The Women's Group 1999 Annual Report
First Unitarian Universalist Church

A Feminist Group for all women ( each woman defines her own feminism) that meets every Sunday at 10:45 a.m. in the Sojourner Truth Room, 3rd floor. For more information call Iris Greer Sizemore, (713) 529-8571 or Laura Reich, (713) 529-1886. e-mail: ChzHead005@aol.com

The Women's Group, founded in September of 1976, resulted from women in the congregation developing the need for empowerment and transformation. The very first meeting place was the fireplace in Channing Hall. The Women's Group provided a forum for feminist inquiry, an incubation for personal activism, challenges for growth, and celebration of a female community. The membership grew from within the congregation as well as extrapolating from the Houston women's movement of the 1970's, and has continued to grow into the next millennium as the feminist community progresses and diversifies. On any given Sunday, you can meet a woman from any walk of life; come back the next week and you will meet her opposite.

The Women's Group meets every Sunday morning at 10:45 AM - Noon for community announcements followed by a speaker or group discussion. The group is organized in a non-traditional fashion in that there are no formal officers. Direction is provided from the membership at large and facilitated by a few long-standing members. The forum is open to all women who want a voice and wish to develop or present a topic of interest. Topics are as varied as women in the world: business, academia, healthcare, relationships, financial planning, psychotherapy, politics, spiritual, etc. A sampling of topics are listed:

-Sex, Sports and Rock N Roll: Kristin Anderson, Ph.D.
-Exposing the Promise Keepers; the Dangers of Tolerating Gracious Submission: Jeanne Sommerfeld, Attorney at Law and President of Texas State N.O.W.
-International Trading of Women: Alice Lauchtag
-Debra Danburg, State Representative for Legislative District 137
-Identity Crisis-Identity Workshop to Explore Media Representation: Andrea Roberts and Angela Williamston
-Power Struggles and Boundaries in Relationships: Denise O'Doherty, LPC, MSN, LCDC, LMFT
-Financial Empowerment for Women: Laurie Adams, CPA
-Women's Views on the Effects of U.S. and U. N. Sanctions in Iraq: Ann Bragdon, Ph.D., Professor of Anthropology at H.C.C. and U.H.-Downtown
-Asian Outreach from the Houston Area Women's Center (HAWC): Metta Khanti, Asian Outreach Coordinator for HAWC
-Why Relationships Succeed or Fail: Julia Babcock, Ph.D.
-Women in Power and the Women Who Empower Them: City Controller Sylvia Garcia
-Effectively Communicate Your Value in the Workplace: Shelley Fitze
-Women's Issues and City Hall: Cindy Clifford, Special Assistant to the Mayor on Women's Issues

In addition to weekly meetings, The Women's Group has spawned new groups such as Women Against Global Trafficking (WAGT) and the Amazon Xociety. WAGT meets 4th Thursdays and is linked with other peace organizations in Houston. WAGT held a public forum for International Women's Day, March 8th, in the Sanctuary, where Sissy Farenthold was the keynote speaker. The Amazon Xociety meets 4th Mondays and is an intergenerational feminist organization. The Xociety is dedicated to the elevation of women in society by addressing practical issues through the promotion of a strong mind, mentoring, and personal/economic development. Beyond groups directly linked to The Women's Group, members are involved across community programs throughout Houston: Parents, Family, Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG), Houston Area Women's' Center (HAWC), Lesbians United in Coalition (LUC), and AssistHers, to name a few.

An effective tool that has been developed and implemented is the use of an email distribution list. Members are notified about weekly meetings and other items of interest. Soon to be released will be the first Internet web site dedicated solely to The Women's Group and it's affiliations.


Message for the 21st Century
Editorial by Iris Sizemore, Founder and Facilitator

As a feminist women's group we must bring a historical awareness of our movement (and always the predictable backlash) and seize this "open moment" to build upon this century's gains! The most significant change in women's lives this century has been gaining the right to vote in 1920. Today women are the most important voting block in America and tomorrow we can be equally represented in government.

But we must not be ignorant of our relationship to history and demands of our thinking and energy in the stress of:


A. Economics: Women still earn no more than 85% of men's wages for the same job, and workplace structures still tend to not be compatible with child-rearing responsibilities.
B. Invisibility and Omission: Women are still not fully represented in history books, the women's perspective is seldom represented in the media, and women often have no face in the boardroom. As a result, more women are starting their own successful businesses and also speaking their voices in society.
C. Fragility of Feminist Consciousness: We must not forget the energized masses of women wanting change and resulting in the right to vote, birth control, Title VII, Title IX, and the Family Leave Act.
D. Awareness of Self: Women have taken control of their bodies and sexuality, however we are still boxed-in by society to be pretty, boyishly thin and submissive. Younger generations appear to have higher self-esteem and more freedom of expression.

We must learn at last, we must use our money, our voice, our will, our positive self, and our vote to continue the transformation of women's status in the new millennium.



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