90th Birthday for LWVCT - Great Non-Partisan Party!  And a rousing finale! 
Weston, Wilton, Westport, Ridgefield, Greenwich, Greater Bridgeport, Danbury, Darien, Stamford...and many other LWV's present!!!

VIDEO OF THE 90TH ANNIVERSARY DINNER (1 hour 12 minutes 27 seconds):

For cable and dsl users (184 Megabytes):  http://www.lwvweston.org/LWV90th1-27-11CableVersion.wmv

For dialup modem users (28 Megabytes; low quality):  http://www.lwvweston.org/LWV90th1-27-11ModemVersion.wmv

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Former Governor of New Jersey and EPA Administrator Christine Todd Whitman, keynote via Skype;  Congressman Himes in person.

Members, supporters gather to celebrate state League of Women Voters' 90th anniversary
Greenwich TIME
Frank MacEachern, Staff Writer
Published: 10:20 p.m., Thursday, January 27, 2011

The League of Women Voters perform a vital role in a sometimes raucous political debate fueled by sharp political divisions and an insatiable media demand for conflict, a former New Jersey governor said during a league anniversary event in Greenwich this week.

"The work the League of Women Voters has been doing in providing a forum, providing a nexus that allows people to come together who disagree about issues to talk about them civilly," Christine Todd Whitman said. "It's an important role to play to bring people together."

The League of Women Voters of Connecticut celebrated its 90th anniversary with a dinner at the Hyatt Regency of Greenwich Thursday.

Whitman, who couldn't make it to town from her New Jersey home due to concerns about traveling following Wednesday's storm, gave her speech, and spoke to reporters prior to the dinner, via a video conference hookup.

Whitman said there has to be greater civility in political discussion especially in light of the fatal shootings of a federal judge and the wounding of Arizona Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords two weeks ago.

"The shootings are tragic but the only person to blame for that is the shooter. But I do believe the language shapes behavior," Whitman said.

Political leaders must not inflame the political debate, she said.

"At least for the leaders the public officials ... to understand their language does shape behavior and we do need to take a step back from time to time," she said in comments to reporters before the dinner.

The storm and its aftermath prevented state Lt. Gov. Nancy Wyman from attending, said Cheryl Dunson, president of the state league.


Cheryl Dunson, President of the LWVCT

Wyman was at the state's Emergency Operations Center, said Dunson, a Greenwich resident.



Hon. Kevin Lembo, CT State Comptroller

State Comptroller Kevin Lembo filled in for Wyman. Secretary of the State Denise Merrill also attended along with U.S. Rep. Jim Himes and state and local political representatives.

The League of Women Voters arose out of the fight to gain women the right to vote. It was created about six months before the 19th Amendment granting women the vote was ratified on Aug. 18, 1920.

The league studies issues, works to develop consensus and lobbies for change in laws and public policy.


James Torgerson, chairman, Connecticut Regional Institute for the 21st Century

James Torgerson, chairman of the non-partisan Connecticut Regional Institute for the 21st Century, received the league's Civic Engagement Award on behalf of the institute.

He said the institute is similar to the League of Women Voters in that it also seeks to develop non-partisan analyses of the state's fiscal health and programs. Torgerson is president and CEO of UIL Holdings Corporation.


Naomi Schiff Myers, former President of the Greenwich LWV

Naomi Schiff Myers, former president of the League of Women Voters of Greenwich, said she was inspired to join the league because of what it accomplishes.

"I admired the league because of the work they did for good government," the Riverside resident said.



Peggy Reeves, former State Legislator, former Registrar of Voters in Wilton, with the honoree, Mr. James Torgerson

Also in attendance Thursday was former state representative Peggy Reeves.

When she first moved to Wilton about 20 years ago, Reeves was invited to a league function where well-known jazz musician Dave Brubeck and his son Chris spoke about their trip to the Soviet Union. The father-son duo was invited to perform during a meeting of President Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev.

She was struck not only by the Brubecks' recollections of that trip and also by the quality of league women.

"The most informed and the most intelligent people in the room were league women. I said to myself `This is a club I have to belong to,' " she said with a laugh.
State League of Women Voters helps mold political process, leaders, say members
Stamford ADVOCATE
Frank MacEachern, Staff Writer
Published: 10:49 p.m., Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Connecticut League of Women Voters volunteers have built up an enviable reputation as an independent group devoted to research and improving the electoral process.

