UN 60TH BIRTHDAY
On October 24th, the United Nations turned 60. Some say it is old, crotchety, useless. Others, like me, say our world depends on its existence. Is it perfect? Of course not. But what we hear more of than anything is of the Security Council and the peacekeepers. What about the UN Population Fund? World Health Organization? UNICEF?

As you think about the money spent on trick-or-treating with friends and family, consider collecting coins to help children around the world:

30¢ provides lifesaving antibiotics for a child suffering from pneumonia.
$1 immunizes a child against the deadly disease measles.
$2.50 buys basic school supplies for one child.
$10 provides enough high-protein biscuits to feed three hungry children for one month.
$150 pays for a small well to provide clean water for an entire village. To learn more about UNICEF's work, click here. Or just go to the UN site and take a tour http://www.un.org/

UN CONDEMNS GENDER BIAS
by Andrew Kipkemboi. Excerpted from an article in The Standard - Nairobi, Kenya 
(Thanks to Kimani for passing this on)

The United Nations Report: The State of the World Population 2005, says investment in gender equality and reproductive health offers multiple rewards that can accelerate social and economic progress, with lasting impact.

Generally women . in addition to managing households, they are always doing something; carrying water, selling things in the market, tending children, toiling in the farms with children strapped to their backs.

In the UNFPA report, The Promise of Equality: Gender Equity, Reproductive Health and the Millennium Development Goals , examines the role of women and girls in the drive to halve poverty by 2015. It examines the links between poverty, gender equality, human rights, reproductive health, conflict and violence against women and girls, and the relationship between gender discrimination and the Aids scourge. In 2000, world leaders drew up the eight Millennium Development Goals that range from halving poverty to tackling the problem of mortality and reversing the Aids epidemic by 2015.

Invariably, women tend to reinvest any gains in the welfare of their children and families, multiplying their contributions to national development. Educated girls are more likely to delay marriage and child bearing and instead acquire skills to improve economic prospects for themselves and their families.

It is estimated that there are 600 million illiterate women compared to 320 million men. However every year of a mother's education corresponds to between 5 to 10 per cent lower mortality rates in children under the age of five.

The report quotes 2004 Nobel Peace Prize Winner Prof Wangari Maathai's acceptance speech. "There comes a time when humanity is called to shift to a new level of conscious, to reach a higher moral ground. That time is now ... there can be no peace without equitable development," she said.

Want to know more about what's going on in the continent of Africa? Next year the Pasadena chapter of the United Nations Association (UNA) is putting on a 3-Day Africa Conference. To make sure you are kept apprised of the conference, or if you are interested in volunteering to help in any way to put the conference together, email Sherry@unapasadena.org

AND HERE IN THE U.S. .
Women of Gulf Coast Key to Rebuilding After Katrina and Rita

Thanks to Lana Lott, Staff to the Glendale Commission on the Status of Women for forwarding this:

Women of New Orleans and the Gulf Coast region are especially hard-hit by hurricanes Katrina and Rita, as they are more likely than men to be in poverty, and to head single-parent families, according to a new study released today by the Institute for Women's Policy Research.

The Women of New Orleans and the Gulf Coast: Multiple Disadvantages and Key Assets for Recovery, Part I. Poverty, Race, Gender and Class uses U.S. Census Bureau data to provide a detailed portrait of poverty among women and people of color in the city of New Orleans and the metropolitan areas of Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas hardest hit by the hurricanes. The paper also presents data on poverty in cities and metropolitan areas to which many hurricane victims have moved.

Among the paper's findings are:

• The prevalence of female-headed families was high in all regions affected by the hurricanes. For example, in the city of New Orleans 56% of all families with related children under 18 were headed by women.
• Four in ten female-headed families living in the city of New Orleans and the New Orleans metropolitan areas were poor, and poverty rates among these families are also very high in Beaumont-Port Arthur (34.7%) and Biloxi-Gulfport-Pascagoula (28.6%).

Policy recommendations for rebuilding and for poverty alleviation include honoring local wage provisions, providing access to child care, ensuring women's full participation in the planning process, and beginning a new national dialogue on poverty that includes a full consideration of gender and race dynamics.

