North Dakota Human Rights Coalition
Working to effect change so that all people in North Dakota enjoy full human rights
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North Dakota Human Rights Coalition Working to effect change so that all people in North Dakota enjoy full human rights |
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~North Dakota Human Rights Coalition~ PAUR Report
Programs ~ Announcements ~ Updates ~ Resources
Visit our Website at www.ndhrc.org
April 15, 2004
Hello members and friends of the North Dakota Human Rights Coalition!
In this week’s PAUR Report:
Announcements 1) Human Rights Campaign Partners with Meetup.com to Fight Discriminatory Constitutional Amendment 2) Fact Sheet: North Dakota Workers with Disabilities Program (WDP) “Medicaid Buy-In” 3) SAVE THE DATE, North Dakota Human Rights Coalition Conference, November 5 & 6, 2004, Bismarck
Newspaper Articles 4) Bismarck Tribune, ‘Hate crime’ investigation re-opened 5) The Forum (Fargo) & Bismarck Tribune letters regarding gay marriage 6) Bismarck Tribune, Tuesday’s town hall meeting addresses diversity 7) The Forum (Fargo), Judy Rooney letter: Offensive cartoon requires an apology 8) Grand Forks Herald, Dorreen Yellow Bird Column: Tales of strong women offer the inspiration to carry on 9) The Forum (Fargo), Judge lets suit against diocese stand
Events 10) Cultural Diversity Resources, Human Rights Resource Center, Human Rights Movie Night, April 23, Fargo 11) North Dakota Progressive Coalition Presents Motivational Speaker John Nichols, April 30, Fargo 12) Resource Center to Address Discrimination and Stigma Presents Free Teleconference Training Educators to Eliminate Stigma and Discrimination in High School, April 20
Reminders 13) Circle of Nations Pow Wow, April 17, Wahpeton 14) Festival of India Student Performance, April 29, Fargo 15) Scholarships Available for Building Racially Inclusive Communities Conference, May 6-8, Fargo 16) Access to the High Plains Reader for the Underserved 17) Support Requested for 2004 Day of Silence, April 21, 2004 18) Press Release: Working Women’s Progress Highlighted at AAUW-ND Conference, April 16 – 17, 2004 19) Nonviolent Peaceforce to Present on MSUM Campus, April 23, Moorhead, MN 20) Knowing & Understanding Your Rights is the First Step in Receiving Equal Rights 21) Principles of Community Organizing Training, April 24-27, 2004, Fargo 22) Sisters of the Presentation at Sacred Heart Convent Presents “Peace Studies” 2003 Series (Various Locations in ND and MN)
********************************************* Announcements *********************************************
1.) Human Rights Campaign Partners with Meetup.com to Fight Discriminatory Constitutional Amendment
Great news! The Human Rights Campaign is partnering with Meetup.com to make it easy for you to connect with people from your community and get even more involved in fighting the discriminatory constitutional amendment.
This particular item is regarding the gay marriage amendments being attempted in the federal and various state legislatures.
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2.) Fact Sheet: North Dakota Workers with Disabilities Program (WDP) “Medicaid Buy-In”
This is a new social services program for people with disabilities that the North Dakota Human Rights Coalition supported in the 2003 legislative session.
North Dakota Workers with Disabilities Program (WDP) “Medicaid Buy-In”
Background
Many people with disabilities would like to work. In the past, ND law, forced people with disabilities to choose between healthcare coverage and employment. In the past, if an individual did work, earn money, and pay taxes, they lost their Medicaid healthcare benefits. Individuals with disabilities often require expensive medical services not covered by many health insurance plans. Without healthcare benefits through Medicaid, some people would have to pay more in medical fees than they could expect to earn in wages.
