womenwonder: Dame Millicent Garrett Fawcett GBE

On August 18, 1920 the Nineteenth Amendment was ratified here the United States, giving women the right to vote, to add their opinion, voice and wisdom to our country's democratic process.  There were many brave women here and in Britain that fought for this right and as it is the 100th anniversary of women's right to vote and the year of a most crucial presidential election I intend to highlight many of these #womenwonders this month.  

"Courage calls to courage everywhere, and

 its voice cannot be denied."

Millicent Fawcett

As the United States entered World War I in 1917, the National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA) encouraged its supporters to join in the war effort. The organization argued women deserved the vote because they were patriots, caregivers, and mothers. Women’s expertise in maintaining the home and family would improve politics and society.

The Nineteenth Amendment states: “The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.” Congress passed the amendment in June 1919. The NAWSA and NWP suffragists lobbied local and state representatives to ensure its subsequent ratification by the states.

After the ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment on August 18, 1920, female activists continued to use politics to reform society. NAWSA became the League of Women Voters.

http://www.crusadeforthevote.org/19-amendment

Dame Millicent Garrett Fawcett GBE** (11 June 1847 – 5 August 1929) was an English political leader, activist, writer and feminist icon. Known as a campaigner for women's suffrage via legislative change, from 1897 until 1919 she led Britain's largest women's rights organisation, the National Union of Women's Suffrage Societies (NUWSS).[1] She would write: "I cannot say I became a suffragist. I always was one, from the time I was old enough to think at all about the principles of Representative Government."[2] Fawcett also tried to improve women's chances of higher education, serving as a governor of Bedford College, London (now Royal Holloway), and a co-founder of Newnham College, Cambridge, in 1875.[3]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Millicent_Fawcett

** The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service

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May this dress remind us of our inner strength ... from woman wonder: Mary McCarthy

Mary McCarthy:

American novelist, satirist, critic, political activist, teacher and literary exectutor of the works of her close friend, Hannah Arendt.
A graduate of Vassar College, she was a vibrant member of intellectual New York City.  Counted as part of the Partisan Review circle and as a contributor to The Nation, The New Republic, Harper's Magazine, and The New York Review of Books, McCarthy honed her reputation as a shrewd critic.

An award winning author, penning essays, articles and fiction, McCarthy is best known for her novel, 'TheGroup'. "Written with a trenchant, sardonic edge, The Group is a dazzlingly outspoken novel and a captivating look at the social history of America between two world wars." says Amazon.

Published in 1963 'The Group', it made it onto the New York Times Best Sellers List the same year and remained there for nearly two years, even though it came under much criticism for the topics that the characters dealt with and discussed.  McCarthy's talent as a writer also came under attack, "Norman Mailer, a man whose own writing did not shy away from graphic depictions of the sexual act, dismissed The Group in the New York Review of Books as "a trivial lady writer's novel"
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2009/nov/29/the-group-mary-mccarthy

"The Group" tells the stories of 8 women who graduate from Vassar College in 1933 and how this group of intellectual women deal with the still limiting roles of women.  "the Group" has influenced generations of women since it's publication (myself included). It has also influenced many women writers as shown below:

Its continuing relevance is one of the book's most extraordinary attributes. When Candace Bushnell was advised by an editor in the early 1990s to write "the modern-day version of The Group", she responded with Sex and the City, a collection of confessional essays about a group of female friends that spawned a multimillion-dollar TV series and film. "The Group reminds us that not much has really changed," writes Bushnell in the foreword to the new edition. "It's a book I prize, not only for its blistering satire, but for its technical elements, including McCarthy's brilliant use of the soliloquy, her pacing and razor-sharp descriptions."
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2009/nov/29/the-group-mary-mccarthy

I would recommend reading "The Group" if you can, or read anything by this woman wonder: Mary McCarthy

“We are the hero of our own story.” Mary McCarthy

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May this dress remind us to go on living ... from woman wonder: Hannah Arendt

Hannah Arendt:

Forefront political philosopher of the 20th century.  Born in Germany in 1906, she was an early critic of the rising Nazi party.  When Hilter took power  and she was imprisoned by the Gestapo for 8 days Arendt knew she had to leave her homeland.  First she settled in Paris where she helped young Jews emigrate to Palestine.  But when Germay invaded France Arendt again had to flee and she eventually landed in New York City, arriving May 22, 1941.
 
