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Women and Children First March-April Event Schedule
Women
and Children First Bookstore is located in the Andersonville
neighborhood at: 5233 N. Clark St. Chicago, IL 606040 (773)769-9299
Celebrate
Women's History Month
Recommended
Reading:
The World Split Open: How the Modern Women's Movement Changed
America by Ruth Rosen
Wednesday,
March 7, 7:30 p.m.
Women's Studies: Where
Have We Been? Where Are We Going?
Over the last twenty plus years Women's Studies classes have
given women the opportunity to learn about our history, discuss
and debate women's issues, and celebrate the literature and
culture women have created. Featured in our conversation tonight
on the history and future of women's studies are: Pamela Caughie
and Susan Ross from Loyola, which now offers a Master's Degree
in W.S.; Beth Kelly and Ann Russo from De Paul, which offers
a major in W.S.; Laurie Fuller and Sarah Hoagland from Northeastern,
where a petition for a W.S. major was recently tabled by the
Board of Trustees; Katrin Schultheiss and Judy Gardiner from
UIC, where W.S. is now part of a program called Gender and
Women's Studies. Students from each of the programs will be
on hand to offer their perspective and assessment.
Friday, March 9, 7:30 p.m.
Chuck Collins: Robin
Hood Was Right: A Guide to Giving Your Money for Social Change
Co-Director of United for a Fair Economy, author of Economic
Apartheid in America, and co-author, with Pam Rogers,
of Robin Hood Was Right,
Chuck Collins will be here tonight to talk about issues of
economic justice. The inscription in their book reads, "To
you, the reader, in the hope that this book will inspire you
to greater generosity and a deeper commitment to a freer,
kinder, more just world." Learn tonight how even a little
money put in the right places can help create social change.
This is an information session-not a fundraising event-and
is being co-sponsored by The Crossroads Fund.
Sunday, March 11, 5:00 p.m.
Laney Katz Becker:
Dear Stranger, Dearest Friend
A contemporary epistolary novel, Laney Katz Becker's story
unfolds in e-mail messages between two strangers sharing information
about breast cancer and, in the process, becoming good friends.
An absolutely compelling fictional story is enhanced by a
wealth of information on cancer detection and treatment. Whether
you are a survivor like Susan, or have just found a lump like
Lara, or are one of the millions of women who wonder what
you'd do if you did find a lump, this book is for you. Highly
recommended for medical practitioners working with breast
cancer patients.
Wednesday, March 14, 7:30 p.m.
Honoring Each Other and
Ourselves: A Celebration of Chicago Women Making History
One of the ways we observed Women's History Month last year
was by dramatizing the words of famous women of the past.
This year we're inviting some of our contemporaries who have
made history in Chicago by living and working in ways that
have changed women's lives during the last 30 years. Join
us for a conversation about what we've accomplished and where
we need to concentrate our efforts in the future. Special
guests include: Andra Medea, one the founders of Chimera,
a women's self-defense teaching group; Alice Dan from the
Center for Research on Women & Gender; Louise Champlin,
Director of the Chicago Women's Health Center; Mary Morten,
Director of the Chicago Foundation for Women; Reverend Lorraine
Frampton, a minister who pioneered women's roles in organized
religion; Lora Branch, who works for the Department of Human
Relations on Lesbian and Gay Issues.; and Tracy Baim, publisher
and managing editor of Lambda Publications, which publishes
Windy City Times, BLACKlines,
En la Vida, Nightlines
and other gay and lesbian media.
Sunday, March 18, 5:00 p.m.
Gina Gallo: Armed
& Dangerous: Memoirs of a Chicago Policewoman and Crime
Scenes
Gina Gallo joined the Chicago Police Department in 1982 when
there were few women in law enforcement. She was an officer
for 16 years, working in some of the roughest neighborhoods
in the city while working through the sexism she encountered
on the force. Armed & Dangerous
is her factual account of her experiences of those years;
Crime Scenes is a collection of fictional stories she's fashioned
out of some of those same experiences.
Tuesday, March 20, 7:30 p.m.
Women's Book Discussion:
No Constitutional Right to Be Ladies
Join us for a discussion of historian Linda Kerber's fascinating
interpretation of women's constitutional status and obligations
as citizens.
Wednesday, March 21, 7:30 p.m.
