The Nineteenth

The organization that brought women together 100 years ago has continued to grow and develop over the past 100 years. Today, I am officially a member of the LWV Seattle - King County chapter! Let's make some change in 2020! In 1920, the League of Women Voters was founded to help women be more active in public affairs. Its goal was to support women to be strong voters. Today, the organization has been opened to men (since 1973) and operates at local, state, and national levels. It does not support candidates or parties, but it does advocate for public policy decisions. Their current platform includes health care reform, education, increasing voter registration, the environment, and immigration. The organization was conceptualized by Emma Smith DeVoe in SEATTLE! (WOOT!) at the National American Women Suffrage Association convention in 1909. They were fighting for education about the voting system and lobby for women’s issues. It did not take hold at the convention, and she w

Hawaii is my tropical land that I have been lucky to frequent regularly. It is a beautiful state full of culture and life. As the last monarch of Hawai'i, her life worked to maintain the culture of  Hawai'i as American came to the land more and more. Hawaii became a state on August 21, 1959 as the last of the 50 American states. It is hopeful that we may have a #51 and #52 in my lifetime. Lydia Kamakaeha was born to a high-ranking family. Her mother, Keohokalole was an advisor to King Kamehameha III. Marrying an American ship captain, John Owen Dominus, in 1862, he became governor of Oahu and Maui. She was named heir to the throne when her older and younger brothers passed away in 1874 and 1877. As queen, she worked to organize schools for Hawaiian youth. As a musician, she wrote many songs and chants including the national anthem of Hawai’i, Aloha Oe. She was received by Queen Victoria at the Crown Jubilee in London with President Grover Cleveland and Kalakaua’s wif

Alaska became a state after the Nineteenth Amendment was ratified, so was required to accept the Nineteenth Amendment in their constitution. But that did not mean they did not have issues and reasons to fight for equality of all people. This issue is rampant. And Ms. Peratrovich was at the helm. Alaska became the 49th State of the United States of America on January 3, 1959. Ms. Peratrovich was born a member of the Lukaax.adi clan in the Raven Moiety of the Tlingit nation. Orphaned at a young age, she was adopted by a fisherman and minister. The Peratrovich family was discriminated against as a Native in public facilities. The family advocated to ban signs for “No Natives Allowed”and lobbied for organizations. Governor Gruening passed a bill to provide full and equal accommodations for all citizens, 20 years before the US Congress passed the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Living in Juneau with her husband and family, they found more extensive social and racial discrimination agai

I was so impressed by a presentation of Pelicia Hall at a conference I attended in October 2019. She spoke honestly of her position as Commissioner of the Department of Corrections for the State of Mississippi, and learning about her role and experiences on the professional side of corrections beyond the built environment. Mississippi was the final of the 48 states to ratify the Nineteenth Amendment because in 1920 there were only 48 states. They adopted the Nineteenth Amendment into their constitution on March 22, 1984. Pelicia Hall was the first woman Commissioner of the Department of Corrections for the State of Mississippi from 2017-2019. Appointed by the Governor following Marshall Fisher whom she was chief of staff to before he was promoted to commissioner of Public Safety. Ms. Hall was a lawyer with Page< Kruger & Holland of Jackson, MS, leading cases on personal injury claims, employment discrimination, contract disputes, product liability, general tort litigati