Category: Women

4th Annual Judith Ann Schiff Women’s History Program: A Wonderful Struggle: Local Jewish Women in the Labor Movement, March 1, 2026

by Rhoda Zahler Samuel, Jewish Historical Society

The 4th Annual Judith Ann Schiff Women’s History Program will take place at the New Haven Museum, on Sunday, March 1 at 2 p.m.  In A Wonderful Struggle: Local Jewish Women in the Labor Movement, we will hear in person and on video from women who participated in the massive New Haven teachers strike of 1975 and in the historic victories of Yale University clerical and technical workers in 1983-84. They will describe the issues that motivated them to join the “wonderful struggle,” the difficulties they encountered, what helped them succeed, the results that followed the strikes and creation of new unions, and the ways these activities influenced their future work experiences. The program will be streaming on Facebook Live. In the case of inclement weather, the event will be recorded for social media. For more information and to register, please go to https://bit.ly/4ruFsQJ.

In the words of Edie Bartman Fishman, who was active in unions ranging from electrical workers to teachers: “Life is a struggle. But it’s a wonderful struggle when you’re fighting for the right things.” Our speakers include Joelle Fishman, talking about her mother, and Barbara Greenwood and Helene Sapadin who participated in the 1975 Teachers Strike in New Haven.

The New Haven Museum is located at 114 Whitney Ave. and is wheelchair accessible.

In the case of inclement weather, the event will be recorded for the Museum’s YouTube channel.

Register

 

Call for Proposals for the 25th SCSU Women’s & Gender Studies Conference

by Women’s & Gender Studies Department, SCSU

(Re)making the World: A “How-To” Conference on Feminist, Crip, and Decolonial Worldmaking, April 17–18, 2026, at Southern Connecticut State University

In As We Have Always Done: Indigenous Freedom through Radical Resistance (2017), Leanne Betasamosake Simpson writes:

Resurgence is not a metaphor. It is the flight out of settler colonialism, towards something we have been taught is impossible.

This conference takes Simpson’s call for radical resurgence seriously — positioning “how-to” as a feminist practice, politic, and theorizing.

The 2026 Southern Connecticut State University Women’s & Gender Studies Conference invites communities to gather for a feminist, crip, and decolonial practice of refusal, survival, and worldmaking.

In an era of rising authoritarianism, climate catastrophe, and technological dispossession, we ask

How do we refuse extractive systems of labor, knowledge, and identity?

How do we create alternative economies of care, access, justice, and decolonial business?

How do we unlearn oppressive epistemologies and forge liberatory practices?

How do we crip, queer, Indigenize, and decolonize institutions not built for us?

How do we resist algorithmic bias, surveillance capitalism, and technocratic ableism?

How do we (re)imagine feminist futures?

The 2026 conference offers a space to explore the pedagogies, practices, and possibilities embedded in the question of “how to?” across disciplines, communities, and movements. We seek proposals that move beyond critique to praxis — embracing failure as pedagogy, interdependence as resistance, and joy as a radical act.

Submission Guidelines: Individual papers, workshops, roundtables, performances, exhibitions, teach-ins, skill-shares, activist toolkits, and other creative or non-traditional formats are welcomed.

We encourage proposals from caregivers, community organizers, entrepreneurs, artist-activists, and others whose work centers lived experiences, collaborative strategies, and collective visions for justice and inclusion.

The deadline is January 5, 2026 (earlier submissions encouraged). Notifications will be sent by January 30.

Send proposals to wgs@southernct.edu with the subject “2026 SCSU WGS Conference Submission” and include the name of the proposer, email, phone number, affiliation (if any), and any accessibility needs. The proposal should be approximately 150-250 words and should include a 50-word bio for each presenter and a separate section with a description of the proposed format of the session.

Registration details will be available shortly. Please email or phone the Women’s & Gender Studies Department at wgs@southernct.edu or 203-392-6133.

Call for Proposals for the 25th SCSU Women’s & Gender Studies Conference

by Women’s & Gender Studies Department, SCSU

(Re)making the World: A “How-To” Conference on Feminist, Crip, and Decolonial Worldmaking, April 17–18, 2026, at Southern Connecticut State University in New Haven

In As We Have Always Done: Indigenous Freedom through Radical Resistance (2017), Leanne Betasamosake Simpson writes:

Resurgence is not a metaphor. It is the flight out of settler colonialism, towards something we have been taught is impossible.