Workers with Disabilities
Workers with Disabilities Program allows people with significant disabilities to work, pay taxes, and pay a pro-rated premium to maintain their Medicaid healthcare benefits. Workers with Disabilities Program makes it possible for unemployed North Dakotans with disabilities to become part of the workforce. The North Dakota Medicaid Infrastructure Project has worked with the disability community, advocates, service providers, and state agencies to develop and implement the Workers with Disabilities Program. If enrolled in the Workers with Disabilities Program, the Medicaid income eligibility limit for people with disabilities is approximately $20,900/year. (225% of the 2004 Department of Health and Human Services Poverty Guidelines) People with disabilities can enroll in the Workers with Disabilities Program by paying a pro-rated premium that will be approximately 2.5% to 7.5% of their gross income.
Requirements of Workers with Disabilities
Person with disability, as specified by SSA guidelines, ages 18 through 64 Gainfully employed Pay a one time enrollment fee of $100 Pay a monthly premium that is approximately 2.5% to 7.5% of their gross income
Fiscal Impact of Workers with Disabilities
The Workers with Disabilities Program allows people with disabilities to work, pay taxes, and pay part of their healthcare expenses. It is estimated that the Workers with Disabilities Program will save $642,000 for the Division of Medical Assistance in its first year of implementation. Individuals with a disability who work will pay $1.8 million less in recipient liability. ND will also gain an additional $2.9 million in the federal government’s contribution to our Medicaid fund. ND counties will save an additional $75,783. Individuals with disabilities, who are currently unemployed, would contribute approximately $36,822 in ND state taxes.
The implementation of the Workers with Disabilities Program is a win-win situation. ND’s savings will total about $3 million and the disability community won’t have to choose between employment and healthcare.
For more information the contact the NDCPD-Medicaid Infrastructure Grant, 500 University Avenue, W., Minot, ND 58707, 800-233-1737 or visit their web site at www.ndmig.com.
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3.) SAVE THE DATE, North Dakota Human Rights Coalition Conference, November 5 & 6, 2004, Bismarck
!!! SAVE THE DATE !!! Friday, November 5 & Saturday, November 6, 2004 North Dakota Human Rights Coalition 2nd Annual Conference“Human Rights: The Economic Impact of Discrimination”
Location: Best Western Ramkota Hotel 800 South Third Street Bismarck, ND 58504
********************************************* Newspaper Articles *********************************************
4.) Bismarck Tribune, ‘Hate crime’ investigation re-opened
'Hate crime' investigation re-opened By Sheena Dooley Bismarck Tribune – 4/2/2004
Bismarck School Board members are waiting for a final report on an investigation into a locker vandalism at Bismarck High School, in which a 17-year-old student's gym locker was filled with human feces, before deciding what action to take.
Police reopened the case in March after a complaint was filed by the student's parents questioning the way the investigation was handled by police and district administrators. Bismarck Police Capt. Duffy Heinle said after looking at the case again, police officials thought additional interviews could provide more leads.
The case had been closed because there was no evidence to prove who did it. Peter and Connie Neigum said they didn't like the way police officials responded to the vandalism targeted at their adopted son, who is black, in what they say they believe is a hate crime. They allege the police dragged their feet on the investigation because the suspects were BHS wrestlers -- who won the state Class A tournament in February.
District officials met with police March 24 to review information they collected in their investigations. Assistant Superintendent John Salwei, who is looking into how the district handled the initial investigation, turned his information over to police. They will interview students in the next two weeks before making a final report.
<snip>
View full article here
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5.) The Forum (Fargo) & Bismarck Tribune letters regarding gay marriage
Alana Engel letter: It’s wrong to deny rights to
anyone
In response to the multitude of letters that have been consuming the editorial page about gay marriage, I think it’s time that at least something is said from the other side of the debate.
I am a college-aged, Christian, heterosexual female who grew up in a culture that was the perfect breeding ground for opposition to the non-traditional aspects of life. However, as I’ve grown up, there are many things I’ve learned about society that have made me see that hate and anger and ill-will are just plain not worth the effort.
Personally, I don’t really agree with gay marriage either, however, who am I to deny people, who are just as valuable as myself, the right to be happy? A lot of people are playing the “Bible says it’s wrong” card. Do you know what else happened in the Bible? Seduction, polygamy, insane methods of torture ... these are things that we today view as wrong. Times change, folks.
Also, in case you haven’t read the memo, not every person on Earth believes in the Christian teachings of what is right and what is wrong.
