Please join us on Tuesday, March 14

Women in Power

A Panel of Current/Former Mayors of San Clemente, San Juan Capistrano, Dana Point, and Laguna Beach Discuss Current Issues in Their Towns Plus What to Do about the Nuclear Waste Dump

Lori Donchak, San Clemente
Pam Patterson, San Juan Capistrano
Debra Lewis, Dana Point
Toni Iseman, Laguna Beach

Agostino’s Ristorante Italiano (agostinosbythesea.com)
Tuesday, March 14 dinner/social hour at 5:30, Meeting at 7
34700 Coast Highway, Capistrano Beach 92624

Women have become a formidable force in politics and one just came very close to becoming President. The “Million Woman March” on Washington was probably the largest protest in the history of the country. It may not have been a million but it was three times larger than Trump’s inauguration and twice the size of the march in August of 1963 when Martin Luther King gave his famous “I have a dream” speech. All told, about 3 million people participated in over 500 protest marches all over the world on Jan 21. Visit the photo gallery of our website (https://socprogressives.com/) for 50 photos of the Women’s March in San Clemente which drew almost 1,000 people.

The issue of women in power remains controversial. Jennifer Weiner recently criticized Melania Trump as “First Lady Who Wouldn’t” (she continues to lives in the Trump New York penthouse) in a piece called “Want Melania Trump in the White House? Pay Her” (https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/18/opinion/sunday/want-melania-trump-in-the-white-house-pay-her.html). But then the Times came out with an editorial on Feb. 26 “Too Few Women in the Political Pipeline” https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/25/opinion/why-so-few-women-in-state-politics.html Women in Europe have almost double the representation in parliaments compared to American women in Congress.

As seen by the impressive local marches, we are fortunate to have so many women stepping forward. In town government, we continue to have women assuming leadership roles. This meeting will celebrate their dedication and inspiration.

The social hour and dinner will start at 5:30 followed by the meeting at 7. It is important to RSVP so the restaurant can hire wait staff and arrange tables well in advance.

RSVP necessary: [email protected]
Housekeeping details: Our last few meetings have been packed and everyone is aware that attendance has doubled recently at most functions of this type. The banquet room only holds about 75 so when we reach that number of RSVPs we will close the event to late responders or non-responders. Those without a reservation might be able to dine in the main dining room or the two restaurants next door (Good Choice Sushi or Sunsets Bar and Grill) and hope that there will be some empty seats when the meeting starts. Please remember that the RSVP does not guarantee you a private table, only that there should be room for you somewhere in the banquet room (most tables are for 6 or 8). Those who come earlier will have more choice. When you RSVP, please indicate the names of everyone in your party so we can have a name tag ready. We will acknowledge your RSVP as long as there is room but those without a name tag may have to dine nearby instead of the banquet room. Another Inconvenient Detail is that we will be asking for a minor donation at the door, say about $5 for a couple, $3 for singles, more if you want. Many feel that fishbowl financing is preferable to charging dues, electing a treasurer, voting on a budget, etc. Hope that is OK with everyone.