Women

Dr. Johnnetta B. Cole: I'm thrilled to join you at the Leadership Luncheon to celebrate 10 years of investing in women and girls!

Posted on by Dr. Johnnetta B. Cole

In my work on gender issues, I am acutely aware of the disproportionate impact that poverty has on women—–and when women are mothers, on their daughters and sons.

As the former president of Spelman College and Bennett College for Women, our nation’s only two historically Black colleges for women, I witnessed the crucial link between education and a woman’s economic security. And we all know that a woman’s own education will have an influence on whether her children expect to have a college education and whether or not she can afford to send her children to college.

In my current role as the chair of the Johnnetta B. Cole Global Diversity and Inclusion Institute, I am keenly aware of the critical importance of advancing diversity and inclusion in our schools, our workplaces, and indeed in all arenas of our nation and our world. When different people are "at the table," different and innovative ideas come forth, and as a result, businesses can compete more successfully, schools can do a better job of educating students, and communities can more successfully tackle their problems.

There are countless examples of the value of bringing women and girls "to the table." That is why I am thrilled to have been invited to play a role in The Women’s Foundation’s Leadership Luncheon and 10th anniversary celebration.  Women’s philanthropy represents so much of what my work and learning have been about throughout my career:

The power of investing in women and girls.

The return on the investment for all of us when you bring a woman and her family out of poverty.

The power of people coming together to make a difference.

I understand that this year’s Leadership Luncheon will be like no other that has happened before. Rather than moderating a conversation among experts on a topic, I’ll be leading a special staged program that will at once be a discussion of the value of women’s philanthropy and the story of the collective power of giving together—told through the stories and experiences of key members of The Women’s Foundation community.

I’m really looking forward to being with you all on October 15th at the luncheon and to leading this exciting celebration capturing the power and potential of investing in women and girls!

Dr. Johnnetta B. Cole is Chair of the Johnnetta B. Cole Global Diversity and Inclusion Institute and will be speaking at The Women’s Foundation’s 2008 Leadership Luncheon.

Tickets and sponsorships are still available!  We hope you can join us and experience firsthand The Power of Giving Together!

Celebrate Women's Equality Day by calling on candidates to make equality a reality.

Posted on by Sharon Levin

Today is Women’s Equality Day – the anniversary of the day that women finally won the right to vote in 1920.  In a year when a woman was a serious contender for the Presidency and another woman is Speaker of the House, we should take a moment to celebrate how much has changed thanks to the work and sacrifices of the suffragettes.

But when that moment is over, we need to start having a serious conversation about how far things still have to go.

Ironically, today is also the day that the Census Bureau releases the annual poverty statistics. It spells out just how unequal things still are for women when it comes to dollars and cents.

Single-women headed families are still far more likely to be in poverty than families headed by married-couples or single men.  More than 28 percent of families headed by a woman live in poverty.  In fact, of the 7.6 million families living in poverty, 4.1 million (well over half) are headed by single-women.

This has consequences not only for the women themselves, but for their children as well.  Between 2006 and 2007, the poverty rate for children increased. And, children living in women-headed families are far more likely to be poor. Forty-three percent of children under 18 living with a single mother were living in poverty and 54 percent of children under six living with a single mother were living in poverty as well.

What is one of the major reasons that women are poorer than men?

The fact is that women still earn less than men. In 2007, women earned 78 cents for every dollar earned by a man. 

This is the smallest the wage gap has ever been in history. So, let’s recognize it for what it is – a small step in the right direction.  But, it is a very small step. The reality is that the wage gap has barely increased in the past 20 years.  In 1983, the wage gap was 19.9 percent.  Today it is 22 cents.

So, to honor Women’s Equality Day, every person reading this blog should go out and demand that all candidates for office champion laws and programs that will assist women to have jobs that pay enough that they can support their families.  We need bold leaders if we are going to address the big issues like the wage gap and the poverty rate for women.

I know that The Women’s Foundation community is filled with the strong, visionary women that we need to get this job done.

Sharon Levin is The Women’s Foundation’s Director of Major Events and Policy Advocacy.

Issues impacting elderly women aren't old news.

Posted on by Sherell

I frequently ponder and analyze various issues affecting women, and the lives of women in general.  How far we have come over the last few decades, how grand the numerous obstacles that still hinder us are, what the plentiful definitions of feminism are and how women choose to adopt them.