IWPR's new Briefing Paper can be found at www.iwpr.org .

TOO OLD TO GO TO WAR?

Members of Grandmothers Against the War (Photo: European Pressphoto Agency)

Excerpts from an article By Clyde Haberman published in The New York Times
Thanks to Lana Lott, staff to Glendale Commission on Status of Women for forwarding this article:

Grandmothers in New York found a way to protest the war in Iraq - they want to the armed forces recruiting station in Times Square to enlist!

Send them to Iraq, they said. They've led long lives, long enough to have grandchildren, even great-grandchildren. Better, they said, to put them in harm's way than young people just starting out.

"I'm a double grandmother," said Betty Brassell, who is 75 and lives on the Lower East Side. "I have a great-grandson. I'm sorry, I forgot to bring his picture."

None of the services, however, were interested in signing them up. The staff at the Times Square booth had locked their doors, having been warned that the women would come knocking.

No question, these were serious women with a serious message, agree with them or not. They understood that if you want the cameras and microphones to pay you and your cause some attention, a bit of street theater helps. It doesn't hurt, either, to march under banners like Raging Grannies, Grandmothers Against the War, and Elders for Peace and Justice for the Next Seven Generations.

First in line was Joan Wile, 74. She carried a bucket of cookies. Behind her was Marie Runyon, a former state assemblywoman who has fought more left-wing battles than AARP has members. At 90, Ms. Runyon can barely see, but that did not stop her from banging on the booth's door, to the right of the poster of Uncle Sam pointing and saying, "I Want You."

"You" did not include her. "Are you hard of hearing?" Ms. Runyon hollered at the young men inside. "Let's get cracking here. We want to enlist. What's the matter with you?"

After the door-banging went nowhere, it was sit-in time. For some, that was easier said than done. "I can't sit," Ms. Brassell said, clinging to a walker. "I'll stoop as much as I can."

Minutes later, the police moved in to make arrests. In some recent antiwar protests, they have been accused of unnecessary roughness. Not this time. This time they were solicitous.

 "Is that too tight?" an officer named McMinn asked one woman as he cuffed her hands behind her back - standard procedure. An officer named Frias bent to help another protester, the actress Vinie Burrows, get to her feet. "You all right?" the officer asked.

Watching and chanting "Grannies rock" were about 50 supporters. One of them was Herb Hecsh, a "partner or companion or whatever you call it these days" of Ms. Wile. He could not help observing, he said, that "the cops are the only ones here with their original hips."

In all, 18 women were arrested, some quite familiar with the back of a police van.

As they were taken away, Times Square quickly returned to normal. Tourists snapped their pictures. The recruiting booth unlocked its door. A strapping young man walked in, possibly to enlist.  The war was still on.

So, maybe next time you feel that you are too old, too young, too busy, too.. Perhaps you'll remember Betty Brassell and her friends and go make your statement.

VAWA RENEWED . ALMOST
Last month the Senate passed - by unanimous consent - the Violence Against Women Act, which had expired on September 30 th . The House vote, on September 28 th , was a resounding 415-4 in favor. T hese bills will fund unprecedented new prevention initiatives that have the potential to keep millions of women and children safe, and establish new rape crisis centers. "For ten years, the Violence Against Women Act ( VAWA ) has strengthened communities and provided critical, life-saving support to victims of violence," said Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi. " VAWA has meant that no victim of violence has to suffer in silence. This legislation has been a tremendous success in addressing an appalling problem."

There are flaws in the bills that, hopefully, will be corrected when they go to conference: improving the immigration provisions; restoring the funding stream for communities of color; including key health, housing and economic security provisions; and funding the Rape, Prevention and Education program.

We need Congress to finish its work and the President to sign the Violence Against Women Act of 2005 into law. Please, write to your Representatives and urge that the details be worked out in committee quickly - remember, VAWA expired September 30 - and along with it, the protections it offered.