This conference takes Simpson’s call for radical resurgence seriously — positioning “how-to” as a feminist practice, politic, and theorizing.

The 2026 Southern Connecticut State University Women’s & Gender Studies Conference invites communities to gather for a feminist, crip, and decolonial practice of refusal, survival, and worldmaking.

In an era of rising authoritarianism, climate catastrophe, and technological dispossession, we ask

How do we refuse extractive systems of labor, knowledge, and identity?

How do we create alternative economies of care, access, justice, and decolonial business?

How do we unlearn oppressive epistemologies and forge liberatory practices?

How do we crip, queer, Indigenize, and decolonize institutions not built for us?

How do we resist algorithmic bias, surveillance capitalism, and technocratic ableism?

How do we (re)imagine feminist futures?

The 2026 conference offers a space to explore the pedagogies, practices, and possibilities embedded in the question of “how to?” across disciplines, communities, and movements. We seek proposals that move beyond critique to praxis — embracing failure as pedagogy, interdependence as resistance, and joy as a radical act.

Submission Guidelines: Individual papers, workshops, roundtables, performances, exhibitions, teach-ins, skill-shares, activist toolkits, and other creative or non-traditional formats are welcomed.

We encourage proposals from caregivers, community organizers, entrepreneurs, artist-activists, and others whose work centers lived experiences, collaborative strategies, and collective visions for justice and inclusion.

The deadline is Jan. 5, 2026 (earlier submissions encouraged). Notifications will be sent by Jan. 30.

Send proposals to wgs@southernct.edu with the subject “2026 SCSU WGS Conference Submission” and include the name of the proposer, email, phone number, affiliation (if any), and any accessibility needs. The proposal should be approximately 150-250 words and should include a 50-word bio for each presenter and a separate section with a description of the proposed format of the session.

Registration details will be available shortly. Please email or phone the Women’s & Gender Studies Department at wgs@southernct.edu or 203-392-6133.

Bullets, Bandages, and Making Waves: Jewish Women in WWII New Haven on Sunday, March 2, 2 p.m.

by New Haven Museum

WWII changed the lives of American women, who were essential to the war effort. In honor of Women’s History Month and the 80th anniversary of the war’s end in 1945, Jewish Historical Society of Greater New Haven (JHSGNH) will share the stories of seven such women: Lucille Wolfe Alderman, Mitzi Fenster Bargar, Rose Rosenberg Dubin, Edith Londer Gillman, Ruth Grannick, Laura Small Levine, and Rita Small Melman. Their stories illustrate the ways American women in the Elm City contributed to the war effort.

JHSGNH volunteers, writer Carole Bass and oral-history interviewer Rhoda Zahler Samuel, will present video memories of these local women, following a historical overview and discussion by Jennifer Klein, Bradford Durfee Professor of History at Yale University, of the ways WWII influenced women’s roles.

The lecture is presented in memory of Judith Ann Schiff, a founder of JHSGNH and the Ethnic Heritage Center, a New Haven Museum board member, Yale University’s chief archivist and New Haven’s city historian. In person and streaming on Facebook Live.

Join us on March 2 at 2 p.m. New Haven Museum is located at 114 Whitney Ave. It is wheelchair accessible.

Our Bodies. Our Futures: People’s March, Jan. 18, 2025

The Women’s March

We are not done. With Trump set to return to the White House early next year, we’re facing a moment that calls us to act boldly. It’s time to march. Join us at the PEOPLE’S MARCH—Jan. 18, 2025—DC & Everywhere.

We will unite in a feminist-led day of action. We will demand and defend our freedoms against fascism. We will demonstrate our collective strength, sending a clear message: Our freedoms are inalienable, and we will not allow them to be threatened.

The mobilization is being organized by a coalition of organizations across the movement landscape through a broad committee structure. Amongst the coalition members are Abortion Action Now, Time to Act, SisterSong, Women’s March, Popular Democracy, Harriet’s Wildest Dreams, The Feminist Front, NOW, Planned Parenthood, National Women’s Law Center, and the Frontline. Women’s March is anchoring the logistics of the mobilization. The role of coordinated infrastructure and these convos have been moving since July 2024.

