principle was always there.”  The Quaker belief that women and men were equal, something of an anomaly for the time period, undoubtedly accounts for the number of Quakers active in the fight for suffrage.  Both Susan B. Anthony and Lucretia Mott, leaders of the early suffrage movement, were Quakers whom Paul admired and considered role models. 

After spending some time in England, Paul returned to the United States imbued with the radicalism of the English suffrage movement and a determination to reshape and re-energize the American campaign for women’s enfranchisement.  She joined the National American Women’s Suffrage Association (NAWSA), one of the leading national organizations working for women’s suffrage.  

In 1912, Alice Paul joined her NAWSA colleagues Lucy Burns and Crystal Eastman in a move to Washington, D.C. With little funding and in true Pankhurst style, Paul and Burns quickly got to work organizing a publicity event guaranteed to gain maximum national attention.  The well-matched pair designed a massive and elaborate parade for thousands of women to march up Pennsylvania Avenue on March 3, 1913, the day prior to the inaugural parade of President-elect Woodrow Wilson. 

Although both NAWSA’s president Carrie Chapman Catt and Alice Paul shared the goal of universal suffrage, their political strategies greatly differed.  Where NAWSA concentrated a majority of its effort upon state campaigns, Paul wanted to focus all energy and funding to advance a constitutional amendment. 

The divergent strategies led to tension between Alice Paul and NAWSA leadership and in 1914, after initially forming a semi-autonomous group called the Congressional Union, Paul and those who supported the strategy for a constitutional amendment severed ties to NAWSA. Two years later, in 1916, Paul and her supporters formed a new party, the National Woman’s Party (NWP). The NWP moved quickly to organize public events to bring attention to their work.  In 1917, the NWP organized the first public picketing in front of the White House in the nation’s history. Until that moment, no one had dared to publicly protest the President of the United States in such a manner. 

 

Called the “Silent Sentinels” because they stood quietly, not speaking or interacting with passersby, groups of women stood outside the gates of the White House, six days per week no matter the weather. 

Over the course of weeks, 168 suffragists were arrested, and sent to jail or prison if they refused to pay the fines or admit guilt. While in jail, Alice and the suffragists demanded to be treated as political prisoners, in accordance with the English suffragette methodology. Officials ignored their request, leading Paul and several suffragists to begin a hunger strike. As she had experienced during her hunger strikes in England, prison officials began brutal forced feedings of the suffragists, sometimes done three times per day. 

Toward the end of 1917, President Wilson, facing increased pressure and growing criticism of the suffragists’ treatment in prison, reversed his position and announced his support for a suffrage amendment as a “war measure.” In the following months, Wilson met with members of Amidst growing support, in 1919, members of the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate voted to pass the 19th Amendment and sent it to the states for ratification.  

THE EQUAL RIGHTS AMENDMENT 

Many suffragists left public life and activism after the 19th Amendment was enacted, but Alice Paul was not among them. She believed the true battle for legally protected gender equality had yet to be won. With an eye to championing another constitutional amendment, Paul pursued and earned three law degrees (LL.B., LL.M. and D.C.L.) to better understand how legislation and laws were drafted and passed. With this knowledge, she wrote the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) in 1923. It was introduced to Congress the same year but has yet to be ratified to the U.S. Constitution.  Current efforts to ratify the ERA center upon passing legislation in both houses of Congress to remove the time limit assigned to the ratification of the ERA in 1972. 

Alice Paul’s life is a vibrant demonstration that one person can truly make a lasting difference. On July 9, 1977, Alice Paul died at the age of 92 in Moorestown, New Jersey, a short distance from her birthplace and family home of Paulsdale.  

On the centennial of her birth in 1985, the Alice Paul Institute (API) was founded to honor her legacy and continue the fight for equality for all. Headquartered at Paulsdale, which is now a National Historic Landmark, API is dedicated to preserving Paulsdale, advancing women’s history, and supporting the next generation of female leaders to develop their unique leadership style. 

The Alice Paul Institute educates and encourages women and girls to be leaders in their communities and leads national advocacy efforts to advance Alice Paul’s vision for constitutionally protected gender equality through the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment. 

To find out more about the Alice Paul Institute visit their website alicepaul.org.