Jody Raphael: Saving
Bernice: Battered Women, Welfare, and Poverty
Bernice Hampton's story illustrates the deep connections between
poverty, the welfare system, and domestic violence. These
conditions combine in a powerful way to trap and severely
limit women. Through her own strength and resourcefulness
and with the help of people like Jody Raphael, Hampton managed
to escape and create a life for herself. Come to tonight's
discussion to talk with Jody and Bernice about problems, solutions,
and to be inspired.
Thursday, March 22, 7:30 p.m.
Leslie Whitaker and Elizabeth
Austin: The Good Girl's Guide to
Negotiating
Subtitled "How to Get What You Want at the Bargaining
Table," this very helpful book written by two Oak Park
journalists discusses negotiating a book contract, your salary,
a mortgage, a car purchase, or who changes the cat litter,
offering clear, consistent advice in a snappy, readable tone.
Leslie Whitaker is the author of three books on business and
personal finance and numerous articles on female entrepreneurship.
Elizabeth Austin's feature articles and essays have appeared
in numerous magazines and on National Public Radio.
Sunday, March 25, 5:00 p.m.
Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky:
Pro-Choice Strategy and Action Session, Part II
We held our first meeting at the store in February to discuss
how to respond to the anti-choice initiatives George W. Bush
undertook his first day and weeks in office. Joining about
125 concerned citizens and activists were Jan Schakowsky,
Congressman Rod Blagojevich, State Rep Harry Osterman, Marcie
Love from Personal Pac, Vesyl Marcus from Planned Parenthood,
and reps from NOW and student organizations across the city.
We shared a great deal of information, perspective, and strategy.
The notes from the meeting, including URL's of websites mentioned,
names and addresses of state and national representatives,
and phone numbers for various pro-choice organizations are
available by e-mailing Ann at wcfbooks@aol.com
or sending an SASE, att'n Ann to the bookstore. The meeting
tonight is to take some next steps. The importance of contacting
our legislative reps was made clear at the last meeting. We'll
write those letters and mail them. (We'll have form letters
you can customize or you can start from scratch.) The second
goal is to plan an action-or better still, a series of actions-that
will draw attention to the many bills being introduced that
seriously undermine a woman's right to reproductive control.
APRIL
EVENTS
Celebrate National Poetry Month
Recommended Reading :
The Extraordinary Tide: New Poetry
by American Women
Tuesday, April 3, 7:30 p.m.
Women's Open Mic Poetry
Reading
We're kicking off National Poetry Month with a reading that
combines the voices of some of the poets we already know with
those of you we have yet to meet. Invited readers include
Jenn Morea (Where the Ending Begins),
Anna West (This Without Crescendo),
Carole Spinelli (The Gift Forthcoming),
Maria McCray (5-time Chicago rep to the National Poetry Slam),
Paulette Beete (published in a number of journals), Beth Snyder
(MFA candidate at the School of the Art Institute), and long-time
poet and artist, Roberta Chanin. Each of these poets will
read 5-7 minutes; open mic participants should each plan to
read one poem. You don't need to call in advance; just show
up.
Thursday, April 5, 5:30 p.m.
Margaret Drabble: Chicago
Humanities Festival
Margaret Drabble, one of England's premier authors, has published
13 novels, edited the Oxford Companion
to English Literature, and also written criticism
and biography. Her excellent new novel, The
Peppered Moth, is the story of four generations
of women, with each woman reflecting on her connection to
her mother and her past. Drabble has also explained that the
novel was a way for her to explore and write about her relationship
with her own mother. Joining her tonight is her husband, the
biographer Michael Holroyd, who has recently published a book
on his family, Basil Street Blues.
The subject of their talk will be their recent work of examining
and writing family histories through research, memory, and
speculation. This event is at Ogden Elementary School, 24
W. Walton. To reserve your place at this free event call 312-661-1028,
ext. 24. We will be selling books there, and both authors
will be signing afterwards. You can also purchase books in
advance at the store.
Ogden Elementary School
Saturday
April 7, 2-3 p.m.
Margaret Drabble: Booksigning
Margaret Drabble will be in the store to autograph copies
of her new novel, The Peppered Moth,
and earlier novels as well. Stop by to meet one of the 20th
century's most distinguished writers.
Tuesday, April 17, 7:30 p.m.
Women's Book Discussion:
The Alphabet of Desire
by Barbara Hamby
At least once a year the women's book group chooses a book
of poetry to read and discuss. Publishers Weekly called Hamby's
first book " [A] demonic celebration of the feminine";
in this second collection, her travels in Europe provide the
inspiration and background.