<snip>
View full article here
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Lenny Tweeden letter: Jesus said nothing about
homosexuals
A lot of people want to define marriage as between one man and one woman. Until they get divorced.
Many depend upon their Christian religion to support their prejudice and they use Bible passages out of context to support their views.
My big question is ... What did Jesus say about homosexuality? The answer is nothing. Jesus never spoke on the issue. I guess it wasn’t that big of an issue for him. After all, Jesus, the son of God, was a very accepting person. The song goes... “Jesus loves me, yes I know, because the Bible tells me so.”
I’m gay and Jesus loves me too; don’t use the Christian religion to hate me because Jesus wouldn’t like that.
Lenny Tweeden
Fargo
View online article here
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Dean Meyer letter: Church, state issue is
misrepresented
Gerry Even (letter, March 16), like most others advocating same-sex marriage, is inconsistent when writing about the separation of church and state.
Though marriage is rooted in religious beliefs, our country has always supported it because we as a society want to promote and encourage behavior that we believe provides a healthy environment for the family.
Those advocating same-sex marriage are not seeking rights. What gay activists really want is for us to support and promote their behavior. Most of the benefits of marriage can already be provided in wills, contracts and other legal documents. Many employers give health benefits to gay partners. Gays and lesbians don’t need the benefits of marriage.
I wish they would be honest about it. What they really want is the implied approval that legal marriage brings. If they were serious about separation of church and state they would be advocating for the repeal of laws on marriage, not seeking to expand them.
<snip>
View full article here
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MAILBAG: The old way was the best way: Gambling should be off-limits Grand Forks Herald – 3/29/2004
CANDO, N.D. - I would like to respond to recent news articles and letters to the editor regarding legalizing same-sex marriages.
The mayor of San Francisco recently was suing the court because he said banning same-sex marriages was "discrimination." But discrimination is not always bad. The law already "discriminates" against thieves, drug lords, speeders, cheaters, liars and murderers.
We seem to have fallen into a national attitude of legalizing certain behaviors on the faulty reasoning that people are doing it and shouldn't have to suffer any consequences.
Abortion is one such law. At first meant to protect women (but not their unborn babies), abortion meant the first trimester; but before too long we heard about late-term, partial-birth abortion. Then it was the "right to die" of those terminally or chronically ill, or those so old, frail or "out of it" that supposedly their lives have no meaning.
North Dakota legalized gambling back in the early 1980s, when state clergy and other opponents warned it would surely expand. Rather harmless bingo was already in towns, then a few pull-tab machines appeared in bars and then it was some blackjack. Before we knew it, casinos popped up on our reservations; then, pari-mutuel betting on horses appeared as did, soon, a state lottery.
<snip>
View full article here
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VIEWPOINT: Gay sex carries undeniable risks By Robert Buechler Grand Forks Herald – 3/28/2004
STARKWEATHER, N.D. - Over the past few weeks, there have been a number of articles written concerning a proposed marriage amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Many, if not most, of the opinion pieces do not support such an amendment.
Why?
Supporting such an amendment means endorsing a ban on gay/lesbian marriage. If we are being asked by the president and Congress to lend our support for such a ban, we must be given good reasons for doing so. This leads us to the following question: Does the state have a vested interest in banning gay/lesbian marriage?
The answer, I believe, is yes. What reasoning would lead me to this conclusion?
Let us begin by being frank. The objection to gay/lesbian marriage begins with a belief that gay/lesbian sex somehow is disordered and dangerous. Is that belief scientifically verifiable? Yes. The studies from which I derive the following examples are extensive, but I will be drawing evidence primarily from studies done by Drs. Jeffrey Satinover and D.M. Fergusson.
Male homosexual activity, even if monogamous, includes some of the following medical downsides: A 25- to 30-year decrease in life expectancy; chronic, potentially fatal, liver disease; infectious hepatitis, which increases the risk of liver cancer; inevitably fatal immune disease (not including AIDS), including associated cancers; frequent fatal rectal cancer; and multiple bowel and other infectious diseases.