[Full text at womensmarch.com and peoplesmarch.com. Also see https://tinyurl.com/t22j9hvm.]

24th Annual Women’s & Gender Studies Conference seeking proposals

The SCSU Women’s & Gender Studies Department is looking for proposals for our 24th Annual WGS Conference: Continuities, Ruptures, Resurgences: Still in Search of Our Mothers’ Gardens. Proposals can be on a wide variety of topics and in a wide range of mediums. We are happy to announce that the deadline for submissions has been extended until January 18, 2024!

Five decades after publication, Alice Walker’s womanist essays In Search of Our Mothers’ Gardens … continue to be a vision for those of us engaged in feminist studies and intersectional justice work: “Guided by my heritage of a love of beauty and a respect for strength – in search of my mother’s garden, I found my own.”… Fifty-plus years later, we are still in search of our mothers’ gardens, sites and sources of our nourishment. Urged by Walker’s search and guided by Haudenosaunee and other Black, Indigenous, Latinx, women of color, and queer feminist visionaries (“for the next seven generations”), we ask ourselves questions for our collective futures:

  • Why are we still in search of our mothers’ gardens?
  • How do we recognize/embrace our feminist legacy/ legacies while staying vigilant/attentive to/around old and new challenges? What are some collective strategies?
  • How do we continue to create/innovate despite the legal/social setbacks we have recently experienced?
  • How and when does a body become a subject in the eyes of the law, the public, communities, institutions, corporations, nation states?
  • What can we do to support communities struggling to align with the feminist agendas of peace, justice, and unity while honoring differences?
  • How is the feminist body involved in community, conflict and the pursuit of peace and justice?
  • How does feminism contribute to the pursuit of equity and equality?
  • How has feminist storytelling narrated these struggles and contributed to/reshaped intellectual discourse?

WGS Graduate Assistant Team, Women’s & Gender Studies Department, SCSU. Office Email: wgs@southernct.edu; Web: www.southernct.edu/wgs; Phone: 203-392-6133; Fax: 203-392-6723. Call for Proposals: inside.southernct.edu/womens-and-gender-studies/wgs-2024/call-for-papers

Texas and the Women’s March October 2

In September, the state of Texas passed a law that is close to a full ban on abortions. In response to this, a Women’s March will be held in every state on Oct 2. As we go to press, PAR received the following information for a march in Middletown: https://www.facebook.com/womensmarchct for more info.

CONNECTICUT WOMEN’S MARCH. We are in solidarity with those marching all over the country on Saturday, Oct. 2, as a refusal to allow the government to make choices for female reproductive rights.

At 10 a.m., the march will start at South Green, Main St., Middletown, CT 06457. Bring signs and posters. We will march to reinforce that women’s bodies are not up for political decision-making. Masks required when not able to keep a distance of 6 feet.

In Memory of Caroline Bridgman-Rees and Lula White

The PAR Planning Committee mourns the passing of Caroline Bridgman-Rees (Dec. 31, 1922-Aug. 28, 2019) and Lula White (died at the age of 80 on Sept. 10, 2019), two women with deep ties to the greater New Haven peace community and the world who dedicated their lives for peace, equality and justice for all humanity.

Caroline was an NGO representative of the United Nations and member of a multitude of peace organizations — international, national and local. She was involved with the Progressive Action Roundtable right from its beginning in 1993.

Caroline’s memorial service will be held on Saturday, Nov. 2, at 11:30 a.m., at the Unitarian Society of New Haven, 700 Hartford Turnpike, Hamden.

Excerpt from Lula’s obituary notice in the New Haven Register, Sept. 16, 2019

Most people knew Lula White as a retired New Haven school teacher, board member of the Greater New Haven Labor History Association and member of the PAR mailing committee. For many of us in New Haven, we didn’t realize the scope of her bravery and profound sense of justice until she told us her history of being a freedom rider.

Family members have set Lula’s memorial service for Saturday, Dec. 14. Inquiries should be directed to Lulamwhitememorialservice@gmail.com.

