IN MY SHOES: Patience My Foot!
By Ali Gallagher
Special To The Stiletto Blog
As this historical – and protracted - presidential nomination and election was unfolding, I was electrified by the possibility of electing candidates from two previously disenfranchised groups - women and African American. But these promising candidacies also proved to be polarizing, and I hope to help people see their commonalities through history - despite their political differences today.
When women’s representation at all levels of government is proportionate to their representation in the general population, women across the political spectrum will be heard, and conservatives will no longer be perceived to be “sell-outs” to their gender.
I started Her Family Jewels in August of 2007 to focus on the women’s suffrage movement. I first produced dog tags (KatTags) silver cuff bracelets (HandKuffs), each embossed or engraved with the name of a woman who lived without ever having the opportunity to cast a vote. I culled these women’s names from the very first U.S. Census in 1790, as well as the first census after the ratification of the Fifteenth Amendment in 1870 that gave full personhood to blacks – but only black men the right to vote. (Women to weren’t given the right to vote until 1920, when the Nineteenth Amendment was ratified.)
The names I came across in my research teased me with the possibilities of having them as my imagined BFFs: Comfort Mubbill, Hanah Jewel, Manah Brau, Sealy Brown, Hixie Booth, and Mary Demmings. And our Native American sisters, Knoan Fight Well, Scrap Wash and Ruth Crooked Arm. None of these women were able to vote, to make their voices heard. These are the names that are on Her Family Jewels jewelry, and each piece has its own tale to tell. Etched on one end of each HandKuff is an ascending ladder that symbolizes the upward journey of women to a future time when there are no more glass ceilings. The inspiration for the ladder comes from the motto of the Black Woman’s Club, “Lifting as we climb.” You’ll notice that it’s “woman” – not “women.” The founders wanted to emphasize that civic duty and responsibility are personal commitments, whether you are acting as a part of the organization or outside of it. And who is Patience Foot? Just one of millions of women you never would have heard of, invisible to all but the woman today who decides to celebrate her life. Patience was never represented in the halls of power – and neither are women today, who are marginalized because they comprise 51 percent of the population but do not hold 51 percent of all elected offices. As far as I’m concerned: Patience my foot! Patience is no longer a virtue, it is now a movement. Editorial Note: Ali Gallagher, 54, is a lawyer specializing in securities and corporate governance who lives in Austin, TX. She raised three sons as a single parent, now grown and off to college. After finishing law school, she completed a Congressional Healthcare fellowship, and founded a company that she took public. Years later she began her studies in ethnic conflict, got to see post-war poverty first hand throughout Angola, Croatia, Bosnia and the Republic of Georgia - and each visit left its indelible mark and continues to donate to causes that advance women. She thinks all jewelry is autobiographical, and likes to ask women what they are communicating with their “bling.”
Nice Article, well done!
Mark
www.highheeledart.com
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