Yesterday I had the privilege of attending Obama for America's Ohio Women Vote 2012 Summit! It was such a fantastic experience. It was at Union Terminal in Cincinnati. I had never been there, and just fell in love with the architecture! There were about 200 women there--and maybe 10 guys! :) We stood in line for about 30 minutes before we went in to the auditorium and it was so cool to talk with the other women in line. I was next to a woman who drove here all the way from Springfield, Ohio because it was so important to her to be here for this event. She was fantastic! She did her Master's thesis on the abuse of slave women and we got to talking about that for a while...it was really interesting. Another woman I met was a high school senior from Cincinnati who is a super-feminist! She was hilarious and I absolutely loved her knowledge of the feminist movement starting all the way back in the 1700s! She was so passionate and I can't wait to see what she ends up doing with her life. Another woman who was sitting behind me goes to school online and the thing that excites her most about Obama is his commitment to student loans and keeping up Pell grants so she might be able to go to the University of Cincinnati after she gets her Associate's degree. The energy was amazing--everyone was hyped up!
Kate Chapek
Kate Chapek is the Obama Campaign National Women's Vote Director. She was the best MC of this event! She had so much energy and she was fun! My favorite thing she said when talking about what this election means for our country is, "It's not about making history, it's about protecting history." Love it! She also mentioned that statistics show that women trust other women when it comes to deciding who to vote for. When women talk to other women, they don't even realize that the other woman on the other end of the phone is going to be taking in your opinions and will be using that to help shape their own opinion.
The former First Lady of Ohio, Frances Strickland, also spoke. I can honestly say I barely remember what she said. She was kind of monotonous and my mind wandered.
Mary Shelton
This woman, Mary Shelton, is one of the most inspiring women I've ever had the pleasure of hearing speak. She is a campaign volunteer for Obama for America - Ohio and has a developmentally disabled daughter, now 48, who still lives with her. She opened her own small business (this is her website) to help other developmentally disabled people get the care they need, because she realized there are not a lot of people helping that demographic. It's taken off! Her agency is helping people in the Greater Cincinnati Area and they take care of these people who cannot take care of themselves. She said, "The day the Supreme Court deemed the Affordable Care Act constitutional is the day I signed up to volunteer for Obama's campaign." I think the reason she was so amazing to me is that she is a real person with a real story about how Obama has helped her.
Alicia Reece
Alicia Reece (D) is an Ohio representative. She was such a great speaker! Her story is about how her mom and dad started a small business to have their own part of the 'American Dream' and were very successful--until her mom woke up blind in one eye one Christmas morning. They went to the hospital, but the doctors didn't want to diagnose her because her insurance would drop her if she ended up having anything serious. So, she kept trying to live without knowing what was going on with her body. She ended up in a wheelchair and finally got diagnosed with MS. The day she got diagnosed is the day her insurance company said she was no longer covered. Unfortunately, Alicia's mother died in December 2008. Had she still been alive today, the Affordable Care Act would have given her insurance again. Alicia is fighting for Obama because people like her mom can't. We all need to fight for Obama so our loved ones can live to fight another day. Alicia was an absolutely phenomenal speaker and I was so "Fired Up" after her speech! People like her are the reason people like me get up and volunteer!
Natalie Portman
So, of course, the headline speaker of this Summit was Natalie Portman! She was good! I was talking with Lara, a volunteer friend of mine, after the summit and we love the way celebrities use their status and influence to campaign for people. It's amazing, because you know, even if some people don't pay attention to politics but Natalie Portman is their favorite actress, once they get to the polls they might think, "Oh I don't know who to vote for, but I know Natalie is voting for Obama, so I will, too." It was great! She talked about education and about being a woman, and how we've been having some crazy things being said about our bodies by Republicans lately; and how Obama doesn't agree with that at all. I got parts of her speech on video and it was just so great to see one of my favorite actresses ("Black Swan" is one of my favorite movies!) saying things that are so in line with what I believe! It was a very exciting experience. I wish we had gotten some time after her speech to take photos and get autographs with her, but, you know, I still got to hear her speak while I was sitting in the fourth row, and that's pretty cool. :)
These are a couple of sound-bytes of Natalie's speech. Unfortunately, my phone ran out of space at the end of the second video (still had Obama's speech on it!) so I didn't catch the end of her speech, but I thought you all might like these.
I love this photo of her. She is happy about Obama! :) How cool!
So, women: this election is about us. We are the majority in this country; we are going to decide this election. So let's make it about us! Let's put the work in: phone bank, canvass, talk to people, share your opinion! Remember: women trust other women. If you influence three women and then they each influence three women, how far can we go?
"Be the change you wish to see in the world." --Gandhi
Yesterday was truly spectacular! My sister and I went to Eden Park in Cincinnati to watch Obama speak. We had a fantastic time; so much so, in fact, that I am going to be working on another page for my blog with photos and video of Obama I took, as well as news about him and a place to discuss it! It's going to be a huge part of the next six weeks' news, so it probably deserves its own page. Stay tuned over the next 24 hours for that page; I'll be working on it today!