We cherish the friendship, wisdom and inspiration Caroline and Lula shared with us. Our condolences to the families of these two remarkable, brave women who gave so much of themselves for a better world.

We are Each A Precious Entity: The Activist Life of Caroline Bridgman-Rees

The following is an edited version from the tribute written by PJ Deak for the Unitarian Society of New Haven.

Caroline Bridgman-Rees

Caroline was born on New Year’s Eve, 1922 and grew up on Staten Island. Her father, a Yale graduate, was a history professor at NYU for 29 years. A decorated war veteran, he came home from WWI in 1918 traumatized by the horrors of war, its barbarism, death, and destruction.

As a result of her father’s experiences, Caroline became very aware of the toll and folly of war – and of the importance of working for peace. In 1945, Caroline, 22, a Phi Beta Kappa and recent graduate of Smith College, joined the Red Cross. She sailed on a ship to the Philippines where she worked with the Red Cross until 1946 when she went to Korea. Why did she do it? To see the world and “to see life with the soldiers.”

She remembered the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki with horror and condemnation – a bombing that in her words “was totally against moral and international law and which began a frightful new era that threatened all life on earth.”

In the 1960s, Caroline began her teaching career at Bradford College in Massachusetts – teaching Asian History and Philosophy. Caroline became increasingly concerned about the conflict between the US and both the Vietnamese liberation forces and all of Indochina.

Caroline Bridgman-Rees, Nancy Eberg and Jim Pandaru (l-r)

She joined a number of prominent peace organizations: The American Friends Service Committee; Sane/Freeze – later known as Peace Action; The Women’s International League for Peace And Freedom; The War Resisters League; Mobilization for Survival; and because of her service in the Red Cross, Veterans Against The War.

“I felt then, as I do now, that non-violent direct action is a citizen’s responsibility when the government is committing major war crimes against humanity!”

In 1972 Caroline was one of 171 American peace leaders chosen to attend the Paris Peace Talks. Also in 1972, she was part of a team of women who traveled to India and conducted interviews with Indian women about the role of women in the world – Caroline even had the privilege to interview Ms. Ghandi. In 1973, Caroline, her husband and 10-year-old son traveled through India, Burma, Thailand, Hong Kong, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam.

Caroline became involved with the United Nations as an NGO representative, and also was active with the Greater New Haven Peace Council. In 1991-1992 she spent a year in England giving 45 separate lectures on Nuclear Disarmament and attended an international peace conference in the Netherlands.

When the first Iraq War began, Caroline was active as the anti-war movement surged anew – seeking avenues for mediation and diplomacy rather than violence.

Caroline attended meetings to discuss and take action on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, spoke out about the size of the US military budget, the number of US military bases around the world (over 1,000) and the pollution they are allowed to create. She wrote letters to the editor that were published in the New Haven Register and participated in the New Haven Peace Council and the Unitarian Society of New Haven Peace Task Force.

“We need community, not guns. We must create a world with love, and caring and cooperation.”

Read Caroline Bridgman-Rees’ obituary on Legacy.com.

Remembering Lula White

by Joan Cavanagh, former Archivist/Director, Greater New Haven Labor History Association (2001-2017)

Lula White poses with the Thurgood Marshall Award she received in 2016 (file photo)

Lula White poses with the Thurgood Marshall Award she received in 2016 (file)

I was with Lula White at many gatherings in 35 or so years: peace actions to oppose the endless U.S. wars; Sunday night potluck discussions; Labor History Association meetings and events; union protests at Yale; even the occasional holiday party. With Mary Johnson, she often spoke of teaching, organizing and being jailed during the teachers’ strikes in the 1970s. Her story as a youthful freedom rider in the South unfolded more slowly.

When we decided to document the history of workers at New Haven’s Winchester Repeating Arms Company, Lula and her sister, Dorothy White Johnson, both long time members of the Labor History Association Executive Board, contacted former Winchester employees, conducted interviews and borrowed artifacts for the exhibit, “Our Community at Winchester: An Elm City Story.”

After the plant closed in 2006, we transferred the files, artifacts and photographs of the workers’ union, IAM Local 609, to the office I shared with the late Nicholas Aiello, then LHA president. The plan was to inventory and preserve them. As Nick witnessed 65 boxes slowly taking over our space, he became, not unreasonably, upset. We had a heated exchange. Lula arrived just as I left to take a breath. When I returned, Lula was smiling—and so was Nick, who congratulated us for having secured custody of these important historical records. Whatever she said or did, she had, typically, transformed the situation.

