Category Archives: Women

Benicia Standing Strong, Local vigilance, Reproductive rights, Take Action, Women, Women's equality

Benicia Rally in support of Roe v. Wade – photos, video

Benicia residents gather in large numbers, hear powerful speeches, lift great signs, march to Benicia State Capitol

Benicia Rally in support of Roe v. Wade at Benicia State Capitol, May 14, 2022 | Photo with permission, more photos by Larnie Fox.

Benicia Independent, by Roger Straw, May 15, 2022

When we heard about the Supreme Court’s draft opinion that would gut women’s right to choose, we knew that a fierce opposition would erupt all over the nation.

Benicia Rally – BANS OFF MY BODY, May 14, 2022. Photo by Larnie Fox

Few dared to hope that Nikki’s email calling for a protest would blossom 250-strong on the Benicia Green and march up First Street, showing incisive and demanding signs, chanting and posing for a historic photo at the old State Capitol.

Benicia Protest March – BANS OFF MY BODY, May 14, 2022. Photo by Larnie Fox

But that’s how it was on Saturday at the Bans Off My Body rally right here in our small town, our beloved Benicia.

Inspired and organized by Benicia artist Nikki Basch Davis and Benicia resident Cathy Bennett (who brilliantly MC’d the event), the lineup of speakers was impressive:

    • Former Benicia Mayor Elizabeth Patterson
    • California Assembly Member Lori Wilson
    • Candidate for Solano County  District Attorney Sharon Henry (currently Chief Deputy District Attorney)
    • Benicia Mayor Steve Young
    • Benicia City Councilmember Christina Strawbridge
    • Maggie Kolk, Benicia-Solano Community Activist
    • Ana Petero, Fairfield-Solano Unified School District Governing Board, professor at Solano Community College, member on the Solano Commission for Women and Girls
    • Dana Dean, Benicia attorney, Trustee on the Solano County Board of Education
    • Terry Scott, Director, Benicia Community Foundation, Chair of Benicia Arts and Culture Commission
    • Mary Susan Gast, Benicia Poet Laureate
    • Carol Patterson, President, League of Women Voters of Solano County
    • Kari Birdseye, Chair of Benicia Planning Commission and Candidate for Benicia City Council

Benicia videographer Constance Beutel filmed the event, and put together a 5-minute video of Highlight Clips:

Dr. Beutel also published a 52-minute version with near full-length coverage of the speakers’ remarks:

In my politically diverse extended family, and among friends and neighbors I know across the spectrum, it is and will remain a woman’s right to choose whether and when to start or expand a family, whether and when to conceive, carry, and give birth.  Men of good will support this right.

A government that by legal fiat imposes forced maternity interferes with a woman’s freedom, and in so doing, interferes with all of our freedoms.  We stand ready to support freedom of choice no matter the dictates of a supposedly “supreme” council of judges.

Roger Straw
Benicia Independent

Benicia Standing Strong, Local vigilance, Reproductive rights, Take Action, Women, Women's equality

Benicia gathering Saturday May 14 for Women’s Reproductive Rights

Nationwide rallies are planned for this Saturday to advocate for Women’s reproductive rights.  In June the US Supreme Court will rule on a case that is likely to overturn the 50-year precedent of Roe v. Wade and result in state bans of abortion.  Many alarmed organizers have designated this Saturday, May 14th as Women’s Reproductive Rights Day.  There will be marches  and demonstrations across the nation, including here in Benicia.

Benicia speakers will include former Benicia Mayor Elizabeth Patterson and Benicia Poet Laureate Mary Susan Gast.

A Benicia event organizer writes:

Hello my friends,

I sincerely hope to see most of you at our gathering this coming Saturday May 14, noon-1:30pm on the First Street Green across from Sailor Jack’s.

Having a sign expressing your opinions and feelings will add to a powerful presence.

The internet is full of sign suggestions. Here are a few:

      • MY BODY MY CHOICE
      • GET YOUR ROSARIES OFF MY OVARIES
      • OUR BODIES ARE NOT A POLITICAL BATLEGROUND
      • WE ARE WOMEN NOT SPERM CARRIERS
      • MY MIND MY BODY MY FREEDOM
      • KEEP ABORTION SAFE AND LEGAL
      • HANDS OFF MY DAUGHTERS
> For more ideas, see also on Google:


California legislature, Close the Gap California, Susannah Delano, Women, Women's equality

Former Benician Susannah Delano on California’s ‘Great Resignation’

BenIndy Editor: Full (and prideful) disclosure: Susannah Delano is my beloved – and highly talented – daughter.  🙂  – R.S.

Legislature’s ‘Great Resignation’ provides great opportunity for women

By Susannah Delano, Special to CalMatters, February 15, 2022 Susannah Delano is executive director of Close the Gap California, a nonprofit organization that recruits and prepares progressive women to run for state Legislature.

We’re witnessing the “Great Resignation, Capitol Edition,” with more than a quarter of California’s 120 legislators exiting the building in 2022.

Why are we losing so many legislators in one year? It’s a combination of factors – redistricting, which left many incumbents with no place to run; a domino effect of open seats as members seek new roles; and the reckoning of term limit reform passed in 2012.

Where some might see chaos, we see opportunity.

The 2022 election marks the start of California’s “Great Opportunity” to elect a Legislature that truly reflects the people it serves.

California has a reputation for leading the nation forward on critical issues including climate change, equal pay, reproductive health access, long-term care, minimum wage, family leave, early education and more.

But when it comes to women’s representation – California falls short.

