AAUW Press Conference

I went to a press conference on Tuesday for the release of a new American Association of University Women research report. Read the article about it that appeared on the front page of the Washington Post.

Presentations were made by Linda Hallman, AAUW's Executive Director, David Sadker, Professor of Education at American University, and Tamara Brown, an African-American engineer and President of AAUW of Buffalo. Dr. Sadker and his late wife built a career on researching gender equity in education. When they were working on their Ph.D.s together in the 1970's, his wife was always ignored and they attributed all her research to him.

During the Q&A session, I made a comment at the microphone that while I was working on my Ph.D. in the 1990's, I felt that my work was recognized, I was highly respected, and I felt I belonged in the program and was included in everything just as much as the men. But then I echoed what I said in the AAUW video last June.

I find it interesting that there are four or five people out there who dislike AAUW so much that they monitor the Washington Post comment site and continue to post remarks. What's not to like about AAUW? The AAUW report is good news: improvements in girls' education do not hinder boys' education. I'd like to know what the REAL issue is behind these people's anger. No good deed goes unpunished.

Luckily they choose to vent their anger in a comment site that will be gone in a few weeks. Other victims of misogeny end up stalked, raped, or killed. That's what I worry about.

Perhaps the issue is not about problems with the formal education we receive in school. It's about the problems with the informal education we receive through life regarding how to treat others with respect. We all need to learn to treat people of both genders with respect. No one can expect to receive respect without first offering respect.

AAUW Federal Lobby Day

On Thursday, May 15, twenty AAUW members from Virginia and Maryland came to Washington to lobby the U.S. House of Representatives on the Pathways Advancing Career Training Act (H.R. 5774).

The PACT Act would provide financial assistance to states for training programs that prepare women for employment in high-wage, high-skill fields where they are often underrepresented. AAUW strongly believes that access to high-wage, high-skill jobs should be a right for women and girls from diverse racial, ethnic, socioeconomic, age, and disability backgrounds. When accepted in fields traditionally dominated by men, women workers can begin to close the persistent wage gap between women and men.

We met in the House cafeteria for a briefing by Anne Hedgepeth, AAUW Policy Assistant, and Lisa Maatz, Director of Public Policy. Prior to lobbying, the AAUW staff selected offices based on each congressperson’s likelihood to become a cosponsor of the bill. After the briefing, we split into pairs to visit seven offices.

Upon entering an office, we introduced ourselves as volunteer lobbyists from AAUW and asked to speak to the legislative aide for education issues. Most pairs were able to talk to three or four education LA’s. If they weren’t available, we left a handwritten note along with a letter from the AAUW staff. I often wonder if these days the LA’s, usually in their 20’s, think our handwritten notes are pleasantly quaint.

After visiting each assigned office, we met for lunch at Bullfeathers, an upscale sandwich and salad restaurant popular among congressional staffers, named for a favorite saying of President Truman.

This article will appear in the Summer 2008 AAUW of Virginia newsletter.