But lately, my mind has been on a different spectrum of women, namely older women. Specifically, I’ve been thinking more and more about services for older women- or the lack thereof. I don’t really know why, or if there was a specific event that triggered this novel introspection, but I became curious, and began asking myself what services are available for elderly women, what are their needs, and how do their needs differ from those of younger women?

It’s easy, for me at least, to focus on helping young girls and middle-aged women.  I think I’ve always had an ability to conjure up images of little girls, young adults, and middle-aged women when I am doing work around issues specially related to women, or analyzing “women’s issues.”   When I read success stories on women working their way out of economic poverty, landing better jobs, getting landmark promotions, or something of the sort, I generally picture someone in their twenties, thirties or forties.

But now, a change has come. I visualize women like my mom. I wonder about the lives of female baby boomers.

What happens with older women recently released from prison?  What sort of assistance is readily available for them to get back on their feet (e.g., finding safe shelter, food, financial assistance, quality health care, etc?) 

How many are still in prison for non-violent crimes committed decades ago and how do their hardships differ from that of their younger counterparts?

What about the homeless? What kinds of services specially catered to their varying needs are readily available?

How much attention is being paid to the increasing number of retired women who fall prey to investment schemes and lose all or most of their life savings to skyrocketed and/or hidden fees?

How do the ones who are out of work on disability and depend on social security income to make ends meet spend their spare time?

How big of a problem is a lack of health insurance?

My wide spectrum of questions applies to older women all over the world. I wonder what everyday ills plague their lives. These women are mothers, grandmothers, sisters, cousins, aunts, care-takers of their children’s children, widows, divorcees, survivors of war, cancer survivors, retired professionals, etc.

It would behoove me to learn more about the older age bracket, because they always have and always will be an intricate part of my life, and life in general.

Even though so many great projects and initiatives exist today to sustain young girls and help them grow into adulthood with security, success, and the knowledge to fight against discrimination, we can’t afford to forget about the older generation. They might not be creating communities anymore, but they sure are sustaining them, all over the world. They are our bloodline.

I even put these thoughts in connection with recent and past natural disasters like Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans, the recent earthquake in China that left a daunting amount of fatalities, the May 2008 tsunami in Myanmar, and countless others.  How do these life-changing calamities alter life, particularly for older women?

I don’t really have any answers, yet.  But I think it’s important that we consider these issues, and work towards their solutions. 

I intend to start with me.  Once I learn more, I can also learn what I can do about some of the problems. Just remembering that I have to consider all women when thinking of women is a turn in the right direction.

Just laying these words down helps awaken my senses.

Thankfully, I do know that there are many wonderful people and programs that have been way ahead of me! They are on the front lines working to combat the hardships that are unique to older women.  There’s the Older Women’s League with many initiatives geared towards helping and caring for older women. There’s also The Center for Advocacy for the Rights and Interests of the Elderly, a nonprofit housed in Philadelphia that offers a comprehensive list of activities and services for older adults.

Even some of The Women’s Foundation’s Grantee Partners have services that directly and indirectly benefit older women. The vast array of Grantee Partners’ work focuses on issues such as mental health, homelessness, incarceration, domestic violence, immigration, finding good jobs, etc., and these types of broad issues affect women across the age spectrum.

It’s now my preliminary mission to learn specifically about the problems that plague older women, determine how I can help at an individual level, and discover what other organizations exist for older people, namely women.

I have a feeling that it will be cumbersome to find organizations working solely with the issues affecting older women, but it’ll be interesting to see how I can play a role in fixing that problem.

Sherell Fuller served previously as The Women’s Foundation’s program assistant.

Building self-confidence by wearing a crown: A reflection on becoming Mrs. Maryland.

Posted on by Siobhan Davenport

I didn’t do it because I had the perfect body.

I did it because I didn’t.

I was just recovering from the birth of my second child, and needed to shake a bit of baby fat, in fact.

And, after 10 years of caring for my mom, who was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s, and becoming a mom myself, I needed to turn my attention back to taking care of myself a bit.

So when my girlfriend told me that she was entering the Mrs. Maryland pageant, instead of putting it off in hopes for a better time, or a better body, I decided to enter with her.

Life was short, I had realized as I cared for my ailing mother. Entering a pageant was on the bucket list I’d created for myself when she became ill.

In December 2007, when I officially decided to enter and prepare for the pageant, I had crossed off a few things on the list. I had run a marathon and earned a master’s degree.

Both were challenging. But neither involved a swimsuit competition.

