Womens Equality Day - 26th August

From the Capital Flyer:

This year is the 90th anniversary of women winning the right to vote in the United States. At the first women’s rights convention in 1848 the call for women’s right to vote was heard. That call was answered on Aug. 26, 1920, when the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution was officially approved.  At a time when women were intended to be seen and not heard, American suffragists braved reprimand and hardship by speaking out on behalf of all women.

For 72 years the non-violent movement continued. Extraordinary women arose in each state and became part of history themselves when they successfully secured civil rights and political independence for American women. This 90th Anniversary offers a unique opportunity to pay tribute to their bravery, determination, and tenacity and to their lasting achievement.

The League of Women Voters of the District of Columbia invites all women and men to join them on Thursday at Lafayette Park, Washington, D.C., to commemorate the 90th anniversary of the 19th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States.

Embracing Facial Hair

From Julie Bindel at the Guardian:

As a proud lesbian feminist I have campaigned for years against the beauty industry and cosmetic surgery. I have never worn makeup, except once, as an experiment for these pages, and for years I even refused to wear a bra – until I had to dress up in vaguely smart clothing occasionally for work.

But we all have an achilles heel, and mine is facial hair. I hate it, both on myself and other women. I have a particular terror of fuzz appearing on my face, and always carry one lone item of beauty equipment: tweezers. Luckily, I am not particularly afflicted, although in recent years I have noticed one long black hair that sprouts from my left cheek, another under my chin, and a few barely noticeable ones above my lip. The second they appear they are instantly torn asunder.

My fear of the fuzz is hardly unusual. Even in the thick of the late 1970s women's movement, I remember a close friend – a fellow lesbian and hard-line feminist – confessing, "I'm so glad I discovered electrolysis before feminism!"

Washing Machine - Liberator of Women

From Reuters India:
"Feminists of the world sit down before you read this. The Vatican newspaper says that perhaps the washing machine did more to liberate women in the 20th century than the pill or the right to work.

The submission was made in a lengthy article titled "The Washing Machine and the Liberation of Women - Put in the Detergent, Close the Lid and Relax."

The article was printed at the weekend in l'Osservatore Romano, the semi-official Vatican newspaper, to mark international Women's Day on Sunday.

"What in the 20th century did more to liberate Western women?," asks the article, which was written by a woman.

"The debate is heated. Some say the pill, some say abortion rights and some the right to work outside the home. Some, however, dare to go further: the washing machine," it says.

It then goes on to talk about the history of washing machines, starting with a rudimentary model in 1767 in Germany and ending up with today's trendy launderettes where a woman can have a cappuccino with friends while the tumbler turns."