Lilly Ledbetter
AAUW honors the recent passing of Lilly Ledbetter and her outstanding legacy, which will impact women well into the future. She was the pioneer of the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009 to ensure all women receive fair pay for their work.
Ms. Ledbetter’s story resonated with so many women fighting for fair pay. After almost 20 years of working at Goodyear Tire and Rubber Co., Ms. Ledbetter received a note revealing that she, the only female supervisor, was being paid 40 percent less than her male peers. Ms. Ledbetter filed a gender discrimination lawsuit in 1998 that made its way to the U.S. Supreme Court, only to have the court say in 2007 that she had been paid unfairly long enough to make it legal.
Ms. Ledbetter and AAUW had a long-lasting, strong, and productive relationship, and we held her in high esteem as an unwavering icon and trailblazer in the fight for equal pay. Together, Ms. Ledbetter, AAUW, and countless other organizations advocating for equal pay participated in marches, wrote letters, and sent emails which motivated Congress to pass the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act in 2009. Today, we continue her legacy by championing equal pay legislation such as the Paycheck Fairness Act, which would give workers new tools for ensuring that employers pay women and men equally for equal work.
As Lilly said in a Q&A session with AAUW, “The gender pay gap is everybody’s issue.” Lilly Ledbetter never stopped fighting for gender pay equity. The laws at the time failed her and yet she never stopped advocating for better laws and better pay for women. In her memory and in her honor, AAUW vows to continue the fight.
Thank you, Patricia Fae Ho
AAUW honors the memory of a former national president and board chair, Patricia Fae Ho, who passed on September 29. Patricia joined AAUW in 1999. Over the years, she served as president of the North Shore (MA) branch, Massachusetts state, and the New England region, as well as president of the national board from 2013-2017. We are grateful for her decades-long leadership in AAUW. Read more about Patricia’s life and legacy here.
WHAT’S HAPPENING!
PUBLIC POLICY NEWS!
ERA-NY!!! |
- Missed our ERA NY presentation? Click HERE for the recording!
- Ratify ERA Flyer!
- Short Fact Sheet
SPOTLIGHTS!
The Ithaca Branch held a memorial ceremony to recognize Dr. Antonia Glasse, one of the Cornell Eleven Lead Plaintiffs and long-time branch member on October 19, 2024. During the ceremony, the branch also recognized the high school essay contest winner, Ana Kiely for her essay on the NYS ERA Proposed Amendment. NYS Assemblymember Anna Kelles awarded Ana Kiely with a NYS Proclamation for her accomplishments.
Ana’s essay is available HERE.
AAUW North Shore Long Island (NY)
Ms Camillo speaking to the North Shore Branch
On August 12, Sandy Camillo, AAUW NY President -Elect was invited to give a presentation on Proposition 1 (ERA NY) at the Manhasset Library by the North Shore Branch. Members of the Long Island LWV were in attendance and requested that she do a similar presentation for their organization.
Equal Rights for Everyone
On May 23rd the annual Writing Contest sponsored by AAUW North Shore and the Central Nassau County Rotary Club was held for ages 11-13. 1st and 2nd place winners receive awards for their essays on the ERA NY at the West Hempstead Library. AAUW North Shore branch president Janet Lobel Adler and Sandy Camillo AAUW NY State VP Public Policy present awards to 8th grade students Yonah Lalehzari and Dilraj Singh. The essays explain what the word equality means, why the ERA NY amendment is important, how the amendment affects people and how the lives of people living in places without equal rights are different. The ERA NY affects all people, and the two winners clearly express this sentiment in their essays. The amendment is presently up for appeal and hopefully will be reinstated on the ballot. The essays are attached HERE.
At the Running and Winning workshop on April 18th, Westchester County High School Girls were able to hear from local elected Women, then spend some quality time learning about what it takes to be a successful public official. After an opening session where students and a moderator questioned our elected officials, everyone broke off into small groups where girls were able to talk to the politicians about their experiences. There were several sessions of interviewing, then elected officials stepped out and the girls began to put together a political campaign. Three pre-selected topics were provided, to give the girls a place to begin their campaign. The 4-6 girls per table had to quickly decide who would be the candidate, and who would hold other roles such as speech writers, communication directors and campaign manager. Once these roles were decided, each group chose their campaign issue: • Build and staff an Immigrant Support Services Center • Build, staff and run a Community Mental Health Center, or • Implement a Community Composting Program After lunch, the students presented their candidate and issue. Amazing campaigns were created in such a short time! AAUW-Westchester joins the League of Women Voters as a co-sponsor of this event.
AAUW Westchester Branch president Abby Hirsch works with the girls as they work on their campaign.