Sometimes they also break up brawls, as one member recounted.

"I was doing a debate in Bridgeport before a state Senate primary and there must have been about 350 people in a room that held 300," Jean Rabinow, 66, said. "Suddenly, two men got into a fistfight. I actually had to hop off the stage and break up the fight. We had to tell them to sit down or take it outside."

Rabinow, a Trumbull resident and member of the League of Women Voters of the Bridgeport area, also serves as the administrator for the Hamden-based state league.

It's that kind of devotion to serving the electorate that will be celebrated Thursday night at the Hyatt Regency Greenwich, 1800 E. Putnam Ave., Old Greenwich, where state league members will gather to mark the organization's 90th anniversary, which comes in February. Former New Jersey Gov. Christine Todd Whitman will be the guest speaker at the dinner that begins at 7 p.m. A cocktail hour begins at 6 p.m.

The state league and its 28 local organizations arose out of the decades-long fight to get women the vote, something that was not accomplished until the ratification of the 19th Amendment in 1920. Currently, there are about 2,100 members, including some men.  They are part of an estimated 75,000 members across the country.

Women who had been active in the movement transferred their energies to the League of Women Voters and created national, state and local organizations to continue activism in support of democratic values.

"It was planned in advance; that was part of the league's way of doing things," Elisa McCarthy, 73, said with a laugh.

McCarthy, a member of the Greater Hartford league, organized a traveling exhibit of the league's history that is touring the state.

The work of the women who fought for the right to vote continues to inspire Greenwich resident and state league President Cheryl Dunson, 54.

"I have such enormous admiration for the suffrage leaders, many of those women were harassed, jailed and force fed," she said. "The whole notion of women voting was so antithetical to the role of women at the time. I just feel great pride to follow in their footsteps."

Some of the women who were incarcerated for their suffrage efforts went on hunger strikes while in jail and were fed against their will by their jailers.  A Stamford resident shares a family tradition of involvement with the league dating back to its founding in 1921 and before, during the suffrage movement.

Percy Lee Langstaff's mother, Percy Maxim Lee, was national president during the 1950s.  The league came under the scrutiny of Sen. Joseph McCarthy during Lee's tenure, when the senator searched for Communist infiltration of American government and organizations.

"People have told me there was a personal confrontation between them," said Elisa McCarthy.

She cited it as an example of "the courage that so many of these women showed, not only in getting the vote, but in standing up for the league and its processes all the way through."

Langstaff's grandmother, Josephine Hamilton Maxim, was active in the suffrage movement and was one of the founders of the Hartford League of Women Voters.

"It was just part of the family thing that one did," Langstaff said. "I strongly believe in citizens taking responsibility of their government. That's what this country was founded on.

"You can't expect other people to run doing things for you; you have to step up and do it."

Langstaff's distinguished family history goes back further than her grandmother.  Her paternal great-grandfather, Sir Hiram Stevens Maxim, invented the Maxim machine gun, and her maternal great-grandfather, William T. Hamilton, was governor of Maryland.

The league has a tradition of longtime family involvement.

Cyndy Anderson, 53, president of the Greenwich League of Women Voters, will wear her late mother Barbara Tufts' 75th league anniversary pin to the dinner Thursday.  Anderson said the league's nonpartisan nature fills a niche in political discussions.

"I think, in this day and age, the league provides a safe haven for political discourse," she said. "We encourage all viewpoints. It's just nice that here you can get direct, unbiased information that empowers individual decision-making."

A former Democratic state representative from Danbury and longtime league member agrees with Anderson about the group's role in the political process.

"It has a unique ability to bring people together on a lot of issues," said Lynn Taborsak, 67. "You aren't going to get a good product at the end of the day unless you have an organization that is tackling complicated issues and getting a lot of people involved with them."

Taborsak is a member of the league's 90th Anniversary Committee and also director of development for the state league.

League members all speak of the role the organization has played in their development as fully involved citizens.

Carole Young-Kleinfeld is the current Democratic registrar of voters in Wilton. She said her league experience helped mold a nonpartisan outlook for her as she dealt with people of different ideologies.

