skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Thursday, September 19, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

U.S. gender wage gap grows for the first time in a decade; Trump has embraced NC's Mark Robinson, calling him 'Martin Luther King on steroids; Volunteers sought as early voting kicks off in MN; Women's political contributions in congressional races fall short of men's.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Rising threats of political violence, a Federal Reserve rate cut, crypto industry campaign contributions and reproductive rights are shaping today's political landscape.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

A USDA report shows a widening gap in rural versus urban health, a North Carolina county remains divided over a LGBTQ library display, and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz' policies are spotlighted after his elevation to the Democratic presidential ticket.

The Lessons of Women's Equality Day

play audio
Play

Wednesday, August 26, 2009   

LANSING, Mich. - It was 89 years ago today (Wednesday) that women achieved the right to vote with ratification of the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. While Michigan was the second state to ratify the amendment, many believe work on equality issues is far from done in the state.

Historian Liz Homer is among them. A former curator of the Michigan Women's Hall of Fame and a member of the Michigan National Organization for Women, she says groups today, such as lesbians and gays, can learn from the protracted fight to obtain the vote for women.

"Before that, there were groups of women who were winning the right to vote in school board elections and municipal elections, so there were steps along the way. I think that's a lesson to learn from history."

Despite great progress for women, Homer adds, nagging problems persist, including pay inequities and violence against women. She believes the latter could be stopped in much the same way women got the right to vote - by widening their base of support beyond women's groups.

"What we need is for every men's organization to have that as a goal too. If we could eradicate that, it would make everyone's life happier, I think."

Mississippi was the last state to ratify the 19th Amendment, in 1984. Women's Equality Day was designated by Congress to commemorate women's right to vote in 1971; recently, Gov. Jennifer Granholm issued a proclamation marking the day in Michigan.



get more stories like this via email

more stories
Recipients of the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Grant can now access funding to drive financing for thousands of climate-focused and clean energy initiatives. (bilanol/Adobe Stock)

Environment

play sound

Michigan's most vulnerable communities are receiving federal funding to fight the devastating effects of climate change. It's part of the $27 billion …


Health and Wellness

play sound

September is Health Literacy Month, and a Denver-based group is working to help health professionals break a persistent pattern of discrimination …

Environment

play sound

A new report contends fossil fuel funding has biased Columbia University's climate research. The report, by two Columbia students, shows the …


Alabama releases roughly 220,279 men and 78,247 women from its prisons and jails each year. (Chad Robertson/Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

An Alabama woman is on a mission to help people who've been incarcerated for decades successfully transition back into society. The mission to …

Health and Wellness

play sound

In North Carolina, the gap between Medicaid reimbursement rates and the actual cost of dental care has reached a crisis point, impacting both …

So far in 2024, community health centers in North Dakota have screened 11,580 patients for food insecurity. Through those screenings, more than three thousand box meals have been distributed. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

September is Hunger Action Month. In North Dakota, it isn't just food banks trying to help underserved populations get nutritious items. Health …

Environment

play sound

Marine biologists conducting deep dives near five California islands are collecting data they hope will strengthen the case for ending gillnet fishing…

Environment

play sound

Researchers at Iowa State University are taking aim at the huge amount of energy used by data centers, now and in the future. They have developed a …

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021