DEI: Building Power

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Resources

Type:

Blog Post

A presentation to the League of Women Voters Board of Directors by

Hannah E. Parker, LWVSC Director, DEI

While our nation still works to end political and social unrest in eastern Europe and other parts of the globe, since we last met the League, partners of the League and other citizens have been diligent in their efforts to build power on various levels in the pursuit of “Empowering voters and defending democracy.”

Let me read to you an excerpt from the April 7th statement by the League of Women Voters of the United States Board President Dr. Deborah Turner and CEO Virginia Kase Solomón after the Senate voted to confirm Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson as the next Supreme Court justice.

“Without a doubt, Judge Jackson’s appointment is a historic confirmation. We hope, this will be a turning point in America and will set a precedent for a more diverse court and more equitable judicial system. We applaud the U.S. Senate for voting to confirm Judge Jackson and thank President Biden for delivering on his promise to name a Black woman to the highest court in the land.

“We believe that women hold the power to create a more perfect democracy. We look forward to seeing the impact Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson’s perspective will have on voting rights and democracy as the next Supreme Court Justice of the United States.”

Here at home, while our very own League Member Suzanne LaRochelle was defeated in her first election, Mike Reichenbach became the SC Senate chamber’s newest member Tuesday. He will serve as the Senate’s only Black Republican as he backfills the last two-and-a-half years of the term of Sen. Hugh Leatherman a Republican who died last year after serving more than 40 years. According to the Associated Press, “Reichenbach ran promising to bring more economic growth to his region. He also favors the right to bear arms and opposes abortion.”

Did you know?

According to one of our partners, SC WIL (Women in Leadership) :

17.6% of the SC Legislature’s seats are held by women? Nationally, the proportion of women currently serving in state legislatures is 26.20 percent. Nevada ranks first in the percentage of female legislators with 50.8 percent.
Only nine S.C. women have ever held a statewide office, beginning with Nancy Stevenson, who served as lieutenant governor from 1979 to 1982. Currently, Pamela Evette serves as lieutenant governor, the first candidate to be elected (in 2018) on the same ticket as the governor. Nikki Haley was elected South Carolina’s first female governor in 2010, becoming the first woman of color to hold a governorship in the United States. She was re-elected in 2014.
Since 1993, there had been no women at all representing South Carolina in the U.S. Congress until Nancy Mace (R-Charleston) was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 2020. No woman of color from South Carolina has ever served in the U.S. Congress.