Geraldine Ferraro to speak at UVa

For every second of media coverage devoted to high-profile women’s issues like emergency contraception (and Senator Hillary Clinton’s political ambitions), Geraldine Ferraro is partly responsible. And Charlottesville citizens may have the opportunity to thank, commend, or disagree with her in person next week, when the woman with even more historical hype than Hillary comes to town.
On September 13, the University of Virginia’s Center for Politics (CFP) will co-sponsor a speech by Ferraro, the first woman to run for vice president on a national party ticket.
“As it is 2006, and we haven’t had a woman on a national ticket since 1984, Geraldine Ferraro was an appropriate choice for speaker,” says Holly Hatcher, Assistant Director of Programs at CFP.
The event will feature an introduction by Mary Sue Terry, former attorney general of Virginia, who was elected one year after Ferraro’s national campaign.
“I’m thrilled that she’s coming to town, and am looking forward to hearing her,” says another contemporary of Ferraro’s, former Vice Mayor of Charlottesville Meredith Richards. “But I’m a little sad, as well, because I feel that she represents a promise unfulfilled.  Women are still grossly underrepresented in elected office.”
With “Plan B” recently cleared for over-the-counter distribution, Richards—who is also president of Planned Parenthood Advocates of Virginia—expressed interest in hearing Ferraro’s thoughts on reproductive rights.
“At the time that Ferraro was nominated, we never could’ve imagined the erosion of reproductive rights that has happened since then,” says Richards.
Many of Democrat Ferraro’s most promising steps for women in politics came after her unsuccessful campaign with Walter Mondale in 1984. A former congresswoman, Ferraro worked as a delegate to the United Nations Human Rights Commission and served as a co-host of CNN’s “Crossfire.” In 2003, Ferraro was a signatory on the National Democratic Institute’s “Win with Women” global forum.
Ferraro’s speech will be held at the Newcomb Hall Ballroom at 7pm. The event is free and open to the public.