Equal Rights Amendment

Lovelorn at The Estrogen Hour

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Are you lovelorn? Or in a relationships that is going nowhere?  Check out the upcoming Estrogen Hour at Laff’s on February 10th.  Maybe you’re find someone there who shares your sense of humor. And if you’re currently suffering from a broken heart, this is a great way to laugh & forget (and move on). Sunday, … Read more

The Civil Rights Legacy: Yesterday and Tomorrow

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  Today is a day to celebrate the legacy of the Civil Rights Movement and remember that there is still work to do for our nation’s citizens. As we remember the life of Martin Luther King today, let us also acknowledge the contributions and, in some cases, the ultimate  sacrifices of the many trailblazers in … Read more

Erma Bombeck play addresses Equal Rights Amendment

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This one woman play just opened on October 20 by Arizona Theater Company. It is playing Tuesday through Sunday, till Nov. 10, 2018 at the Temple of Music & Art, 330 S. Scott Avenue, Tucson.

ERMA BOMBECK: AT WIT’S END

By MARGARET ENGEL & ALLISON ENGEL
Directed by CASEY STANGL

“We’ve come a long way, baby … A loving tribute to Ohio wife and mother turned longtime Arizona resident who made herself into a national superstar as a best-selling author and syndicated journalist lauded for opening up the secret world of the mother and housewife. A comic look at one of our country’s most beloved voices – a voice that reassures us that yes, the world is sometimes crazy, but if we look at it and laugh, we have most of it covered. A voice who captured the frustrations of her generation by asking, “If life is a bowl of cherries, what am I doing in the pits?” Chock full of wit and wisdom of the woman herself, this one-woman tour-de-force allows Erma to tell her own story, leading us through her years lampooning life in the suburbs in her nationally syndicated newspaper column called “At Wit’s End.” From her troubled childhood, where she found comfort in the words of Dorothy Parker and Robert Benchley, through her rise to fame as a journalist and public figure, discover the story behind America’s beloved humorist who championed women’s lives with wit that sprang from the most unexpected place of all – the truth.”

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ERA: one win away – Arizona can put it over the top next year

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News that tends not to get reported in the Arizona media: Illinois approves Equal Rights Amendment, 36 years after deadline:

The Illinois House voted Wednesday night to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment more than 45 years after it was approved by Congress, putting it one state away from possible enshrinement in the U.S. Constitution amid potential legal questions.

The 72-45 vote by the House, following an April vote by the Senate, was just one more vote than needed for ratification. It does not need the approval of Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner, who has said he supports equal rights but was faulted by Democrats for not taking a position on the ERA.

“I am appalled and embarrassed that the state of Illinois has not done this earlier,” said Democratic Rep. Stephanie Kifowit of Oswego, a Marine veteran. “I am proud to be on this side of history and I am proud to support not only all the women that this will help, that this will send a message to, but I am also here to be a role model for my daughter.”

Helping to propel momentum for the measure was a resurgence in activism for women’s rights amid national demands to root out sexual discrimination and harassment in American culture in response to the #MeToo movement.

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Democratic Candidates for LD10 House Shine in Drive to Oust Clodfelter

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LD10 Democratic candidates.jpg
Left to right, candidates Kirsten Engel, Domingo DeGrazia, Nikki Lee and Catherine Ripley

Democrats have four impressive candidates for the Arizona House in Legislative District 10 in eastern Tucson, united in their effort to oust Republican incumbent, Todd “Confederate” Clodfelter.

  • UofA Law Professor Kirsten H. Engel is running for a second term in the AZ House, after serving on the Energy, Environment and Natural Resources Committee, and Judiciary and Public Safety committee.
  • Newcomer Domingo DeGrazia, son of famous Tucson artist Ted DeGrazia, is a licensed pilot and a trial attorney in juvenile court. “I have a constant drive to better myself, creativity and tenacity to see a fight through to the end,” he says.
  • Catherine Ripley is a retired 26-year Navy officer and current political science teacher at Pima College (and earlier at Harvard, Boston University, and M.I.T.). In her first run for office, she says, “I’m a former diplomat, Mom, and business executive. I’ve seen famine and war. I’m here to bring my skills and experiences, and have the tools to hand Todd Clodfelter a defeat he’ll never forget.”
  • Running as a Clean Elections Candidate, newcomer Nikki Lee has a young campaign team of Millennials, including herself at age 36. “We have so much excitement on our campaign, doing innovating things, understanding the life of young people.”  She has  launched the “A to Z podcast” for young people.

LD10 has two AZ House members and one Senator, David Bradley, who was on hand and running without opposition. Clodfelter is notorious for his Confederate Flag screen saver, which he claimed wasn’t racist. His signature legislation throws a meager $150 tax credit at teachers to cover school supplies rather than help them in any meaningful way.

If you could pass one bill…

Asked if they could pass only one bill in the Republican-majority House, the candidates said it would be to:

Engel: End the hundreds of corporate sales tax loopholes and use the money to fund public schools.

DeGrazia: Stop gun violence.

Lee: Help veterans recover from PTSD and brain injuries.

Ripley: Enact common-sense gun policy, including a ban on bump stocks.

If you could reverse one law…

Asked what law or bill they would want to stop, the candidates said:

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