<snip>
View full article here
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MAILBAG: Column dressed up intolerance in ugly pseudo-scientific garb Grand Forks Herald – 4/1/2004
We see unfolding here the Christian Right's most recent scapegoating campaign against gay persons and gay civil rights. This go-around also includes sharp attacks on the federal and state courts. In fact, we haven't heard so much venting about "activist judges" since the battles over desegregation in the 1950s.
You can find the ideological "template" for Buechler's column on Web sites belonging to such groups as James Dobson's "Focus on the Family," or closer to home, The North Dakota Family Alliance. Here, interested readers will find articles on homosexuality using "scientific" quarter-truths, distorted statistics and creatively chosen biblical quotations.
Analysis runs free, unfettered by the shackles of reason, logic or accurate information.
Thoughtful people will disagree, both politically and theologically, on the specific issue of gay marriage. My own favorite cartoon on the issue shows a long-married couple, man and woman, sitting together reading the paper, the wife shaking her head as she reads and saying to his husband: "Tsk, tsk - gay marriage? Haven't these people already suffered enough?"
<snip>
View full article here
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Eric Melquist letter: Take a look at the facts about
gay marriage
A few facts to get straight about gay marriage.
Stereotypes:
- Not all gay men are effeminate.
- Not all effeminate men are gay.
- “Will and Grace,” “Queer Eye for the Straight Guy,” and “Queer as Folk” do not represent the entire gay population, just like “Friends” does not represent the entire straight population.
- You don’t have to be gay to have gay pride.
Religion:
- Christianity is not the law of the land. As it shouldn’t be.
<snip>
View full article here
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MAILBAG:
Gay marriage: The debate rages Grand Forks Herald – 4/4/2004
EMERADO, N.D. - Over the past few weeks, the debate over gay marriage and homosexuality has raged on the Herald's editorial page. There has been a constant brouhaha over the biblical, statutory and societal implications of the issue, whether the world was going to go to hell in a handbasket - and whether, in fact, we already are there. The voices of religious conservatism have dominated.
As I sit in my home and read and listen to all of this, I am beginning to have compassion for those who live in such fear because I am beginning to share their fear. I fear that the power invested in the institutions of my government are aimed directly at me.
I can imagine the fears in the hearts of the Jews in Germany on the night of Krystalnacht or the terror in seeing a hooded figure at my door in the middle of the night.
I am an American. My roots are in the working classes of the Midwest, with all the joys and travails of living with the ups and downs of agriculture. My grandfather and father built the tractors that plow the fields in Iowa, Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota and Nebraska.
<snip>
The jury remains out on causes of homosexuality Grand Forks Herald – 4/4/2004
CANDO, N.D. - What causes homosexuality?
In a recent letter, the writer stated, "If our sexual orientation is not of our own choosing, and, if it is true that most of us have no option but to be what we are, then being homosexual may be abnormal, but it is not immoral.".
I would like to address the first "if." The writer assumes that an individual has no choice in the matter of having a homosexual orientation. That might be good press, but it certainly is not the conclusion of many gay activists, who balk at the idea of having no choice in being a homosexual.
Addressing this issue, Darrel Yates Rist, co-founder of the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation says, "Ultimately, it seems to me cowardly to abnegate our individual responsibility for the construction of sexual desires." He maintains that the expression of homosexual desires is a matter of personal choice and freedom and not, in his words, "the case of biological causation."
<snip>
Either judges or public will change Constitution Grand Forks Herald – 4/4/2004
GRAND FORKS - You've probably heard in the past few weeks the charge that the federal marriage amendment, which would define marriage in the U.S. Constitution as the union of one man and one woman, would write discrimination into our country's founding document. Don't believe it for a second.
The truth is, the Constitution is going to be altered one way or the other. Either that change will come from unelected, unaccountable judges intent on creating a right of homosexual couples to marry when the Constitution grants no such right; or it will come from the American people through this amendment to preserve marriage as it has served society for millennia.
