Soroptimist International of Los Angeles
ACTION SPEAKS LOUDER THAN WORDS
October/November 2015                                                                    Vol. 7, Issue 2

FULBRIGHT SCHOLAR SPEAKS by Carole Oglesby 

Dr. Kathleen Young is a full professor in the Health Sciences Department at California State University Northridge and recently returned from a six  month Fulbright Grant assignment in China.

She has been a longtime expert in anti-smoking advocacy, policy and research. In the next month she will be hosting a return-engagement Fulbright Scholar from China.

Dr. Young shared the status of women’s health studies in China at the September 21st meeting, pointing out vulnerabilities there including over emphasis on “thinness” and white/light skin and strengths such as their focus on “balance or  yin/yang” in eating and daily life stress.


 

FIGHTING HUMAN TRAFFICKING  by Joyce Jacob



Susan Patterson was the speaker at the October 7^th meeting on the subject of Human Trafficking. 


Susan has written two books, How You Can Fight Human Trafficking and 15 Minutes Healthy Organic Meals For Less Than $10 a Day.


She makes the point of protecting the environment and living a way that promotes justice for all, for example, by purchasing fair trade products to prevent labor trafficking. For more information go to www.throughGodsgrace.com.


 

DR. SMART ADDRESSES SILA by Bev Johnson
 

Dr. Nina Smart PhD. is a human rights activist, sociologist and author who works to educate people about female genital mutilation (FGM) and eradicate the practice in Sierra Leone.

In her memoir, Wild Flower, she shares the story of her coming of age in a West African culture that considers women to be the property of first their fathers, then their husbands. The father arranged to have her abducted and inducted into Bondo, the secret society for women. The initiation rite for Bondo is FGM. She escaped!

In 2004 Dr. Smart founded Servicing Wild Flowers, a Los Angeles based non-profit NGO that raises awareness about FGM through lectures and presentations.  In 2011 she received her Ph.D. in sociology from the University of California, Irvine. She straddles many cultures- Romanian, American, West African, academia and activism.
 

Julie Mairs, Carole Oglesby, Sunny-Kim Barden and Joyce Jacob attended an  UN Association of USA 8th Annual West Coast Global Forum on the subject of “Gender equality equals empowering humanity”.

There were great speakers and presentations of three winners for the 2015 Global Citizen Award. One winner was the Empower Nepali Girls Foundation, established in 2001 that supports and mentors girls who are at risk to be trafficked into sex slavery or forced into early marriage. They currently provide scholarships, tutoring, and guidance for more that 300 girls in the most remote and neglected parts of Nepal. The majority of donations go to keep the girls in school and out of harm’s way. http://www.empowernepaligirls.org/.

BREAKFAST AT THE DOWNTOWN WOMEN'S CENTER
by Bev Johnson
 
On Saturday October 24^th Jeri Durham, Joyce Jacob, Lessie Caballero, Bev Johnson, Carole Oglesby, Sheila Tatum, Diane Vernon, Jessica Washington and Mina Pratt (Bev’s out of town guest) arrived at 6:30 a.m. to cook breakfast for 125 women at the Downtown Women’s center.  The menu was spinach and peach frittata, hash browns and fruit.

In addition to preparing and serving breakfast, the SILA group donated a large box of personal items including tooth brushes, lotions, shampoo and soap to the center.  Also members donated 2 boxes and 3 large bags of clothing.

 
 

At the October 21^st meeting SILA, members made their annual donations to Clothes the Deal. That organization provides clothing to clients recommended to them for job interviews and to wear in the workplace. The donations must be clean and appropriate for the intended use.  Also donated were shoes, accessories and jewelry.

DREAM IT, BE IT    By Joyce Jacob

SILA is committed to supporting programs to support women and girls. One Club project is DREAM IT, BE IT which is a new program from SIA . The program goal is: through education and access to role models, girls will be empowered to pursue their career goals and reach their full potential.

SILA decided to have the small group mentoring setting. We were able to have a contact through  CENTER FOR THE EMPOWERMENT OF FAMILIES, our 2015 Community Hero Awardee, who introduced us to LAUSD Thomas Riley High School for Pregnant Minors. This was a great match!

There are four SILA Members, Joyce Jacob, Jeri Durham, Jessica Washington and Sunny-Kim Barden, who have gone through the guidelines for consent and background checks. We have set up our dates and will be following the curriculum provided by the Dream it, Be it project.   
 
At present, we have presented two sessions: session 1: Discovering Your Dreams; session 2: Exploring Careers. It was a great response and another feel good day! We will continue with updates.