EVENTS
Wednesday, November 2, 7:00 p.m. "Running in High Heels" Premiere
2537 Broadway at 95 th Street, New York City Institute for Women's Policy Research (IWPR) invites you to the screening of this new political documentary.

Did you know, if women's representation in Congress changes at the rate it did during the past ten years, it will take almost a century to achieve equality!

Running in High Heels documents the political campaign of Emily Csendes, a math teacher, running for the State Senate in New York City. Director Maryann Manelski's film questions why women hold only a small percentage of political offices despite comprising 52 percent of the U.S. population. Csendes's campaign is framed by interviews with prominent conservative and liberal women including Phyllis Schlafly, Eleanor Smeal, and IWPR's own Dr. Heidi Hartmann.

Pre-Screening reception at 5:30 p.m. $150 per ticket includes membership in IWPR. Space is limited, so kindly RSVP to Rebecca Sager at rebecca@iwpr.org or 202/785-5100.

Saturday, November 5, 2:00 Celebrate the UN's 60 th Birthday - "Now That She's Gone"
The Southern California Regional Council of Organizations is celebrating the UN's 60 th birthday with a performance of Ellen Snortland's one-woman show at the Woman's City Club of Pasadena, 160N. Oakland, Pasadena. $20 covers the show and dessert - which starts at 2:00. The show is at 3:00. For reservations contact Suzanne Burger at 626-799-5545

Tuesday, November 8 - ELECTION DAY
Time to do our civic duty and make our voice heard. If you live in Glendale and have questions about where to go, call the City Clerk's office at 818-548-2090

Also Chris Carson, Past President of the Glendale/Burbank League of Women Voters let us know that if you live in Glendale or Burbank, you can watch a show that was taped by the League of Women Voters on each of the propositions. It will be shown on Ch 16 in Glendale and Ch 6 in Burbank every day until election day

For everyone, go to the League's website that gives information on all the propositions, how to vote, and more. http://www.smartvoter.org/

November 11, 2005-December 10, Tijuana Organic Women Expressions
Exhibition of Women Artists from Tijuana. Bronx River Art Center, Bronx, New York. Curator: Montserrat Sanchez

The show focuses on issues impacting women world-wide: violence (including the murder of over 350 women in Juarez, Mexico); relationships, images of women, class, and borders.

For more information contact Gerda Govine at:  gerdagovine@hotmail.com   (626) 484-8877

Sunday, November 13 , 2:00 - 4:30 p.m. Women -Leading the Way for the End of Hunger
The Hunger Project is having an event that focuses on the role of women in ending chronic hunger in the world today. The event is at a private home in Pacific Palisades. To RSVP and for the location, contact Joanna Ryder at 310-376-6814 or by email at jrr@thp.org

Monday, November 14, 6:30 p.m. - Glendale Commission on the Status of Women
Regular meeting. 613 E. Broadway, Glendale. 2 nd Floor, Council Chambers. Parking entrance on Wilson.

Monday, November 14, 7:00 - "Takes on the Wage Gap"
The Ms. Community Forum presents an evening with Evelyn Murphy. Author of, "Getting Even: Why Women Don't Get Paid Like Men - And What TO Do About It", Evelyn, former Lt. Governor of Massachusetts and a PhD Economist will discuss the wage gap, who it affects and what you can do to end the discrimination. 433 S. Beverly Drive, Beverly Hills. $10 / $5 Students. For more information and to purchase tickets, call 310-556-2500

Thursday, November 17, 7:00 p.m. "Natural Hawaiian Healing"
Shades of Culture presents Debra Fentress speaking of her healing practice. 7:00 - Gathering and Order Dinner 8:00 - Program. Marie Callender's, 707 N. Pacific Ave, Glendale (just N. of the 134). Call the restaurant for directions 818-242-6836 Or for more information, call Catherine Yesayan at 818-244-3051 There is no charge for the program; dinner is no-host.

CRIME STOPPERS - 818-247-STOP (7867)
Thanks to Catherine Yesayan, Closet Organizer for forwarding this:

A college student, brutally murdered in an Albuquerque, New Mexico gas station. No witnesses. No clues. No leads. If it sounds like the opening of a CSI mystery, you could be right. But, actually, this happened in 1976, and it sparked the genesis of a worldwide organization: Crime Stoppers.

