National Speaker Forum

We are proud to announce our 2022 National Speaker

Mary Frances Berry

Wednesday, April 6, 2022

Memorial Hall

1225 Elm St, Cincinnati, OH 45202

The Woman’s City Club of Greater Cincinnati is proud to announce that our 2022 National Speaker will be historian and public servant
Mary Frances Berry. Dr. Berry has been one of the most visible and respected activists in the cause of civil rights, gender equality,
and social justice for more than four decades. As chairperson of the US Civil Rights Commission, Dr. Berry led the charge for equal rights and liberties for all Americans over the course of four Presidential administrations. A trailblazer for women and
African-Americans alike, she also became the first woman of any race to head a major research university as Chancellor of the University of Colorado at Boulder.She is the author of many books of which the most recent is History Teaches Us to Resist: How Progressive Movements Have Succeeded in Challenging Times. It examines the successful tactics of movements that ended the Vietnam War, jumpstarted government response to the AIDS epidemic, championed the Americans with Disabilities Act, and advanced civil, women’s, and LGBTQ rig all of which she was a part. Dr. Berry believes that each generation has the responsibility to make a dent in the wall of injustice. She continues to speak boldly for those who can’t speak for themselves and motivates all of us to take
action. Her clarion call challenges everyone to stand up, stand tall and to never give up the fight.
We will announce her topic and other National Speaker Forum details later in the year. . Wikipedia

Origins of the National Speaker Forum

The club’s annual fund-raising National Speaker Forum brings to the community nationally-known women who speak on topics of current interest.

Each spring, Woman’s City Club invites a nationally known woman leader to speak to our community at its Annual National Speaker Forum. The event has become a time-honored tradition in the Greater Cincinnati area over time, drawing thousands of people to the events.

The Forum has become our major fundraising event, enabling the Club to fulfill its ongoing mission: to educate, empower and engage the citizens of Cincinnati to participate as active stakeholders in promoting the common good. Each year, we invite citizens and organizations in the Greater Cincinnati area to support and cosponsor the event so that we can continue to provide the public leadership and civic education programs so important for our area.

The Status of Women Committee, under the leadership of Mary Wells in 1993, established the National Speaker Forum as an annual event. WCC and 28 co-sponsoring organizations brought Lani Guinier to Cincinnati for the event. Guinier had just testified at the confirmation of Justice Clarence Thomas for the U.S. Supreme Court. She spoke about “her version of civil rights, as opposed to conservative opponents’ views” to a sold-out venue. This forum surpassed the organization’s initial fundraising expectations and netted a large profit. ” Subsequent speakers and their topics are listed below.

— from “Lighting the Fire, Leading the Way” by Rachel Powell

National Speakers — 1994 to 2017

2021 Denise Kiernan“Generations of Grace: Inspiring Women Who Shaped American History”
2019 Helen Thorpe “Searching for Refuge, Friendship, and Hope:Perspectives on Immigration-What does it Mean to “Be American” Today?”
2018 Martha Raddatz “What in the World: Global Hot Spots and U.S. Foreign Policy”
2017 Maria Hinojosa “Latinos and Immigration: The US Mambo“
2016 Isabel Wilkerson Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and historian “Black Migration to Racial Justice: Are We There Yet?”
2015   Mariel Hemingway, author, writer, mental health advocate: “Running from Crazy: A Life Journey with Mariel Hemingway”
2014   Candy Crowley, CNN political news anchor, correspondent: “The White House vs. Capitol Hill”
2013   Robin Wright, American foreign affairs analyst, journalist, author: “U.S. Intervention: When is Enough Really Enough”
2012   Kerry Kennedy, human rights activist and writer, daughter of Robert Kennedy: “The Power of One: Stories of Inspiration for Women on the Cutting Edge of Social Change”
2011   Naomi Tutu, author, granddaughter of Archbishop Desmond Tutu: “Striving for Social Justice: Searching for Common Ground”
2010   Katty Kay, BBC America news host: “Washington from a Different Angle”
2009   Gail Collins, New York Times journalist, op-ed columnist, author: “Scorpion Tongues: Gossip, Celebrity and American Politics”
2008   Ellen Goodman, author, columnist: “The Political is (Too) Personal, the Media are (Too) Polarized and Television News is an Oxymoron”
2007   Diane Rehm, NPR host: “A Conversation with Diane Rehm”
2006   Anna Deavere Smith, actress, playwright, artist-in-residence at the Center for American Progress: “Snapshots: Glimpses of America in Change”
2005 Charlayne Hunter-Gault, National Public Radio reporter, South African correspondent: “Africa on the Edge”
2004 Michel Martin, ABC and NPR journalist: “Healing the Racial Divide: The Role of Hard Truths”
2003 Collaborative Agreement Forum with Ruth Cronenberg and panel: “Justice in Cincinnati: Progress and Challenges” [Barbara Ehrenreich canceled because of boycott against Cincinnati]
2002 Halima Addou, human rights activist: “A Woman Caught Between Military Repression and Islamic Extremism”
2001 Wilma Mankiller, first woman chief of the Cherokee Nation: “Dancing on the Edge of the Roof: The Requirements of Leadership”
2000 Terri Gross, National Public Radio Host of Fresh Air: “Terry Gross,—She’s Got People Talking”
1999 Molly Ivins, author columnist: “Molly Ivins Can’t Say That — Can She?”
1998 Faye Wattleton, president, Planned Parenthood of America: “Sexual Politics: The Control of Women’s Lives”
1997 Pat Schroeder, Congresswoman: “Challenges in America’s Future: Women in Leadership”
1996 Dr. Joycelyn Elders, U.S. Surgeon General: “The Cycles of Poverty, Drugs and Violence”
1995 Susan Stamberg, National Public Radio commentator: “Talk, Talk, and More Talk”
1994 Lani Guinier, law professor, author: “The New Civil Rights”