Patricia Ireland told a group of Utah women Saturday that, while they may not totally agree with her stance on every issue, there are common causes -- such as fighting violence against women -- on which they all could agree.
As president of the National Organization for Women, Ireland spoke at Weber State University on Friday as part of Women's History Month and gave much the same speech Saturday during the annual Utah NOW conference at Westminster College.At Westminster, where her audience numbered about 50, she concluded her talk with a video on lesbian rights. The film showed minority leaders and feminist leaders pledging solidarity with leaders of the gay rights movement. At Westminster she urged a coming together of all those who care about civil rights: for minorities, for women, for lesbians and gays, for disabled or poor. If all those factions came together, they'd be the majority, she said.
NOW's national agenda includes protection of abortion rights and ending violence against women. Ireland is also worried about Social Security, especially for older women, and early childhood education.
The Social Security system punishes women for every year they aren't in the work force, Ireland says. We only pay lip-service to motherhood, she said. She calls the 1996 Welfare Reform Act "One of the worst setbacks we've had."
She sees an irony: If you are a wealthy mother, you should feel guilty about working outside the home. If you are a poor mother, you should feel guilty about taking a welfare check."
In both speeches, Ireland drew parallels between women's suffrage and modern civil rights. But it wasn't until she went to the 150th anniversary of the first-ever civil rights conference that she saw the connection.
Ireland was moved when she learned more about Frederick Douglass and Elizabeth Cady Stanton, she said. They added a women's suffrage plank to the political platform. Then they were ridiculed in newspapers. Said Ireland, "That's one of the ways in which sex is used to keep us from advocating the things we believe in. Step out of line and you get some very personal attacks."
Early on, the women who wanted to vote were called "unnatural." Ireland told her NOW audience that Janet Reno hadn't been attorney general for a week before people went from wondering if she was tough enough for the job to wondering if she was a lesbian.
Ireland told her Weber State audience to keep asking for what they want -- no matter the backlash. She quoted Douglass: "Power concedes nothing without a demand."
Saturday's conference also featured a panel of Utah legislators.
Rep. Jackie Biskupski, D-Salt Lake, Sen. Paula Julander, D-Salt Lake, and Rep. Patrice Arent, D-Holladay, took questions from the audience regarding legislation. They offered advice on how to lobby effectively.
Biskupski told her audience that if they want more from their legislators, they'll have to demand more of themselves.
One woman wanted to see mental health care covered by insurance. Another asked how NOW members could make their opinions seem as important as those of Eagle Forum members.
Arent said she saw progress on the mental health bill during the recent session -- it passed in the House. Saying she's committed to the bill again next year, Julander added, "There is not an insurance company around that wouldn't cover a heart attack."
And when her husband of 25 years surprised her by leaving, that was the analogy she used to get a quick appointment with a psychiatrist. No one would deny a heart patient immediate care, and "This was every bit as important to my life and going on living."
Proponents of the bill were well-organized this year, said Biskupski, but any move toward reform takes work all year long.
The legislators advised their audience to track bills on the Internet. Citizens must also demand open meetings when the Republicans close their caucus, the three said.
All three said they're treated well by their fellow legislators. Biskupski, whose sexual orientation was an issue during her election, said she feared a negative reaction. It never came.