Stumped and discouraged, an enterprising Albuquerque detective made a video reenactment of the crime and talked to a local TV station into running the piece. The detective offered anonymity in exchange for tips that could lead to the student's killers. He sweetened the pot by adding a little money from his own pocket as a reward. It worked. Within 72 hours, an anonymous tip helped the police arrest two men responsible for the crime.

Fast forward to the present. Currently, there are 1200 Crime Stopper organizations in the world-dozens in California. All are non-profit groups run by volunteers, and they all perform the same function: Serve to keep communities safer by offering anonymity and cash for crime tips leading to an arrest.

The tip is paid upon arrest-not conviction.

The Crime Stoppers program is simple:

If Glendale residents want to report a crime, they make a simple, anonymous call to the Crime Stoppers hotline: 818-247-STOP (7867).

The phone is answered at the Glendale Police Station by a live person 24 hours each day. The call is not recorded, nor is there caller-ID on the line. The caller is provided with a code number to use when calling back to see if a reward is due. No names or no addresses are exchanged. The tip is routed to the appropriate department and worked. If an arrest is made, the caller identified by the code number, will receive a cash award.

Crime Stoppers tips have included kidnappings, domestic abuse, murder, robbery, tagging, prostitution, and other related crimes.

Glendale is the only city in Los Angeles County with a Crime Stoppers program. If you are interested in finding out how you can get one started in your area, call 800-245-0009

ARE YOU 16 - 21 & LOOKING FOR A JOB?
The Glendale Youth Alliance has openings for student workers and supervisors.

If you are currently unemployed and not enrolled in school, a Glendale resident and between the ages of 19 and 21, call Mario Olmos, Program Coordinator at 818-674-9121

If you are currently a student and are looking for work; If you are an employer and are interested in subsidized office help; Just want to know more about the Glendale Youth Alliance - call Sarah Watson at 818-548-3727

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
I have not heard from any of you this month! I would love to hear your comments - particularly your opinions of the new look of the Equality Standard. EDITOR'S COMMENTS
Thanksgiving will soon be here. Despite what the newspapers tell us each day, we do have a lot to be thankful for in this country. This month I am going to make a list of everything for which I give thanks - and it will be a long one. It will include my family, my friends, you - my readers, my home, my work. and so much more. I hope you will join me and think of the many areas of your life for which you are thankful, and the many people who help to make your life what it is. Perhaps this would be a good time to write a thank you note to your politicians. So often they get notes saying they voted wrong or acted wrong. Perhaps Thanksgiving is a time to look for the right in what they do and acknowledge it.

I would like your feedback about the new look of the newsletter -

Do you like the general layout?

Do you like the inclusion of pictures?

Were you able to open it with ease?

Is this color scheme easy to read?

Is there something you would like to see more of - or less of - in The Equality Standard?

Any other comments?

SUBSCRIPTIONS
So often we give our time and expertise away for nothing as if we have no value.  As this newsletter takes considerable time to put together, I ask that if you can, you pay for your subscription. Because I do not want to exclude anyone from receiving the newsletter, however, I am not going to make it mandatory - kind of difficult anyway as its by email!  I am going strictly on the honor system.  If you cannot afford it, its my pleasure to send it to you.  I do, however, thank you for honoring me and my time with your contributions.

Thank you to those of you who have already subscribed.

Subscriptions to The Equality Standard are $12 per year, prorated monthly. So, for those of you willing and able to pay the subscription, please send a check made payable to Pauline Field for $14 for the period ending December 31, 2006 to Equality Standard, 1315 Ruberta Avenue, Glendale, CA 91201 or complete the credit card information below and email back to PaulineField@charter.net

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FINAL WORDS
"I do not think of all the misery, but of the glory that remains. Go outside into the fields, nature and the sun, go out and seek happiness in yourself and in God. Think of the beauty that again and again discharges itself within and without you and be happy." Anne Frank

Happy Thanksgiving to you!
Pauline Field
818.243.2322