2020 Convention
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2020 Convention Honoring History - Making Herstory Celebrating and Strategizing June 14 2020 1 pm CDT/2 pm EDT 1920—2020 TFDW Call to Convention 2020 Page 2 Welcome! Dear Federation Members, I, Mary Linden Salter, President of the Tennessee Federation of Democratic Women, pursuant to Article VI, Section 5 and Article VII, Section 1, issue the 64th Annual Call to Conven- tion. I am so very pleased with all the work of the east Ten- nessee chapters including PROWD, the Greater Chattanooga Democratic Women and Anderson County Democratic Women who came together to work to make this the intended convention so meaningful for all of us. I want to thank in particular to Pamela Weston, East TN Vice President and Laurie McNeece, Recording Secretary - both PROWD chapter members who orga- nized the planning by PROWD and our east Tennessee chapters. I am very hopeful that we can honor their work by convening the Fall Board meeting or some other event in Athens, TN and touring the Niota, TN area as planned for this convention. I also hope that the opportunity to make a tribute to the impact of Febb and Harry Burn’s contributions to winning our right to vote will inspire all of us all to at- tend in the Fall as we consider support for the ERA and other initiatives to address human rights. It is my privilege and pleasure to welcome you to our convention this year as we mark the 100th anniversary of the constitutional amendment granting women the right to vote. We can take great pride in the accomplishments of many women pioneers for suffrage while acknowledging that we have many battles still to win today. I know as a proud Democrat, we must take every opportunity to acknowledge the contributions to our country of every man and eve- ry woman, no matter their background or status. This is a county founded on opportunity for all. We edge closer to that reality every day thanks to all our efforts. Please use this call to convention as a tool to help shape the efforts of your chapter, to bring your exper- tise to our discussions of ,support for candidates, our finances and our purpose. We will be acknowledg- ing the past in our tributes at this meeting and others this year — but we will also be shaping our fu- ture. I am confident that you will find inspiration in the works of other chapters around the state, our young scholarship winners and in the commitment each of our new officers makes to our organization. I am proud to work with each of you and to acknowledge the work that each chapter and each member gives to this organization and to our work to elect Democrats—especially women Democrats. Thank you for attending our virtual Convention - we will have a great time as always and it promises to be an event to remember. Mary Linden Salter TFDW President TFDW Call to Convention 2020 Page 3 TFDW Call to Convention 2020 Page 4 TN Dis- Office trict Counties in District Candidate Name TN House D 13 Knox Gloria Johnson TN House D 18 Knox Virginia Couch TN House D 20 Blount Susan Sneed TN House D 25 Cumberland, Van Buren, and Putnam Robyn Deck TN House D 30 Hamilton Joseph Udeaja TN House D 34 Maury Mary Vaughn TN House D 37 Rutherford Mariah Phillips TN House D 63 Williamson Elizabeth Madeira TN House D 65 Williamson Jennifer Foley TN House D 78 Cheatham and part of Dickson Holly Spann TN House D 82 Crockett, Haywood and Lauderdate Andrea Bond-Johnson TN House D 87 Shelby Karen Camper TN House D 91 Shelby London Lamar TN House D 95 Shelby Lynette Williams Tn Senate D 4 Johnson, Carter and Sullivan Amber Riddle Tn Senate D 10 Bradley and part of Hamilton Glenn Scruggs Coffee, Franklin, Grundy, Marion, Sequatchie, Tn Senate D 16 Van Buren and Warren Sheila Younglove Tn Senate D 22 Stewart, Houston, and Montgomery Ronnie Glynn Chester, Decatur, Fayette, Hardeman, Hardin, Tn Senate D 26 Haywood, McNairy, and Henderson Civil Miller-Watkins Tn Senate D 32 Tipton, and part of Shelby Julie Byrd Ashworth Scott, Morgan, Roane, Anderson, Union and US House TN-3 most of Campbell Meg Gorman TFDW Call to Convention 2020 Page 5 Convention Rules Adopted April 19 2002 1. Only registered members and registered guests shall be admitted to the convention busi- ness sessions. 2. Delegates shall wear the delegate badge at all meeting. 3. A Sergeant at Arms shall be appointed whose duty will be to keep order in the convention hall. 4. The President shall appoint three timekeepers for the purpose of debate. 5. A member addressing the presiding officer shall give her name and the name of the club before assigned the floor. 