PRESS RELEASE: Fox Valley 19th Amendment Centennial Coalition Debuting Video on Women’s Equality Day to Virtually Celebrate the 100th Anniversary of Women Voting
Fox Valley 19th Amendment Centennial Coalition Debuting Video on Women’s Equality Day to Virtually Celebrate the 100th Anniversary of Women Voting
“Nevertheless, We Progress! Celebrating 100 Years of Women’s Rights”, featuring local advocates and national recording artists, will launch on Facebook on August 26
APPLETON, Wis. (August 25, 2020) – The Fox Valley 19th Amendment Centennial Coalition will debut a high-energy video on Wednesday, August 26 to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the amendment’s adoption. August 26 is also recognized nationwide as Women’s Equality Day.
“Nevertheless, We Progress! Celebrating 100 Years of Women’s Rights” features local voices sharing suffragist history; vibrant music by well-known local musicians and a Grammy-nominated artist; and valuable information on how and why to vote. The one-hour video will premiere on Wednesday, August 26 at 4:30 p.m. on the Coalition’s website and Facebook page.
“Over the last 100 years, we have changed in so many ways, and yet this year, the past is prologue,” said Fox Valley 19th Amendment Centennial Coalition co-chair Marti Hemwall. “As women suffragists persevered during the 1918 flu pandemic to secure the passage of the 19th Amendment, the Fox Valley 19th Amendment Centennial Coalition shifted plans in light of the current pandemic and produced a virtual celebration that we hope reaches many more people.”
An in-person celebration of the 19th Amendment centennial is now scheduled for August 26, 2021 featuring keynote speaker Elaine Weiss, author of “The Woman’s Hour: The Great Fight to Win the Vote.” The book is currently being adapted for television by Steven Spielberg’s Amblin Television and executive producer Hillary Clinton.
“Nevertheless, We Progress!” is part of the year-long series of nonpartisan events sponsored by the Fox Valley 19th Amendment Centennial Coalition in celebration of the 100th anniversary of American women’s right to vote. Additional programs earlier this year addressed various women-focused topics, including the influence of Indigenous women on early suffragists, the future of the Equal Rights Amendment, and African American suffragists and the struggle for inclusion.
The Coalition has also developed the following outreach opportunities for community groups and organizations, area schools and local businesses:
- A Virtual Speaker’s Bureau is available to speak to groups of any size or age about the history of the women’s suffrage movement via Zoom. Voting information will also be provided, if appropriate.
- A Traveling Exhibit, developed by the Wisconsin Historical Society, is available for limited display at locations throughout the Fox Valley, which tells the story of women’s suffrage and the history of suffrage in Wisconsin.
- Educational Toolkits with age-appropriate materials about the women’s suffrage movement and the importance of the right to vote for both the elementary and secondary students can be downloaded at hervoicehervoteourvictory.com/outreach/resources/.
For more information on these outreach opportunities, visit hervoicehervoteourvictory.com or facebook.com/hervoicehervoteourvictory.
About the Fox Valley 19th Amendment Centennial Coalition
The Fox Valley 19th Amendment Centennial Coalition was founded in 2019 and is a collaborative effort of women from women-run associations, organizations and clubs. The group is aligned in the desire to celebrate, educate and advocate women’s rights, and represents the League of Women Voters of Appleton, Northeast Wisconsin Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., Women’s Fund for the Fox Valley Region, American Association of University Women–Appleton and Mid-Day Women’s Alliance. In addition to the Coalition partner groups, the Fox Valley 19th Amendment Centennial Celebration is sponsored by The Bright Idea Fund, Chuck and Barb Merry Fund and Silton Family–Fox Valley Community Fund, all within the Community Foundation for the Fox Valley Region, along with Dave and Shirley Strange. In-kind support has been provided by Andee Vosters, Vision Navigator; Coalesce Marketing & Design; the Fox Cities Performing Arts Center; and the History Museum at the Castle. Visit hervoicehervoteourvictory.com or facebook.com/hervoicehervoteourvictory for more information.
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