Wednesday, April 18, 7:30 p.m.
Sue Bender: Stretching
Lessons
In her first book, Plain and Simple,
Sue Bender shared the wisdom she learned living with the Amish.
In her second, Everyday Sacred,
she shared her stories about trying to live peacefully and
simply in our hectic world. Rachel Naomi Remen (Kitchen Table
Wisdom) says of Bender's new book, "[She] has done it
again! Her elegant and candid memoir of her own courage to
grow will strengthen anyone who has ever doubted their ability
to change and reach for something larger."
Thursday, April 19, 7:30 p.m.
Karen Karbo:
Generation Ex: Tales from the Second Wives Club
From the "pundit of domesticity" comes a smart and
hilarious look at husbands, wives, and exes. Written from
the point of view of five women who gather periodically to
share stories and blow off steam, Generation Ex brings comic
relief and wisdom to what has become a fairly common, though
still maddening, state of affairs. Karbo is the author of
three novels, the most recent being Motherhood
Made a Man Out of Me, which The New York Times
Book Review called, "peevishly hilarious ... .[It] should
be clutched to the 'corn-silo sized' breasts of every new
mother."
Friday, April 20, 7:30 p.m.
Rebecca Brown: The
Terrible Girls
A play based on Rebecca Brown's book, The
Terrible Girls, opens April 16 at About Face Theatre
and will run until May 27. Brown's celebrated Gothic stories
explore postmodern romance in a toxic world. These dark lesbian
fairy tales describe impossible romances, in which love is
traded for parts of the human body. In the staging of the
play, women seek out what's missing-searching for the return
of a heart given too willingly. Join Rebecca tonight as she
reads from her book and talks about the production at About
Face.
Sunday, April 22, 5:00 p.m.
Jane R. Plitt: Martha
Matilda Harper and the American Dream
Plitt has done a wonderful job recovering the nearly buried
history of one of America's most enterprising entrepreneurs.
Sent out as a domestic at the age of seven from her Ontario
home, Martha eventually moved to Rochester, NY, where she
opened the first hair care salon in the country. The "Harper
Method" emphasized hygiene and scalp stimulation and
eschewed chemicals. Harper saw how her salon idea could be
franchised, thus allowing other poor women a business opportunity
and pioneering the concept of franchising itself. Eventually
there were 500 Harper salons internationally, including one
in Chicago. Martha Matilda Harper was a feminist and suffragist;
her visionary entrepreneurial ideals-customer satisfaction,
teamwork, good communication, and win-win business strategies-are
now considered regular practices of enlightened business management.
Tuesday, April 24, 7:30 p.m.
Jennifer Baumgardner
and Amy Richards: Manifesta: Young
Women, Feminism, and the Future
It's difficult to think of a subject more important than that
of what Third Wave women define as the crucial issues facing
women today and how they see shaping the future for themselves
and the next generations of women. Come for a discussion tonight
with two women well-qualified to speak to these issues. Jennifer
Baumgardner was an editor at Ms.
From 1993 to 1997 and is an active member of the Third Wave
Foundation and History in Action. Amy Richards is the co-founder
of Third Wave, a national activist organization for women
16-30. She is also a contributing editor to Ms. and works
as a consultant with the Ms Foundation for Women and Voters
for Choice.
Wed., April 25, 7:30 p.m., location
TBA
Margaret Cho: I'm
the One that I Want
Fierce, funny and wise, comedian Margaret Cho bares all in
this achingly honest look at her own life and times, including
her meteoric rise and near-fatal demise with her sitcom. Based
loosely on her stage show, this book is wholly original and
something of an emotional manifesto for those who embrace
difference and love themselves with all their flaws. The book
goes on sale April 24; the reading will be held off-site.Thursday,
April 26, 7:30 p.m.
Thursday, April 26, 7:30 p.m.
S.L. Wisenberg: The
Sweetheart is In
In these edgy, lyrical stories Chicago writer S.L. Wisenberg
portrays the yearnings of a little sister, the hazy memoir
of a concentration camp liberator, and the romantic entanglements
of political activists. Widely anthologized and published
in many magazines including The New Yorker and Tikkun, Wisenberg's
tales cover the spectrum of styles and subjects and are part
of today's renaissance in Jewish storytelling. Her work has
won a Pushcart Prize and several awards from the Illinois
Arts Council; she is a visiting scholar in Gender Studies
at Northwestern and teaches writing workshops throughout the
Chicago area.