Once in the US the need to learn English was paramount, so Arendt spent 2 months in Winchester, MA with an Ameican family through the program, Self-Help for Refugees.

Portrait of Hannah Arendt with Mary McCarthy

When she returned to New York, Arendt resumed her writing, her political and social activism and eventually teaching. During her teaching career she consistantly declined tenure positions to guard her independence.  In 1950 Arendt became a US citizen.

Much of her work addressed totalitarianism, allure of power and evil, direct democracy, andauthority. She is famous for her phrase, "the banality of evil" which she introduced while reporting on Adolf Eichmann's trial for The New Yorker.  She is recognized as one of the all time great political thinkers and philosophers.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hannah_Arendt


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May this dress remind us that we are more alike than not ...

Maya Angelou: 

American poet, singer, memoirist, and civil rights activist.

All great artists draw from the same resource: 

the human heart, 

which tells us that we are all more alike 

than we are unalike. 

Maya Angelou

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may this dress remind us to be brilliant

below is a short bio and links to read more:

Marianne Williamson

Marianne Williamson is an internationally acclaimed lecturer, activist and author of four #1 New York times bestselling books. She has been one of America’s most well known public voices for more than three decades. Seven of her twelve published books have been New York Times best sellers and Marianne has been a popular guest on television programs such as Oprah, Good Morning America, and Bill Maher. A quote from the mega best seller A Return to Love, “Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure…” is considered an anthem for a contemporary generation of seekers.

Marianne is a native of Houston, Texas. In 1989, she founded Project Angel Food, a meals-on-wheels program that serves homebound people with AIDS in the Los Angeles area. To date, Project Angel Food has served over 11 million meals. Marianne also co-founded the Peace Alliance.

https://marianne.com

and she is running for president, adding meaning and spiritual dialogue to the political rhetoric.

Marianne Williamson adds ‘meaning’ to Democratic presidential field with quixotic ‘inner’ campaign; her rivals are noticing

By Douglas Perry | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Williamson is a thoughtful and engaging speaker -- and she’s offering an overarching message that many Americans seem eager to embrace.

“We need a moral and spiritual awakening in this country,” the 66-year-old Texas native told The Oregonian. “That’s how we change our political dysfunction. It’s not about going to the left or to the right. It’s about going higher.”

“The crisis we’re facing,” she added, “is a crisis of meaning.”

https://www.oregonlive.com/politics/2019/03/marianne-williamson-adds-meaning-to-democratic-presidential-field-with-quixotic-inner-campaign-her-rivals-are-noticing.html

Marianne Deborah Williamson (born July 8, 1952)^[1] is an American spiritual teacher, author, lecturer, entrepreneur, and activist. She has written 13 books,^[2] including four New York Times number one bestsellers.^[3] She is the founder of Project Angel Food, a volunteer food delivery program that serves home-bound people with AIDS and other life-threatening illnesses.^[4] She is also the co-founder of The Peace Alliance, a nonprofit grassroots education and advocacy organization supporting peace-building projects.^[5]

In 2014, as an Independent, Williamson ran unsuccessfully for the seat of California's 33rd congressional district in the United States House of Representatives elections in California. On January 29, 2019, she announced her campaign to seek the Democratic nomination for the 2020 United States presidential election.^[6]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marianne_Williamson

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, 'Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?' Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.” 

― Marianne Williamson, A Return to Love: Reflections on the Principles of "A Course in Miracles"

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