At Fairfield University, where the exhibit was displayed in 2017, I introduced Lula after a short history of the project, and began asking questions. The audience, mostly students, soon took over. Lula spoke quietly and without drama about her life as the daughter of a Winchester worker, growing up in the Newhallville section of New Haven, then becoming a teacher of history and union activist. She also shared the terrifying, brave experience of being jailed in Mississippi as a young Black woman, one of hundreds of freedom riders trying to integrate the buses in 1961. In an evaluation of the session, a student wrote that she was “cool.” She had shared her hope for a future based on engaged citizenship at a moment when it was desperately needed, just following the 2017 presidential inauguration.

During my only visit to the Intensive Care Unit where Lula was confined in June, not expected to survive, I whispered to her to “Keep fighting.” It wasn’t necessary. Fight she did. Over the summer, she slowly got better. She almost made it.

Despite Lula White’s inner calm, peace and strength, it cannot have been easy being fully “woke.” May she find the joy and rest she has earned.

Excerpt from the obituary notice of the New Haven Register, Sept. 16, 2019

Ms. White was frequently jailed as a freedom rider trying to desegregate public transportation. In addition, she was arrested for striking to raise salaries for teachers, and jeered for marching to protest injustice. She was recognized by the Quinnipiac University School of Law in 2016, was awarded the Thurgood Marshall Award for her activism and commu-nity service, and was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters Degree from Albertus Magnus College in 2010. Lula fought the good fight.

Report on Coalition for People Annual Meeting

On April 17, the Coalition for People held its first annual meeting since 2014. Among the 24 attendees, there were many past members and some newcomers to the group.

The gathering started off with music by Flint Ladder. A slideshow featuring CFP founder Mary Johnson played during the performance.

Elected board members are Dorothy Johnson, Elizabeth Neuse, Holly Hackett and JoAnn Moran. If anyone wants to still join the board, they can be considered during the monthly business meetings. Please call (203) 468-2541 if you are interested in joining the board.

The keynote speaker was Rev. Bonita Grubbs, Director of Christian Community Action. She spoke about the long history of Coalition for People, the legacy of Mary Johnson, what it means to be organizing and inspiring people, and always pushing for what is right, even though it may not always be immediately evident. She gave the example that that week scientists were able to photograph a black hole, proving Albert Einstein’s theory about the existence of black holes, 64 years after Einstein’s death. Many ridiculed Einstein when he first presented that theory, just as many people call activists crazy for trying to change things. But just because we as activists don’t get immediate results doesn’t mean we’re crazy or wrong. Rev. Grubbs talked about the individual lights of each person, their intelligence, skills, how people have their own understanding, that everyone can bring their lights together, discuss reality and solutions from her or his own perspective, and shine the light to push things forward.

Discussion of various topics followed – affordable housing, Yale New Haven Hospital’s plan to move the primary care centers to Long Wharf, healthcare, homelessness, justice. It was a good gathering to share the concerns of Coalition members and supporters, as well as those new to CFP.

The monthly board meetings are open to the membership. For June, July and August, our meetings are on the third Wednesday from 3-5 p.m. at the Fair Haven Library, 182 Grand Avenue (June 19, July 17, and August 21). For more information, email coalitionforpeople@hotmail.com. Thank you!

Is Your PAR Subscription About to Run Out?

by PAR Planning Committee

The Progressive Action Roundtable newsletter publishes from September through June. Subscriptions from many of our readers will expire with the June issue.

We hope you enjoy your subscription and value the PAR newsletter as a community resource. To see if your subscription is due for renewal, please look at your address label. If “201906” is printed on the label to the right of your name, your subscription ends next month. Please send in $13 for 10 issues (Sept. 2019-June 2020) so that you can continue to read about what local organizations are doing and you can submit articles about your own organization.

The Progressive Action Roundtable was started in January 1993. After several months, this community Newsletter became the main activity of PAR, giving New Haven area organizations an opportunity for networking and for advertising their activities.

We hope to hear from you.

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