<snip>
'Lighten up' on film on homosexuality Grand Forks Herald – 4/4/2004
ROSEAU, Minn. - In the past few days since the news broke about the film on homosexuality being shown in East Grand Forks High School, I have read a lot of letters to the editor concerning parents' views on the subject. But I've yet to read anything from the students.
It seems to me that the students have some opinions and thoughts on the subject, and I would like to hear from them. I also don't recall anyone mentioning that being gay - truly gay - probably is decided before one is born, because of genetic mutations. This is a common thought by today's scientists.
Parents, lighten up. Watching a gay film isn't going to make your son or daughter run off with their same-sex friend to San Francisco anytime soon.
<snip>
View full article here
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Duane B. Stahl letter: Gay activists again target Boy
Scouts
Last year, a U.S. District judge ruled that San Diego could no longer lease a piece of land to the Boy Scouts even though it had been donated years ago for the express purpose of establishing a Scout camp.
With the American Civil Liberties Union, a gay couple sued the city, claiming the Scouts’ presence violated “separation of church and state” and that Boy Scouts was in effect a religious organization just because it mentions God in its oath.
In January 2004, San Diego caved in and agreed to pay the ACLU nearly $1 million in attorney fees and court costs. The Scouts now must be evicted from the land because they “discriminate” against homosexuals and atheists. (It made no difference that Scouts spent millions over the years on improvements on the land.)
<snip>
View full article here
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Dana Vierkant letter: Ashamed to be from Minnesota
I have always been proud to be from Minnesota, but recently the action by some state legislators makes me feel ashamed that we live in the same place.
Gay people have the right to live life their way, not how others say it should be. Proposing bans on their freedom is not the American way. People say that God is against homosexual activities; well then, that is between them and their lord, not you and them.
The actions taken by these politicians is nothing short of discrimination against people different from them, and we as a country have been fighting against that for years. For those of you who feel the need for prejudice, maybe you should move to Mississippi where bigots don’t hide behind being Minnesota nice.
Dana Vierkant
Moorhead
<snip>
View full article here
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6.) Bismarck Tribune, Tuesday’s town hall meeting addresses diversity
Tuesday's town hall meeting addresses diversity By Angie Buckley Bismarck Tribune – 4/2/2004
Wanted: Open minds.
Minds that are willing to hear and discuss views on diversity and discrimination. Minds that are willing to respond to important issues. Minds that are willing to help do something about it.
Nearly 300 of those minds have already signed up to attend a town hall meeting hosted by the Bismarck Human Relations Committee and North Dakota Fair Housing Council. The forum, entitled "Within our Grasp: Building a Better Bismarck Through Diversity," will focus on race, national origin and religious discrimination. Beginning at 6 p.m. Tuesday at the Ramkota Hotel, speakers will address topics exploring the differences and similarities of people in the community.
Joy Wezelman and Abdullah Ali will present a panel titled "Are We That Different?" exploring the Muslim and Jewish faiths. Next, members of different minorities will discuss their experiences and perspectives in "What's Working/Not Working in Making Bismarck Diverse." During the last panel, "How Can We Overcome?" Kameran Ali, moderator and chair of the Bismarck Human Relations Committee, and other panelists will speak about how Bismarck can overcome discrimination as a community. The evening will begin and end with American Indian ceremonies.
<snip>
View full article here
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7.) The Forum (Fargo), Judy Rooney letter: Offensive cartoon requires an apology
Judy Rooney letter: Offensive cartoon requires an
apology
I was extremely offended by the political cartoon by Monte Wolverton on Saturday, March 13, about Mormon marriage, including nine wives and a goat. It was in horrible taste. How many groups are open-range for such criticism? Not many. Why do the Mormons qualify for such a low blow? You know this policy of polygamy is not now in effect, and hasn’t been for many years. Where does the tasteless jab about the goat come from?
I am not a Mormon, but my sister in Arizona is. I taught school there and have the highest regard for the religion and people, based on my own experience, and that of my family, who were, for the most part, outsiders.
You owe an apology for this attitude being expressed in The Forum.
Judy Rooney
Ponsford, Minn.