Only 37 legislators – less than a third – are women. Of the 37 women serving, 28 are Democrats and 9 are Republicans. California ranks 28rd in the nation for our percentage of women legislators.

Our goal is nothing short of parity for women in the California Legislature, this decade. When I briefed political insiders on that audacious goal years ago, many of them gave me a virtual pat on the head and wished me luck. But in 2022, that audacious dream is starting to look a lot more real.

In my 20 years of working to elect more racially representative, progressive women to office, I’ve never witnessed a higher caliber of candidates step up to run at the state level. As we’ve worked with the majority of these women, I can tell you they are experienced, savvy, and ready to win.

In the fight for equal representation, we are all too used to incremental progress at best. But this year, the hard work of identifying, encouraging and preparing women to run is paying off at an unprecedented scale.

With musical chairs ensuring the Legislature will lose at least eight of its women incumbents by year’s end, this historically robust wave of reinforcements is exactly what might ensure women’s numbers continue to climb in 2022.

Common sense and research tell us that running for an open seat is the likeliest path to victory for a newcomer. What’s unprecedented about 2022 is the volume of open seats, and the number of accomplished women who are ready to win.

In the 35 legislative seats open so far in 2022, an astounding 45 female candidates with the capacity to run competitive campaigns have launched so far. In nine districts, both of the top two contenders are women.

These women arrive with impressive backgrounds and track records of service to their communities. They’re nonprofit directors, nurses, labor and tech leaders, small business owners and entrepreneurs. They’ve served on city councils, school boards, and local and state commissions.

The women running for open seats in 2022 are overwhelmingly Democratic, and also present historic levels of diversity. More than 70% are women of color, and many are LGBTQ+.

In this time of legislative turnover, who comes next will determine what comes next. The nation will look to the pipeline of leaders and innovative policy solutions we battle-test here in the years to come.

While we are losing some extremely effective legislators in 2022, as long as well-prepared women keep stepping up, and stakeholders are brave enough to put their resources where their values align, voters will have the opportunity to elect new voices and transform the Capitol’s decision-making tables.

The women of 2022 are the future many of us have dreamed of for decades.

They will need to overcome a disproportionate number of barriers along their paths to election. But today, their sheer number, talent and determination should inspire us to look beyond the Capitol’s Great Resignation, and recognize this moment for what it is: California’s Great Opportunity to put the world’s fifth largest economy on a fast-track to reflective democracy.

Electoral politics, National politics, Women

Encouraging study – women more involved in 2020 political process

[Editor: I got this in an email from Susannah Delano of Close the Gap California.  Too much BAD news these days – here’s one to get our hopes up.  Fascinating charts – especially Key Takeaway #1. – R.S.]

Stepping Up and Standing Out: Women’s Political Participation in 2020

Read the memo here, the blog post here, and the press release here. 

Women of all ages and political affiliations — particularly millennials and women of color—have become more politically engaged since 2016, a trend that is likely to continue in the 2020 cycle. Our new research gives further insights into what motivates women and how they plan to participate this year.

Key Takeaways:

1. The 2016 election marked a new era of women’s involvement in political issues and campaigns and they show no sign of stopping in the 2020 cycle.

  • Only 16% of all surveyed women voters said they have become less politically involved in the last few years, with more than half (55%) saying their involvement has stayed the same, and almost one third (29%) reporting increased involvement.
    • The survey shows that Democratic women have been especially motivated to actively participate in the political process, with 35% saying that they have gotten more involved in politics in the last few years, compared to 27% of Republican women and 23% of women who consider themselves Independent.
    • Increased participation is notable among two key voting blocs: 41% of millennial women (18-34 years old) and 36% of women of color say that they have gotten more involved recently.
  • Looking ahead to the 2020 election, the trend of increased involvement is likely to continue, with 31% of women saying they will become more involved and only 9% saying they will be less engaged.
    • Among Democratic women, 39% say they will be more involved this year along with 40% of millennial woman and 40% of women of color.

2. Women are engaging in a range of activities, but are particularly focused on encouraging friends or family to vote or get involved in a campaign or issue.

  • 42% of respondents said that they have encouraged friends or family members to vote or become involved in a campaign or issue—compared to just 35% of men.
  • Millennial women are leading the charge and taking to the streets— nearly one-fourth of them (23%) reported that they have attended a march, rally, or protest since 2016.
  • On every key political action, women of color report being more politically engaged than white women—they volunteer their time, donate to candidates, attend marches, sign petitions, and encourage their friends to get involved at higher rates.

3. Despite increased involvement in political issues, women voters identified time (i.e. being too busy working and/or taking care of family) as the biggest barrier to getting politically involved.

  • The survey asked voters to choose their top reason for not getting involved among a list of several potential barriers: 22% of women said they were too busy working or taking care of their families as the top reason they didn’t get involved compared to 12% of men who identified work or family obligations as their main barrier.

4. Confidence in their own political knowledge is also a barrier unique to women.

  • Despite comparable news consumption, women are 3 times more likely to choose “I don’t know enough about political issues to get involved” as their top reason for not getting involved in politics (15% of women vs. 5% of men).

5. Women, on either side of the political aisle, are primarily motivated by the aspirations they hold for the country.

  • We tested several reasons for why voters have gotten involved in politics in the past few years, and the top two are I want to make my country a better place and I want to make sure our country moves forward not backward.

6. Women are inspired by other women’s political involvement, especially when it comes to supporting women running for office.

  • Women are more likely to volunteer or donate to female candidates, especially Democratic and millennial women, as well as women of color.

The survey was conducted nationwide among 800 likely 2020 presidential voters (including 600 women and 200 men) during December 5-12, 2019.Full data report available here.