Women's History Month intends to honor, inspire, educate, unite and promote women in the face of forces intent on subjugating and silencing them. It is about those who overcame overt and imbedded assumptions and prejudice to be their best selves. RGB said it well:
“I ask no favor for my sex. All I ask of our brethren is that they take their feet off our necks.”
DAY 9: MARJORIE STONEMAN DOUGLAS
(Image from Wikipedia Commons)
“Be a nuisance when it counts. Do your part to inform and stimulate the public to join your action. Be depressed, discouraged, & disappointed at failure & the disheartening effects of ignorance, greed, corruption & bad politics — but never give up.” These words ring as strong and true now as they did when she spoke them, inspiring countless others to do the same.
Marjorie was an American journalist, author, civil and women’s rights defender, and conservationist. She learned to assess people and their intentions early, a trait that served her well as a newspaper editor and activist. The social and natural injustices of women, minorities and youth appeared often in her newspaper articles, stories and books. Her 1947 book The Everglades: River of Grass was a bestseller, and shone a light on the only everglades region in the world, and just how unique this region was. The book, and her efforts to protect this unique ecosystem, sits alongside Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring as premier groundbreaking activism to save planetary elements from human development. When the Governor of Florida wanted to drain the Everglades for development, she and her newspaper vehemently fought back, eventually resulting in protecting large areas as Everglades National Park.
Marjorie lived from 1890 to 1998. As she watched Miami, FL grow from a train stop of 5000 people to a sprawling city, she strongly fought for the rights of laborers to be treated fairly and equitably. She fought hard for women’s suffrage and the legal right to vote. Quitting the Miami Herald newspaper in 1923 to become a freelance writer gave her a broader, and perhaps more importantly, an unconstrained voice from where she drove her passions with unwavering commitment.
People listened when she spoke. When they didn’t, her quick wit jumped in. One interviewer note that "She had a tongue like a switchblade and the moral authority to embarrass bureaucrats and politicians and make things happen." When a group of builders and homeowners booed and jeered her at a meeting, she chided them by saying, "Can't you boo any louder than that!? Look. I'm an old lady. I've been here since eight o'clock. It's now eleven. I've got all night, and I'm used to the heat.” The laughter reset the room, and the meeting proceeded.
When she discovered that the slums of Miami's Coconut Grove neighborhood had no running water or sewers, she fought the two year battle to get that corrected, and in the interim, set up funding operations for residents to begin the process on their own.
Accolades and honors have been bestowed upon her from around the world for her tireless efforts. When Queen Elizabeth II visited her, she asked that trees be planted in her honor in lieu of any gifts and celebration. Over 100,000 were. Through it all, Marjorie remained steadfast and focussed on her goals and beliefs.
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