View online article here
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8.) Grand Forks Herald, Dorreen Yellow Bird Column: Tales of strong women offer the inspiration to carry on
DORREEN YELLOW BIRD COLUMN: Tales of strong women offer the inspiration to carry on Grand Forks Herald – 4/3/2004
Recently, UND's Women Studies program, the UND Women's Center, the Community Violence Intervention Center and others produced an event called "That Takes Ovaries!" It was about those courageous and sometimes comical stories of women who believe they can and they do.
That evening in the darkened and new "Loading Dock" hot spot in UND's Memorial Union, I listened to readings about and by women. Those readings were stories of courageous, bold and beautiful females. Young women - students at UND and community people - read selected stories. Incidentally, I read a piece written by Wilma Mankiller, former principal chief of the Cherokee Nation. She is a one of those courageous "warrior women."
Some of the readings stunned me. One story was written by a woman who remembered her life as a child in a family with an abusive father. She recalls her walk down a railroad track, where her mother took her and her brother to wait for a train to end their lives. In the next life, the woman told the 6-year-old, we will have a better life.
<snip>
View full article here
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9.) The Forum (Fargo), Judge lets suit against diocese stand
Judge lets suit against diocese stand
A judge has ruled against the Fargo Catholic Diocese’s request to dismiss a discrimination lawsuit filed by a former employee.
The diocese asked that a civil suit filed by Melissa Enebo be dropped, arguing North Dakota law doesn’t apply because the U.S. Constitution requires separation of church and state.
Enebo, of Fargo, sued the diocese in Cass County District Court last year, claiming she was fired in June 1999 for having a child out of wedlock.
Before firing Enebo, the diocese said it warned her she was violating church policy by living unmarried with the father of her child.
In its request for a dismissal, the diocese said Enebo’s job duties served a religious function, making her accountable to church doctrine.
<snip>
View online article here
********************************************* Events *********************************************
10.) North Dakota Progressive Coalition Presents Motivational Speaker John Nichols, April 30, Fargo
You are
invited!! John
Nichols, The Nation writer, author, motivation speaker!
For more info, people can contact the ND Progressive Coalition at 701-224-8090 or NoDakPC@btinet.net.
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11.) Cultural Diversity Resources, Human Rights Resource Center, Human Rights Movie Night, April 23, Fargo
Cultural
Diversity Resources
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12.) Resource Center to Address Discrimination and Stigma Presents Free Teleconference Training Educators to Eliminate Stigma and Discrimination in High School, April 20
You are invited to participate in a free training session, via telephone, on Training Educators to Eliminate Stigma and Discrimination in High Schools. This training is presented by the Resource Center to Address Discrimination and Stigma (ADS Center), a program of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Center for Mental Health Services.
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13.) Circle of Nations Pow Wow, April 17, Wahpeton
Circle of Nations School will be hosting a pow wow on April 17, 2004. All dancers, drums, and public are welcome!
Below is the schedule for the activities for the pow wow:
9 a.m. Walk / Run for T-shirts 10 - 2 p.m. Educational Booths for 7th & 8th graders 11 a.m. Meal in dining hall for everyone! 1 p.m. Grand entry 4 p.m. Meal in dining hall for everyone! 6 p.m. Grand Entry 8 p.m. Honor Dance for 8th graders 8:30 p.m. Drawing for raffle tickets 9 p.m. Pow Wow ends
The pow wow will be held in the Woodrow Keeble Gymnasium on the school campus. The school is located at 832 North 8th Street in Wahpeton. The pow wow is free and open to the public. It's a great way to meet people and share the Native American Heritage!
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14.) Festival of India Student Performance, April 29, Fargo
The students of the Culture of Indian program invite you to attend their year-end performance, the Festival of India.
The students will be performing dances they have learned throughout the year in traditional Indian clothing. The class instructor is Nandini Katti.
The performance will be held on April 29, 2004 at Long Fellow Elementary school in the school gym.
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15.) Scholarships Available for Building Racially Inclusive Communities Conference, May 6-8, Fargo
A limited number of scholarships are available for residents of Cass and Clay counties who need financial assistance to attend the conference.
