Loud & Clear
July 2023
Welcome New Members

Colleen Tepen
Up Next

Sat., July 15, 2-4 p.m.

Sat., July 22, 2-4 p.m.

Mon., July 24, 6-8 p.m.

Weds., Sept. 27, 6:30 p.m.
Words from Our President
July is also a Pride Month
 
Did you know July is Disability Pride Month? Although not as well-known as June’s LGBTQI+ Pride, Disability Pride month began with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) in 1990. The ADA prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities in all areas of public life, including jobs, schools, and all public and private places open to the general public. 
 
Despite these legal protections, discrimination against people with disabilities remains a pervasive social justice issue. It is estimated that 20% of Americans have a disability. Any one of us could become a person with a disability after a serious injury or illness. With so many people affected or potentially affected, Disability Pride Month reminds us to include disability rights considerations in every social justice issue we address. 
 
An intersectional lens helps us recognize the intensified impact of unjust policies and discrimination upon people of color, LGBTQI+, women, older adults and others who have disabilities. For example, women of color are perpetually underpaid, often earning far less than others in similar positions. People with disabilities earn on average 28% less than their non-disabled counterparts. As a result, a woman of color with disabilities is likely to experience the largest pay gap of all. 
 
In educational settings, black students are more likely to be misdiagnosed or categorized with an intellectual disability or emotional disturbance. As a result, their educational opportunities are often severely restricted. 
 
People of color with mental illness are overrepresented among those who are injured or killed by law enforcement. The effects of housing insecurity for people of color are compounded for those with disabilities who might need wheelchair access, adapted living spaces, or deaf-accessible housing. And the list goes on.
 
What can we do to support disability rights in our WV work? Here are a few suggestions: 

>Learn about the history of the fight for disability rights from sites like UC Berkeley’s Archive on Disability Rights

>Watch and read media that has been created by and with people with disabilities, such as Crip Camp, CODA, Demystifying Disability and Disability Visibility. 

>Educate your elected officials about policies that harm and strengthen the quality of life of people with disabilities.

>Keep up to date with disability rights advocacy organization such as The Arc or the St. Louis Arc

>Show your support by attending an upcoming Disability Pride event, such as:

Happy Disability Pride month!
~ Liz Sondhaus
Join with other Women’s Voices members for a STL Tour
Offering new views of one of the nation’s oldest cities, See STL tours by the Missouri Historical Society invites you to see an entirely different side of St. Louis, hear new stories, and interact with St. Louis history in unexpected (and sometimes odd) ways.

  • Urban Renewal Walking Tour, Saturday, July 15, 2-4 p.m.
  • Old North and St. Louis Place Walking Tour, Saturday, July 22, 2-4 p.m.

Walking tours are two hours in length and are wheelchair accessible. Tour starting/ending points are included in your booking info. Walking tours are $20 per person or $15 per person for MHS members.

So we can gather and walk together as a group, please let us know you are attending here; then register for one or both of the the walking tours directly with the Missouri Historical Society (links included in Women‘s Voices RSVP form here.)
Donor and Member Support for Lock It for Love
The St. Louis Rotary Club awarded Women's Voices a generous grant for the purchase of gun locks to be distributed in our community at their annual awards luncheon on June 1. We are grateful for the work the St. Louis Rotary Club does within the greater Metro St. Louis area with grants to nonprofits. We extend a very special thanks to Ken Schuman for sponsoring our grant, and to Mary Schuman for her part in the process of receiving the grant. Lock It for Love will be able to provide free gun locks to our partners as well as at community events.
Andrea Gant, Karen Cloyd and Cathy Gilbert joined others to bundle locks.
“Lunch and Lock” on June 13th at Larson Park in Webster Groves gave several volunteers an opportunity to come together to assemble gun locks and educational materials for delivery to partners and distribution at community events. Volunteers bundled over 1,000 locks! Thanks to all who participated.
Join us at Venable Park to Bundle Gun Locks for Community Distribution
Monday, July 24, 6-8 p.m.
Venable Park, 10630 Country View Dr., Creve Coeur, 63141

Creve Coeur’s Venable Park rises from the legacy of racial residential segregation. Rededicated in 2021, the park was developed in the late 1950s after the Venable’s property was taken by eminent domain when they refused to sell it to their White neighbors, and later the City of Creve Coeur. Both city and court records showed that the people leading the effort to obtain Dr. Venable’s land were motivated by bigotry and racial animus and sought to prevent the Venables from building their home in the City due to their race. On December 9, 2019, the Creve Coeur City Council approved Resolution 1467 renaming the park as Dr. H. Phillip Venable Memorial Park. As part of this legislation, the City Council acknowledged and apologized for the abhorrent actions of their predecessors, recognizing the Venables’ noble effort to oppose the misuse of government authority and to preserve their individual rights as citizens.
Save the Date for Welcome Neighbor Supper Club
Kudos
Congratulations to WV President, Liz Sondhaus, who recently received her Masters in History from Harvard Extension School. Liz was also selected for the Dean’s List for Academic Achievement. Well done, Liz!
Women's Voices Members Respond to Injustice!
Margery Doss, in her letter to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, writes that Missouri should invest in children and families to bring significant long-term rewards.  

Sherilyn Krell, in her letter to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, notes that expired vehicle tags are a problem in St. Louis County as well as in the City.
Have something to submit for Loud & Clear?

Loud & Clear is the official monthly e-newsletter of Women's Voices Raised for Social Justice and is usually distributed on the first Monday or Tuesday of the month. The general deadline for article submission is the Wednesday prior to publication. Click here to contact editor Laura Rose.
Membership Info
Even if you can’t come to meetings or become personally involved, your membership is important…and greatly appreciated.

Benefits of Membership
When you join Women’s Voices you:
  • Make our voice stronger when we advocate with elected officials.
  • Provide support to the organization by adding your name to our advocacy efforts.
  • Provide ideas and suggestions to help determine how to define our positions and choose our causes.
  • Participate in advocacy activities in any way that you want or is possible for you.
  • Take pride in your affiliation with a strong, progressive group of women working for social justice.
  • Help cover our administrative and outreach costs through your dues.
Annual Dues:

$60 (Regular Membership)
$100 (Silver Level)
$150 (Gold Level)
$20 (Student Membership)
Send a check (payable to Women's Voices) to: 

Women's Voices
7401 Delmar Blvd. 
University City, MO 63130