Co-sponsored by the American Association of University Women, Chicago Branch; the University of Illinois Library; the Vivian G. Harsh Society; and WWHP.
On March 8, 2020, a diverse, enthusiastic and engaged audience met at the University of Illinois Library to hear a lecture on African American suffragists delivered by Marcia Walker-McWilliams, Executive Director of the Black Metropolis Research Consortium. Her lecture was followed by a panel moderated by Elizabeth Todd-Breland, Associate Professor in the Dept. of History at the University of Illinois at Chicago. Panelists Asiaha Butler, founder and president of the Residents Association of Greater Englewood; Delmarie Cobb, founder of Ida’s Legacy; Ibie Hart, the Women’s Business Development Manager of the Illinois Dept. of Commerce and Economic Opportunity; and Anne Jamieson, president of the Chicago branch of League of Women Voters explored connections between our suffrage history and current social activism. They discussed the issues first among themselves and later with questions from the audience. Four organizations: Ida’s Legacy; League of Women Voters; Rainbow Push; and University of Illinois Library, staffed tables with material to inform attendees of their work.