Please contact Char Voight at the Roy Wilkins Center for Human Relations and Social Justice, 612.626.9496 or cvoight@umn.edu for more information.
For more information about the conference and registration visit: http://www.hhh.umn.edu/centers/wilkins/
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16.) Access to the High Plains Reader for the Underserved
There is a new opportunity for you to be heard in the High Plains Reader, Fargo’s free weekly alternative paper.
The High Plains Reader will publish letters to the editor in your own language-translation and print original letters. Send your letters to Editor, High Plains Reader, 109 ½ Broadway, Suite 300, Fargo, ND 58102.
For stories/articles/features and to find out more about learning to represent yourself by writing, contact writer Jill M. Johnson at 218-233-0672.
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17.) Support Requested for 2004 Day of Silence, April 21, 2004
The Day of Silence, a project of the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN) in collaboration with the United States Student Association (USSA), is a student-led day of action where those who support making anti-LGBT bias unacceptable in schools take a day-long vow of silence to recognize and protest the discrimination and harassment - in effect the silencing – experienced by LGBT students and their allies. Across the country last year, over 200,000 students in almost 2,000 K-12 schools and hundreds of colleges took part in the Day of Silence.
Your support and endorsement of the Day of Silence will help more student organizers and allies use the Day of Silence to create safer schools for LGBT students and their allies and improve the lives of all people.
For more information visit http://www.dayofsilence.org/endorsements/endorse_us.php.
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18.) Press Release: Working Women’s Progress Highlighted at AAUW-ND Conference, April 16 – 17, 2004
Women at work, and how they can become effective leaders, will highlight the American Association of University Women (AAUW) and Partners Conference in Wahpeton on April 16-17, 2004.
Two keynoters will address how women are faring in today’s workforce, what progress has been made over the last twenty years, and future prospects for women in the labor market.
Mary Ellen Smyth, President of AAUW’s Education Foundation and leader-on-loan from AAUW, will present the Association’s recent Education Foundation research, “Women at Work,” during the opening session on April 16. Smyth calls home Chicago, and offers women “lots about leadership,” gentle, persistent leadership, but leadership that does not quit.
North Dakota’s own Julie Larson of Bismarck, who recently received a national first place award for her research with Job Service ND, “The Balancing Act: Challenges for Today’s Working Women,” will be the keynote speaker on April 17.
“Our conference partnership wants to recognize the daily contribution women make to the health and strength of North Dakota communities, while we celebrate our journey together,” said Connie Hildebrand, AAUW State President.
The six conference partners include AAUW, League of Women Voters, North Dakota Council on Abused Women’s Services, Governor’s Commission on the Status of Women, Business and Professional Women, and the North Dakota Education Association.
Other presentations include: “Not Waiting for the Prince: Women’s Global Initiative,” by Kathleen Laurila, current Vice President of the International Federation of University Women; a panel discussion by North Dakota educators who will address the current educational initiative, “No Child Left Behind,” as well as the Help America Vote Act, the methamphetamine explosion in ND; and women’s personal and health issues.
Rose Stoller, executive director of the ND Consensus Council, rounds out the conference with her fun-filled presentation on negotiation skills women need develop to accent their strengths in future labor markets.
Since 1881, AAUW has promoted education and equity for all women and girls.
The conference is open to the public and a registration fee of $65 covers conference events until April 9th, when the fee increases to $80. There is a $40 fee for Saturday events only. To register, contact Jane Schulz at (701) 258-0935 or gaga@btinet.net or Connie Hildebrand at (701) 222-3060 or hildjct@btinet.net.
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19.) Nonviolent Peaceforce to Present on MSUM Campus, April 23, Moorhead, MN
Nonviolent Peaceforce to Present on MSUM Campus
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20.) Knowing & Understanding Your Rights is the First Step in Receiving Equal Rights
Learn how to attain your rights
1st Thursday of Each month
1:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.
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North Dakota Human Rights Coalition P.O. Box 1961 Fargo, North Dakota 58107-1961 Phone: (701) 239-9323 Fax: (701) 478-4452 Email: humanrights@ndhrc.org
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