"I have to credit the league in helping me develop that non-partisan mindset on issues and having good election administration without being partisan," said Young-Kleinfeld, a board member with the state organization as vice president of  communications.

The league was a stepping stone into local politics for one Westport resident.

Julie Belaga was the league president in Westport and became involved in many issues like planning and zoning and the environment.

She became the zoning commission chairwoman and later moved into state politics, first as a representative and then as the Republican candidate for governor in a losing campaign in 1986 against Democrat William A. O'Neill.

The league helped her deal with people and issues throughout her career, she said.

"It was the greatest training ground possible -- it was wonderful," Belaga said. "It taught you to look at both sides of an issue."

President George H.W. Bush appointed Belaga as New England director of the federal Environmental Protection Agency in 1990.

Dunson said joining the league shook her out of her political apathy.

"The league really was a life-changing experience for me," she said. "Before I joined it I was an average citizen. The only thing I would do is vote on Election Day."

PRIDE AND THE PASSION: "Votes for Women" original suffrage banner from CT and the song...

Original music by Kiki Karpen (r), words by another LWV member from a New York LWV:  As Congressman Himes pointed out, LWV civility and  consensus process is timeless.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, CLICK HERE


Planning The League of Women Voters of Connecticut's 90th Anniversary Celebration(s)

The LWVCT is planning to celebrate the 90th Anniversary of our organization’s founding with a series of events
beginning in January 2010, the year of the founding of the national organization, and continuing thru the early part
of 2011, the founding the CT League.

Using the Anniversary to Keep Your League Visible
Does your local library or historical society host displays of community organizations’ memorabilia?  If so, the
2010-2011 anniversary celebration is the perfect time to put your League, and women voting, front and center. 

What is your town’s history on suffrage? 

Did it use the Connecticut law to let women vote in local elections before the government of the United States gave
us the right in federal elections? 

Did the precursor of your League hold local marches or rallies?

 Please consider calling your historical society now to work on a display that could be ready for next year.  It could
be on suffrage, on women’s suffrage, on the League, or on just your local League.

Local level:  community outreach, publications
LWVCT research:  the economy,  knowing your Capitol, citizen's right to know and participate
Click here for latest news of "Steering Committee."
Scroll down for complete background.

Planning The League of Women Voters of Connecticut's 90th Anniversary Celebration(s):
Link to excellent presentation by Dr. Tracy Wilson, award of honors from Governor, Legislature, and Comptroller Nancy Wyman:
http://ct-n.com/ondemand.asp?ID=5067

The LWVCT is planning to celebrate the 90th Anniversary of our organization’s founding with a series of events beginning in January 2010, the year of the founding of the national organization, and continuing thru the early part of 2011, the founding the CT League.

Using the Anniversary to Keep Your League Visible
 Please consider calling your historical society now to work on a display that could be ready for next year.  It could be on suffrage, on women’s suffrage, on the League, or on just your local League.

VOTING RIGHTS: Women’s Equality Day marks anniversary of 19th Amendment
ACORN PRESS
Written by Christine A. Palm
Friday, 27 August 2010 09:32

As of Thursday, Aug. 26, it’s been nine decades since Congress voted into law the 19th Amendment, stipulating that, “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 shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.”

The vote was ratified on Aug. 26, 1920, and that date became the national anniversary, “Women’s Equality Day,” in 1971 at the behest of Rep. Bella Abzug (D-NY).

To mark Women’s Equality Day, the Permanent Commission on the Status of Women (PCSW) has obtained a gubernatorial proclamation honoring the legacy of Connecticut’s suffragists, and a citation from the General Assembly’s legislative leadership, which reads, in part: “The women of Connecticut have united to assure that rights and privileges are available to all citizens equally, regardless of sex, and have historically played a role in the national suffrage movement. The Permanent Commission on the Status of Women has worked for 37 years to build on the rights secured by the 19th Amendment and continues to increase the visibility of women’s contributions in Connecticut…”

The citation was introduced by President Pro Tempore Donald Williams, Speaker of the House Christopher Donovan, House Majority Leader Denise Merrill, House Minority Leader Lawrence Cafero, Senate Majority Leader Martin Looney and Senate Minority Leader John McKinney, as well as Secretary of the State Susan Bysiewicz.

