Issue link: https://nnumagazine.uberflip.com/i/197973
Suffrage_FNL with art 10/5/10 4:05 PM Page 14 "I think the suffragist movement is about showing how solidarity can get things done." Many RNs interviewed said that they attended the event because they were determined to protect California's mandatory RN-topatient safe staffing ratios. They did not trust that Whitman, who has repeatedly said she supported deregulation of business, would uphold nursing ratios. "I've been a nurse for 24 years and I remember what it was like before we had ratios," said Chris Davis, a labor and delivery RN at Ventura County Medical Center. Davis was costumed as a British Red Cross nurse, complete with apron and hat. "Sometimes I used to have 14 moms by myself. I'm here to be an advocate for safe patient staffing ratios and to ensure the safety of my children and my children's children, and also the next generation of nurses." The event was attended by some notables, including California Assemblywoman Loni Hancock, who presented the nurses with a state resolution commending them for their voting rights work, and by Elizabeth Jenkins-Sahlin, the great, great, great granddaughter of Elizabeth Cady Stanton, a prominent early women's suffragist. "I'm so happy to be part of this living legacy," said JenkinsSahlin, 25. "I'm so happy that so many have come out to take advantage of their right to free speech and assembly to work for change and progress." Many RNs honored earlier generations of nurses and women in their families by incorporating special clothing or pieces of jewelry into their costumes and attire. Deborah Burger, RN and a CNA/NNU copresident, wore a delicate lace collar that her first mother-in-law had hand tatted and antique cufflinks that belonged to her, too. Catherine Noble, a medical-surgical RN in Templeton, Calif. who volunteers for the Red Cross, was decked out in a vintage Red Cross nursing cap and antique pins. Pat Schramm, a retired RN, wore a vintage velvet cloche hat that had been passed down to her from a favorite aunt. The celebration of women's and nurses' political power was particularly moving for Mariana Holiday, a telemetry RN at San Gabriel Valley Medical Center. Holiday immigrated from thenYugoslavia to the United State in the late 1980s and is proud to have become a nurse and a voter. "Our profession is very powerful," said Holiday. "I have an obligation to be here to represent all the human race and all women across the world." Lucia Hwang is editor of National Nurse. Senior Nurses Have Long Memories etired registered nurse kay mcvay remembers well the days of her early career when she was expected to fetch coffee for doctors, stand up and offer them her seat when they entered the room, and even light their cigarettes. That's why the sight of more than 2,500 RNs marching in the streets of Sacramento Aug. 26, not only reminding voters of the intense struggle that earlier generations of women R 14 N AT I O N A L N U R S E activists endured to win the franchise but also of their current political power, made her proud beyond words. "We are actually closer to the time of the suffragists and understand the restrictions that were put on women," said McVay, president emeritus of the California Nurses Association. "When we came into nursing, we were thought of as the handmaidens." McVay was one of a contingent of retiree RNs who still remain nursing activists even after they stop working. The retiree division, as it is called, is committed to participating in NNU events and particularly in nurturing the next generation of nurses by visiting secondary schools to talk about nursing as a career. They also plan to go into nursing schools to talk to students about what nursing used to be like and how far it has come – thanks largely to the efforts of nurse union members who have organized for better wages, working conditions, autonomy, and respect. "We're there to show there's life after working 12 hours a day," said Pat Schramm, a retired RN from San Jose. "You can still be part of this wonderful union and make a difference. We still stand on picket lines. I've been to Las Vegas and Yuba City to support nurses. We'll go anywhere and do anything to promote what we believe in." Retired registered nurse Diana Madoshi had always harbored an interest in the women's suffrage movement and in women's history. As a board member of the group California Alliance of Retired Americans, she had marched in suffragist parades before, but never on the scale of the Aug. 26 events. "It was very beautiful," said Madoshi. "Nurses are primarily women, and for us to be taken seriously as women has been a problem until we stand together. Being a nurse, it's a natural thing to care about your community and the health of your community. That doesn't change when you're retired." W W W. N A T I O N A L N U R S E S U N I T E D . O R G SEPTEMBER 2010