I knew that this experience would push me further beyond my comfort zone than I ever had been.

So, I didn’t do it because I had the perfect body, or because I was dying to parade around on stage in a swimsuit.

I did it because I didn’t, and I wasn’t.

And because I wanted my daughter to see that when there are challenges, when you have to go outside your comfort zone, when you aren’t sure, that you can still take on anything you want, and succeed.

Ever since I was a little girl, I have loved watching the Miss America pageants on television, but it had never occurred to me that I could be in one.

Much less win one.

But on June 25, 2008, I did.

And while the crown is nice, I have been more struck by the process itself. Of learning about and testing my limits as I got back into shape and prepared for the various aspects of the pageant, including the interview.

It was through the interviews—which counted as half of our score—that I learned the amazing stories of my fellow contestants. About their careers as engineers, their PhDs, about their extensive community service.

About my fellow contestant who immigrated to this country 15 years ago, and has worked for seven days a week at her own business since then to create a future for her children. This year, her daughter graduated from the University of Maryland.

And every woman I met through the pageant had an inspiring story like this, of how she is impacting her family, her community and her own individual self-confidence.

And that is where the true beauty in the Mrs. Maryland pageant lies for me.

Because each of us was uncomfortable with the swimsuit competition and with being on stage, but we did it anyway.  Because of our sense of what we had to offer, as women, beyond what we looked like, beyond what everyone might see on the outside every day.

And yes, I enjoy wearing the crown. It has great meaning and significance for me.

But what I most treasure about it is the opportunity I have while I have the honor of wearing it to serve as a role model for other girls and women.

And what I hope I am able to convey to each of them is a concept I heard in a Tiger Woods commercial, where his father says to him, "I promise you that you’ll never meet another person as mentally tough as you in your entire life.”

Because I believe that the strongest gift we can give to each other as women, and pass along to our daughters, is the idea that the greatest goal is mental strength, and that each of us possesses it. That if you can dream it, you can make it happen.

At 37, I never thought it possible that I would be wearing a crown that I didn’t buy for myself.

And having the honor of wearing this one reminds me every day that its beauty has far more to do with the pretty face it frames, and actually represents the whole of the mind, spirit and strength that it surrounds.

Siobhan Davenport is a member of The Women’s Foundation’s board of directors and is the reigning 2008 Mrs. Maryland. She will compete in the national Mrs. America pageant in September. Siobhan’s platform and philanthropic interests include support for Alzheimer’s treatment and research, and increasing awareness of and support for early child care and education. She is an investor in The Women’s Foundation’s Early Child Care and Education Collaborative.

Women are last to eat, first to be impacted by economic crisis.

Posted on by Lisa Kays

The Post headline, "Africa’s Last and Least: Cultural Expectations Ensure Women are Hit Hardest by Burgeoning Food Crisis," really strikes me.  And not just because I’ve been there and have seen it firsthand. 

That women eat last, at every meal, every time.  After their husband, and after their children.  Even after their foreign guest, who has more than enough money to fend for herself (and who falls, incidentally, after the husband, but before the children, in the hierarchy of food service).

This, they tell me, is culture. 

So if resources are tight, she gets the smallest portions, the least desirable, least nutritious parts of the meal.  And sometimes, nothing at all.

I have been there, wondering how they can do this, given that these women also consume the most energy–fetching the water (sometimes miles away), buying the food, cooking the food, doing the laundry, caring for the kids, and generally while either pregnant or nursing a newborn. 

I would be exhausted just watching them go through their day from my comfortable position as the ex-pat teacher.  I couldn’t imagine how they did it, and on so few calories, such little sustenance.

Nevermind that other sacrifices would impact them first, because they were women.  If there wasn’t money for school fees, the girls would be the first to be pulled out to help earn extra income, or to care for younger siblings so that mom could go to work seeling wares at the market or on her front stoop.  More work.

Yes, the headline struck me, but not just because I had seen it before, because I knew it not only as newsprint but as a daily reality of women and girls that I had known, but because it didn’t seem that far removed from what I hear now, about the impact of our own economic downturn on women.

Because the articles findings about Africa and the impact of poverty on its women, didn’t seem that far removed from the words of Tracey Turner in one of our annual reports, saying, "I know about the sleepless nights.  I know about the emotional breakdowns.  I know what it’s like to go without a meal so your children have something to eat." 

Tracey Turner, in Washington, D.C.  Not Windhoek.

