You may be wondering why there is a picture that looks like it was taken in a foreign country -- maybe of a dictator -- in your December LWVBCC newsletter.
This is Gabriel Gonzalez Videla, president of Chile, who in 1949 finally granted Chilean women the right to full suffrage.
Like women in the US, the Chilean women had been working on women’s rights since the 1880s. Also, like women in the US, Chilean women included human rights and social justice in their work.
My husband and I just returned from a trip to Chile where we saw some fabulous scenery and learned so much about Chile’s history and the time of the Pinochet dictatorship. The Chilean people treasure their democracy as we do in the US. There are challenges to democracy in both countries, but there are also people who are working to protect civil rights and basic freedoms.
When we met people and told them we were members of the League of Women Voters, they knew about our organization and appreciated what we do to make democracy work. To continue that work, the board is putting together January planning sessions beginning with small groups and ending with a membership gathering at the end of January. Watch your inbox for a special notice about that January meeting.
Thank you again for all your work during the election season. And thank you for paying attention to the Action Alerts coming from LWVUS – publishing the ERA, LWVMI – passing the Michigan Voting Rights Act and LWVBCC – passing the “Dark Store” tax reform bill. Unfortunately, as LWVMI co-president Denise Hartsough reports:
“At today's LWVMI Advocacy Committee meeting, Judy Karandjeff (VP for Advocacy) indicated that the state-level dark store loophole bill has, unfortunately, not even been scheduled for a committee hearing. I think it is worthwhile to continue to raise awareness of the bill, because it could be introduced again next session. Last I heard, it takes on average 7 years to get a bill passed.”
We will keep trying with this bill. In the meantime, I was told by Representative Joey Andrews that there may be a stop gap measure that would help the Bridgman Public Schools with some extra funding. I will follow up on that and report in the January newsletter.
In other news from LWVUS, there is a special committee working on a Judiciary Study.
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