is a single mama in the city, super-savvy editor, writer, video host and shameless shoe whore.
Sticker price: Election Day (bahbahbahbuuuuh-whooosh) 2006
Monday, November 6, 2006 I am one of those people who have to vote.
As the daughter and granddaughter of staunch union members, it is in my blood. I have many memories of walking the picket line on very cold winter days with my mother and her Chicago Public School teacher friends. And I am fiercely proud of that.
As a feminist, I am invested in equity, particularly those people who have been or are marginalized in this culture. As a woman, I know that I need to punch my card every time I can to make sure that my rights are not whittled away by a misogynistic agenda or referendum or corporate lobby.
As a mother, I want to do every single thing I can to carve a path for my son so his world is safer and more just. I also want him to see that voting isn't just about the little sticker at the end (neither is using the potty, but there's plenty of time for him to catch on to all that) but is one (big) way we make sure our voices are heard in an over-stimulating, multi-mediaed society.
Every single time I head over to the Catholic school across the alley from my apartment, walk down the rickety ramp in my loud, clompy kickass boots (yes, the ones that walked me through grad school and many marches), and head to my little booth in the corner of the basement polling place, I send a thank you to Elizabeth Cady Stanton.
Elizabeth Cady Stanton is a hero of mine and one of those women that I believe all women in this country owe a thousand votes of gratitude.
She's best known as Susan B. Anthony's political partner and one of the keys to unlocking the vote for women in this country. Cady Stanton did have an incredible, impactful partnership with Anthony, and I admire what they achieved together.
Liz, seated on the left, just wants you to
stand up for your rights.
As her own person, Cady Stanton was a gifted writer, a passionate speaker and a brilliant organizer who called on women to do something radical: simply stand up when they were speaking. Cady Stanton was a part of a revolution that gave women the floor, and eventually, more property rights, grounds for divorce, and the privilege to vote.
Like Elizabeth Cady Stanton, I am committed to reproductive justice for women. I care deeply about the environment, minimum wage, immigration, education and many other hotly-debated topics in this election. Most of all, I am politically on fire to keep abortion safe and legal in this country. Tomorrow, when I vote, I will be carrying my Planned Parenthood endorsement sheet with me.
Tomorrow, I will be marking my vote with both fear and hope. For our country. For our lives as women. For my son.
As much like a country song that sounds, I really do take pride in that moment. Because it was hard-won by suffragists like Elizabeth Cady Stanton. Because it was engrained in me by my parents' protests and picket signs. Because I get a sticker (OK, we all know Lil E will get the sticker).
Because I really do believe that it matters.
Photo credit:
Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony / Library of Congress via Wikipedia.com
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