6. Only delegates shall be permitted to make motions, debate and vote. 7. Debate shall be limited to three (3) speakers on each side with a limit of two (2) minutes for each speaker. Upon a Proper Motion and A two- Thirds vote, any one subject may be further debated by two (2) minutes each. The maker of the motion shall have the privilege of speaking first, and shall also be allowed to close debate with a limit of one (1) minute. 8. Each Main Motion shall be submitted in writing and signed by the proposer and seconder. It shall be submitted to the recording secretary before the close of the business. 9. Doors shall be closed at all meeting of the convention except when ordered open by open by the presiding officer; delegates shall be admitted at any time. 10. For the purpose of this meeting only, one -third of the delegates present shall constitute a quorum. 11. All members of the Federation and guests of the convention will not smoke while in meet- ings. 12. These rules may or may not be amended unless by the to-thirds vote of the majority of reg- istered delegates at the Convention after the proposed changes has been distributed in writing to all registered delegates. 13. The latest edition of "Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised" shall be the authority for those things not covered by these rules. 14. All cell phones are to be turned off or silent at all times during events. TFDW Call to Convention 2020 Page 6 Glenda Carter with Mary Mancini, TN Democratic Party Chair TFDW Call to Convention 2020 Page 7 TFDW Call to Convention 2020 Page 8 Women's Suffrage: Tennessee and the Passage of the 19th Amendment Tennessee played a pivotal role in the passage of the 19th Amendment, which granted women the right to vote in 1920. By that summer, 35 of the 36 states necessary had ratified the amendment. Eight states had rejected the amendment, and five had not voted. Suffragists saw Tennessee as their last, best hope for ratification before the 1920 presidential election. Governor Albert H. Roberts called a special session of the General Assembly on August 9 to consider the issue. Pro-suffrage and anti-suffrage activists from around the state and the country descended on Nashville, intent on influencing the legislature. Tennessee women played a vital role in rallying support for the 19th Amendment. Ann Dallas Dudley of Nashville, Abby Crawford Milton of Chattanooga, and Sue Shelton White of Jackson were prominent among those who fought to gain popular and legislative support for women’s suffrage. Among the na- tional suffrage leaders in Nashville that summer was Carrie Chapman Catt, president of the National American Woman Suffrage Association. The anti-suffrage movement also counted numerous Tennessee women among its leaders, including Josephine A. Pearson, a Monteagle, TN educator who was president of the Tennessee State Association Opposed to Woman Suffrage and the Southern Woman’s League for the Rejection of the Susan B. Anthony Amendment. Each of these women is represented on the Suffrage monument. The summer of 1920 was one of intense pro- and anti-suffrage activity in Nashville. After the resolution passed easily in the Tennessee State Senate, both sides lobbied furiously to secure votes in the state House of Representatives where the vote was extremely close. When young Harry T. Burn of Niota changed his vote to support ratification, he broke a tie in the House of Representatives and made history. The Tennessee General Assembly voted to approve the 19th Amendment to the United State Constitution on August 18, 1920. Opponents worked feverishly to rescind the ratification vote on constitutional techni- calities. Some anti-suffrage legislators even fled the state in an attempt to prevent a quorum in the Gen- eral Assembly. Their efforts failed, and on August 24, 1920, Governor Albert H. Roberts certified Tennes- see’s ratification of the 19th Amendment. Two days later, U. S. Secretary of State Bainbridge Colby issued a proclamation that officially declared the ratifica- tion of the 19th Amendment and made it part of the United States Constitution. Tennessee provid- ed the 36th and final state needed to ratify this landmark amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Left: Alan LeQuire’s sculpture in Centennial Park in- cludes five women who were involved in Tennes- see’s ratification of the 19th Amendment, granting women the right to vote. The figures are Anne Dal- las Dudley of Nashville (front right), Frankie Pierce of Nashville (back left), Carrie Chapman Catt (national suffrage leader who came to Tennessee for the final battle– front left), Sue Shelton White of Jackson, (back center) and Abby Crawford Mil- ton of Chattanooga (back right). The statue is framed by members of the Perfect 36 Society.