We are proud to announce our 2022 National Speaker

Dr. Mary Frances Berry

Wednesday, April 6, 2022

“Race, Protest and Politics: Where Do We Go From Here?”

Memorial Hall

1225 Elm St, Cincinnati, OH 45202

Public and members order tickets from Memorial Hall

Co-Sponsoring Organizations ONLY- pay below.

The price of co-sponsorship is $300. This includes a listing in the event program, three lecture tickets, and two VIP tickets to the lecture + private reception with Dr. Berry. (Total value of co-sponsorship is $450.)
Cosponsor organization letter

Biography of Mary Frances Berry

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 U.S. 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.

Dr. Berry 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 rights, 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. Wikipedia

We will announce other National Speaker Forum details later.

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 a 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 (now a tenured professor at Harvard Law School) to Cincinnati for the event. 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