Teaching women’s equality

Story and photo by Christine June
U.S. Army Garrison Kaiserslautern

***image3***Lynn Pride did her part in helping future generations of women to continue striving for equal rights and opportunities.

She involved her daughters, Amanda, a recent high school graduate, and Sydney, 10, a Kaiserslautern American Elementary School fifth grader, in the 2007 Women’s Equality Day Celebration held Aug. 24 at the Armstrong Community Club on Vogelweh Housing.

“They need to realize where we (women) came from, where we are going and what we need to continue to do in order to have equal rights and opportunities,” said Ms. Pride, an U.S. Army Garrison Kaiserslautern library manager.

Encouraging future generations to continue working for equality is exactly what the guest speaker, Diana Ohman, the Department of Defense Schools in Europe director, talked about in her speech.

When Ms. Ohman heard about the daughters’ involvement with the committee, she said, “My hat is off to her (Ms. Pride) for involving her youngsters – what a wonderful idea. More of us should do that because one of the best things a parent can do is to get their youngsters – boys or girls – involved with things that matter. And, equality for women – for all human beings – is truly important.”

As committee members, the girls helped their mother research and write descriptions of more than 20 famous women for the library displays at the event and the “Who Am I?” quizzes. Each of the girls presented a quiz to the audience.

“It was hard to pronounce some of the words,” said Sydney, who quizzed the audience on Speaker of the U. S. House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi. “I had to work really hard on it.”

Amanda showcased retired U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’ Connor.

“I would have never known who these people were if I hadn’t read this (research),” said Amanda, who admitted she was reluctant to do this when her mother first proposed the idea. “Now, I’m really glad I did because it makes me want to go out and try harder to make something out of myself.”

The garrison’s Equal Opportunity Office organized the event, which was themed as “Celebrating Women’s Right to Vote.” The next event is a celebration of Hispanic Heritage Observance Month, which will be noon to 1:30 p.m. Oct. 3 at the Kaiserslautern Community Activities Center on Daenner Kaserne.

“All these programs are put on for a reason. They are here to educate – to show you what you do not know,” said Ms. Pride. “And, if you bring your family to these community celebrations, they will learn right along with you.”

Instituted by Rep. Bella Abzug and first established in 1971, Women’s Equality Day is Aug. 26 of each year. The date commemorates the passage of the 19th Amendment – the Woman Suffrage Amendment to the U.S. Constitution – that gave U.S. women full voting rights in 1920.