The Post article states, "It’s a cultural thing," said Herve Kone, director of a group that promotes development, social justice and human rights in Burkina Faso. "When the kids are hungry, they go to their mother, not their father. And when there is less food, women are the first to eat less."

Leading me to wonder.  Is it really a cultural thing, as in an African cultural thing?  Or a cultural thing as in a gender normal, spread throughout not only Africa, but the world. 

And is "cultural thing" just a convenient way of pretending to be unable to change something that really should be changed?

Because really, how different were these two women, a world apart, caring for their children in tough economic times?

How different were these women from my own divorced, single mom who raised two girls on a tight salary.  Who didn’t buy herself clothes and gave up on the activities that she loved and worked two, exhausting jobs, so that we could eat, feel good about ourselves at school and not end up in debt after college?  The economic times may not have been as hard, and the sacrifices not as great, but the principle still applies.  She sacrificed her own needs, first, for her children. 

The article about Africa explains that when money is tight, mothers are first to give up their own medical care to conserve resources.

Something jogs me.  This sounds familiar.  I go back to a Post story a few weeks back where single mom Christina Hall was profiled, discussing the challenges she faces living on food stamps in this economic crunch with children to support.  The article states, "She has employed a few tricks to save here and there: picking up food from food pantries, grilling meat and vegetables on the porch to keep the gas bill down; rationing the medication that manages her Crohn’s disease by only periodically taking pills that she is supposed to take daily."

Cultural differences?  Perhaps in extremes, in scope, but fundamentally, I am not entirely convinced.

I Google "women + economic downturn".  The headlines that pop up are not optimistic.  And they are not about women in far off places.

I scan our blog, find Jennifer’s post on surviving in a tough economy, and the impossible decisions that come of it for low-wage workers. 

To pay for health insurance or food?     

This is an unfair choice, in any culture.  And yet over and over, research, observation and experience show us that it is women, every day, making these impossible choices.  The choices may vary in their specifics from country to country, culture to culture, but the principle seems to always remain the same.

That when women must make sacrifices, they will, inevitably, put their children and their husbands before themselves, and stand on the front lines alone, facing down poverty.

Wherever they are.  In Africa, in America, in Asia. 

Giving circle's example should inspire greater action on behalf of policymakers.

Posted on by Jennifer Lockwood-Shabat

Imagine my delight yesterday at opening the Washington Post to see a front page article on our African American Women’s Giving Circle. The title of the article said it all, “A Circle With a Deep Center: Black Women Pool Resources in Grass-Roots Effort to Alleviate D.C.’s Social Ills.”

Unfortunately, my delight was tempered upon noticing the article printed just above it, which detailed the Bush Administration’s most recent attempt to limit women’s access to birth control.

An interesting juxtaposition—local women joining together to support organizations providing health care to disenfranchised communities in Southeast D.C., right next to federal efforts to further limit access to health care, particularly for the underserved.

And we wonder why we’re not making headway on health care in the United States?

Earlier in the week, there was an article contrasting federal support for HIV/AIDS programs globally and domestically. According to the article, the District of Columbia has the highest prevalence of HIV infection of any jurisdiction in the U.S. at about 1 in every 20 residents. The DC Department of Health states that women account for nearly one-third of all newly reported HIV/AIDS cases, with African American women accounting for the majority (9 out of 10).

Similarly, a women’s health report card published by the National Women’s Law Center gave D.C. a failing grade in its efforts to meet the health care needs of women. The neighboring jurisdictions of Maryland and Virginia did not fare much better, both receiving unsatisfactory grades.

I am truly inspired by the efforts of the African American Women’s Giving Circle because together they are making critical investments to improve the lives of women and girls in D.C. where others have turned a blind eye.

However, it is disheartening to think that their efforts are not fully supported on a much larger scale by our government, policymakers and other key decision makers, who have the ability to truly enact widespread change and to make  a systematic difference in the lives of women and girls and their health and well-being. 

Because, in the end, it truly does take a village.

Jennifer Lockwood-Shabat is a program officer at The Women’s Foundation, responsible for grantmaking in the realm of health and safety.  She has more than a decade of experience as a policy advocate on reproductive health issues impacting the low-income and uninsured.

African American women's giving circle makes women's philanthropy front page news!

Posted on by Lisa Kays

Today’s front page of the Washington Post features a story on The Women’s Foundation’s African American Women’s Giving Circle.