PCSW is also marking the day through its Young Women’s Leadership Program (YWLP), which empowers women ages 18-35 to emerge as leaders in government, business and community. YWLP held a voter registration drive in conjunction with the League of Women Voters.

The cause promoting voting rights equality for women had its roots in the women’s rights convention at Seneca Falls, N.Y., in 1848, which produced the “Declaration of Sentiments,” a manifesto to end discrimination against women. From there, the fight for voting rights followed an arduous and circuitous 70-year path.

Congress actually voted on the amendment as early as 1918, but was waylaid by two years of Senatorial obstruction. It eventually passed both the House and the Senate but failed to get the requisite 75% of states to sign on. Although Tennessee’s signing on was the turning point needed, Connecticut’s then-sitting members of the General Assembly voiced strong opposition, and did not ratify the 19th Amendment until Sept. 14 (reaffirming it on the 21st), 1920.

In Connecticut, women’s suffrage was originally led by Isabella Beecher Hooker (sister of Harriet Beecher Stowe), who helped form the Connecticut Woman Suffrage Association in 1869. Then, in 1910, a new generation of women, led by Katherine Houghton Hepburn (mother of actress Katherine Hepburn), Katherine Ludington, Grace Seton and some others, further developed Beecher’s vision and worked hard to convince the General Assembly to ratify the 19th Amendment.

Seneca Falls was also the origin of the League of Women Voters, a nonpartisan political organization that is now open to men as well as women and has 2,300 members in 28 local leagues in Connecticut.

“The league has fought for 90 years to improve our system of representative government and impact public policies through citizen education and advocacy,” said Helen Z. Pearl, president of the New Britain area League of Women Voters and a founding commissioner of the PCSW.

The dedication of those who fought for women’s suffrage was captured in an Aug. 29, 1920 New York Times editorial which stated: “Women, in fighting for the vote, have shown a passion of earnestness, a persistence, and above all a command of both tactics and strategy, which have amazed our master politicians.”


LWV of Weston Story - (from an entry in our "Bulletin" online @2003)

PRESIDENT'S PAGE:  League historian retires a few years ago...honored by Legislature. 

Weston LWV Board Members (Terry Hulley, President Kathy Failla, Lois Miller) congratulate recently retired LWV Historian Ann Malin (r.) on her award and thank her for gaining a permanent home for Weston League history (on our 40th anniversary).

Many thanks to Ann Malin, our League historian, who is retiring from that post, and to her husband, Clem, also a League member, for the extensive work they have done to
organize our League's files.  Ann and Clem are preparing the files for delivery to the Weston Public Library, where Ann was successful in obtaining a permanent home for
these valuable documents. Ann has also served us in good stead as our League co-president.

We will let you know when the files are available at the library and we hope to publicize that event.  I am most grateful for the thorough and painstaking job she has done. Also,
I want to thank Ann and Clem for their personal time and expense to set up the files.  They will document the costs and present us with it as a gift for the  preservation our
valuable records.

OUR HISTORY

Speaking of events -- in compiling our history, Ann presented me with a full history. It is the history of Weston in many ways.  You may be interested in knowing that:

In 1962, the League became a Provisional League. Local program focused on preparing the "Know Your Town" booklet.  Nov. 1963, Weston received its League charter.  Dec.
1963, 3,000 copies of "Know Your Town" went to press at a cost of $850. The booklet continues to be updated after local elections and is invaluable to new and long-time
residents. Terry Hulley Jackson and Pat Heifetz are working on the latest update.

HAPPY 40th ANNIVERSARY WESTON

To celebrate our 40th Anniversary, we would like to schedule some special events and articles in the newspaper to promote the work of our League. We would love to have your
participation and ideas. Please contact me and let me know if you are interested. Even if you can't attend a meeting, your thoughts and suggestions would be most appreciated.
I look forward to hearing from you.

MEMBERSHIP HANDBOOK

Also, a special thanks to board member Lois Miller for her fine job in updating and publishing the 2003-2004 "Membership Handbook." IN addition to a membership directory,
it contains valuable background information on the League.  Please let us know of any corrections to be made to contact information. The directory is in the mail.