As amazing as yesterday was, there were some serious consequences. I was under the impression that there would be chairs or benches or something for us to sit on. I was apparently mistaken. We were standing for hours on concrete steps once we got into the park. Before that, we were standing on the street outside because we were told that we had to take our camping chairs back to our car. All in all, we were standing or sitting on concrete for six hours.
As people were lining up to go into the park, there were volunteers taking people with walkers or canes into a different line. I asked one man if, since I have a chronic pain condition, I could get in that line, too. He said that it was only for people with apparatuses. I look completely healthy. So, this got me thinking: what does it take for a person with fibromyalgia to get the opportunity to get a chair? I started looking around online and chatted with a representative at americanmedical-id.com about it:
You are now chatting with 'Vanessa'
Vanessa:Thank you for visiting our website. My name is Vanessa. How may I help you?
you: Hi! I have fibromyalgia and was denied a seat yesterday at an event. I ended up standing for six hours and I am incapacitated today because of it. If I got a medical ID would that give me a shot at getting a chair next time?
Vanessa: That is awful to hear. I am sorry about that. Since all ID's are custom engraved we can have that info on any of the items
Vanessa: Have youhad a chance to browse the site? Do you see anything you like so far ?
you: Yes--I understand that I can get anything on it, I'm just wondering if people who haven't even heard of fibro will honor it if I show it to them.
Vanessa:I , unfortunately cannot answer that with certainty as everyone will react different to this information. Fibromyalgia is common and dont see why they would not honor it
you: Okay, thanks...I will talk to my fiancé about the IDs I like and I'll get back with you soon! :) Thank you so much for your help!
Vanessa: You are welcome.
So maybe this is an answer! I asked on a fibromyalgia forum what other people do. I haven't gotten any responses yet, so I will update this later with their answers and ideas.
I think that my experience yesterday, though, is a reminder to all of us with chronic pain conditions, whether it be fibromyalia or CFS or anything else, that we need to take care of ourselves and choose what we do that is outside of our comfort zones. Any time we do anything that is out of routine for us, we feel it. We have to think ahead of everything we want to do, "Is this going to be worth it tomorrow when I can barely get out of bed?" Now, I feel like yesterday was 100% worth it, but I also wish I had been able to have a chair. This experience also throws into sharp relief that not everyone is educated on fibromyalgia and we need to continue to share what we go through every day with more people.
Here are some good websites to go to if you would like to learn more about fibromyalgia:
Please raise awareness in your communities, whether it be in your neighborhoods or online. Fibromyalgia is real and needs to be made known. Maybe next time Obama is in town the "Fibrobama" fans will get a seat.
"Be the change you wish to see in the world." --Gandhi
This post is going to be a little bit serious; it's on a topic that is very close to my heart.
Yesterday in the news there was a story about Erica DePalo, a 2011 "Teacher of the Year," who was arrested for having a sexual relationship with one of her students. While this alone is enough to make my blood boil, the thing that caught my attention and really infuriated me was that former students who are now in college were interviewed and said that there were always jokes going around about her relationships with students. That means that people knew about this at least six years ago, which means that this 15-year-old student is not the first to have this happen with this teacher. Generally, students aren't going to pick up on something like that and joke about it unless there is something actually there. I have no idea if the administration at her school knew about what was going on or had heard the rumors, but it is their job to know what is going on in that school and take every rumor or joke very seriously, especially when it involves a teacher-student relationship.
Now, I want to be very clear that I am not blaming the students or administration for what happened. While it is important that everything is reported and investigated, every teacher has a responsibility to his or her students. When a teacher signs a contract, they also sign a code of ethics. In this overview of a standard code of ethics for teachers, Principle I is about protecting students. It is never in a student's best interest for a teacher to flirt with him or her, or start a sexual relationship. What this teacher did is an abomination. It has changed the course of those students' lives. Even though they have graduated, are (possibly) in college, and maybe even engaged or married already, they will never forget what happened to them in high school, and it may take them years of therapy before they can really, truly trust again.
So, students, if you know there is something inappropriate going on between a teacher and a student in your school, please tell someone. It needs to stop now.
Administrators, if you know there is something inappropriate going on between a teacher and a student in your school, please take the right action, not just the convenient action. It needs to stop now.
At the bottom of this story, which is the same one I linked at the beginning of this post, there is a set of photos of "Teachers Behaving Badly." There are 35. In a few days, I'm sure Ms. DePalo's photo will be among these. But what about the teachers who haven't been caught and fired yet, like Ms. DePalo wasn't for last six years? They are out there, and it is our job to do our part and bring them to justice.
Keep our children safe. Keep each other safe.
"Be the change you wish to see in the world." --Gandhi