The article states, "’I’m not a wealthy woman, but all of us together are wealthy,’" Nadia Mitchem, 31, a development professional in the District, told her circle sisters. ‘You go into a museum and you see a plaque on the wall and you see a ‘$100,000 Club. You know what? We can do that.’" The women chanted back, ‘Yes, we can.’"

The Women’s Foundation’s giving circles are just one of the many ways that we empower women to give more, by giving together.

To learn more about other ways to be involved, or about how to become a member of a giving circle, click here.

We hope you’ll join us in changing the lives of women and girls, together.

From orphan to millionaire: Phyllis Caldwell on how one woman's journey has inspired her own.

Posted on by Lisa Kays

A few weeks ago, Phyllis blogged about being a guest editor on Dove’s Campaign for Real Beauty site.

And now, her post is live.  "From Orphan to Millionaire: The story of an amazing woman," discusses a woman who has been a source of inspiration to Phyllis, both for her business saavy and her philanthropy. 

"Based on what I know about Madame Walker, I assume that her products would fit into the former category. Because her life tells the story of a woman who didn’t necessarily seek to enrich herself, but to enrich every woman around her.   This is how good business, in the truest sense of the word “good,” is conducted. Not with only a profit motive, but with a people motive," Phyllis writes.

Read the full column.

New Stepping Stones RFP released for Phase 2!

Posted on by Gwen Rubinstein

We at The Women’s Foundation are very excited to announce the release today of a new Request for Proposals under our Stepping Stones Initiative.

We have learned so much during Phase 1 of Stepping Stones (2005-2008) through our Grantee Partners, their clients, other stakeholders and our evaluators.

We hope Phase 2 (2009-2012) will deepen this work, as well as the learning, and build on the initiative’s success in increasing the economic security and financial independence of low-income, women-headed families in our region.

One of the greatest learnings from Phase 1 is the value of partnership and collaboration. That’s part of why Phase 2 and this RFP are so exciting: they seek to strengthen this learning.

Phase 2 is also exciting for us as funders because we are using it as an opportunity to broaden the frame of “place-based” philanthropy, which now concentrates giving in a particular geographic place, usually a neighborhood. Our approach will intentionally focuses instead on supporting organizations and collaborative efforts that reach low-income women where they work, attend school, engage or participate in professional or personal development services, or receive services for their children – not only where they live.

So welcome to the beginning of Phase 2 – we can’t wait to see what it brings!

Gwen Rubinstein is a program officer at The Women’s Foundation overseeing Stepping Stones’ grantmaking in the areas of jobs, early care and education, and strategic opportunity and partnerships.

Casa de Maryland leads efforts resulting in unprecedented law protecting domestic workers.

Posted on by Sharon Levin

The Women’s Foundation congratulates Casa de Maryland on its victory Tuesday before the Montgomery County Council, when the Council unanimously approved a bill that will provide new legal protections for domestic workers.

This bill is believed to be the first legislation nationally of its kind.

The Washington Post covered the back story that led to this tremendous advocacy effort here.

With support from The Women’s Foundation, CASA led the advocacy efforts for this breakthrough legislation for women who work in other people’s homes.

As CASA’s Alexis De Simone noted, “The nannies, housekeepers, and elder companions who keep our homes and our families safe and secure are routinely denied overtime pay, minimum wage, sick days, and health insurance. They work in isolation, and are in some cases forbidden to interact with the outside world. Many are physically, sexually, and verbally abused.”

Thanks to a four year campaign by CASA and their coalition partners, these employees will no longer be so vulnerable.

The bill requires an employer to present the domestic worker written notice of their legal rights guaranteed under state law and a written contract specifying the terms and conditions of employment. Support for this policy was strengthened after the County Council released a 2006 report that found that domestic workers often did not know their rights – a fact that often resulted in their being paid less than the minimum wage or not receiving overtime pay.

The bill also requires that live-in domestic workers have a separate bedroom with a door that can be locked, and reasonable access to a kitchen, bathroom and laundry facility. In addition, the bill prohibits retaliation against a domestic worker who requests a written contract, attempts to enforce the terms of a contract, files a complaint or participates in an investigation of a complaint.

County Executive Isiah Leggett has said that he will sign the bill. That could happen as early as tomorrow, and then the bill would go into effect in 180 days.

Sharon Levin is The Women’s Foundation’s Director of Major Events and Policy Advocacy.  Casa de Maryland is a Grantee Partner of The Women’s Foundation.