Note that my e-mail address is: ksf@comstrat.com
Linda Gier's phone number is: 227-4494...


OTHER PAGES TO VISIT FOR LWV OF WESTON FLAGSHIP EVENTS:

Betty Hill Forum on International Affairs

"Know Your Town"

"Speak Up"


Rare 1918 memoir shows Conn. opinions on suffrage
CT State Wire
SUSAN HAIGH, A.P.
Published: Today (March 20, 2011)

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) - Cheryl Dunson knew she had found something special when she saw the small black notebook, covered in a plastic sleeve, inside a cardboard box of old memorabilia at the Connecticut League of Women Voters.

Recorded inside, in meticulous blue script, were the memoirs of a suffrage leader who interviewed members of the all-male Connecticut General Assembly more than 90 years ago on whether women should be granted the right to vote.

Dunson, the league's president, and her fellow members had no idea the book existed until she discovered it a year ago in their Hamden offices when she was searching for items to help mark the state league's 90th anniversary. The notebook, dated July 1, 1918, offers a rare glimpse into the views of Connecticut's state legislators two years before the 19th amendment to the U.S. Constitution was ratified, granting men and women equal voting rights.

"I think it is an incredible time capsule showing the debate regarding one of the most basic rights of our democracy and it's a right that many women in particular take for granted today," Dunson said.

"I don't think they have the knowledge to know what these women did, how they struggled, how they worked, how they kind of weathered the kind of personal attacks against their integrity and their intelligence," she said. "To me, it's an incredibly inspiring story and I think it's one that all women should be aware of."

The Connecticut League of Women Voters, which traces its own roots to a suffrage organization, is donating the book to the Connecticut State Archives for safekeeping. A reception is planned Wednesday at the State Library in Hartford.

The ringed book, which is only slightly worn, has lettered tabs that the author, who identified herself as (Mrs. R.) Gladys Bragdon, used to organize the interviews.

In one entry, she describes how World War I influenced men's thinking about allowing women to vote. Some suffrage activists compared the fight for democracy abroad to theirs back at home.

"After a long but pleasant interview, he admitted that he had seen the light since the war and wished to be recorded as favorable, though not a crusader. Formerly an anti," Bragdon wrote of one lawmaker.

In another entry, she writes: "He's always been opposed but he's open minded now. Try again. By all means, be considerate because he's fearfully busy with war orders."

Bragdon also references that some women did not support the suffrage movement.

"Anti just now but may change his mind. Has rabid anti wife," she wrote. "Poor man."

While it appears the legislators were courteous to Bragdon, many were unwilling to take a position on suffrage. In one instance she writes: "Indifferent. Will do as wife says but doubts if wife knows or cares anything about public affairs or politics."

Bragdon then writes in parenthesis, "People say his wife is afraid to say (her) soul's her own."

The interviews came at a time when suffragist activists across the country were pursuing a two-pronged approach to win the vote. While continuing their long-running efforts to pass women's suffrage laws state-by-state, they were also seeking support for a federal constitutional amendment that needed ratification by at least 36 states.

"I think she was trying to gauge the General Assembly's attitude toward it just in case Congress approved it and the legislators of the states had to approve it," said State Archivist Mark Jones.

Between March and August of 1920, two years after Bragdon submitted her report, the Connecticut Women's Suffrage Association heavily lobbied state lawmakers to ratify the federal amendment but Republican Gov. Marcus H. Holcomb, who opposed women's suffrage, refused to call a special session of the legislature, arguing the state constitution required there to be an emergency.

The State Archives has numerous letters that were sent to Holcomb at the time, some from across the country, either urging him to stand his ground or to call legislators in for a vote.

"This book will just add to that," said Jones, who said Bragdon's writings will be kept in an acid-free box and stored in a vault at the state archives for researchers to review. "This little book is going to give us a richer idea of what legislators in Connecticut thought about the suffrage movement."

After the 36th state ratified the 19th amendment, Holcomb reversed his decision and called a special session. Connecticut first voted to ratify the amendment on Sept. 14, 1920 and later reaffirmed its support. Jones said the turnabout came after the women's suffrage association threatened to begin endorsing political candidates.

In 1921, five women were elected to the Connecticut House of Representatives.

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