Celebrating Women International2 Celebrating Women International, a nonprofit organization founded in 2013, seeks to inspire women to choose language, as well as take action, that

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Celebrating Women International, a nonprofit organization founded in 2013, seeks to inspire women to choose language, as well as take action, that honors and celebrates them and others as valuable individuals of their society. By doing so, they seek to have a profound and positive impact on one another, their families, their workplaces, their communities and the world.

Our mission is to mobilize and inspire women across the globe to honor, recognize and celebrate the contributions of women, leveraging their untapped leadership capabilities in order for them to thrive in the world so that they can lead productive lives.

Celebrating Women International’s main focus is to celebrate, honor

and unite women worldwide so that they can positively thrive in and change their world through teaching, promoting and demonstrating the importance of sponsoring, assisting, networking, mentoring and relying on one another to further women’s causes, including supporting the fight against HIV/AIDS, cancer and other debilitating diseases that affect women. Celebrating Women International will also focus on leveraging women’s untapped leadership capabilities, with a view to not only building community across cultures, but also by creating and sustaining a unique global education initiative for individuals of all walks of life. CWI is committed to becoming a multicultural, multigenerational, and multifaceted entity.

Celebrating Women International (CWI) “Woman 2015”

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Celebrating Women International Framework

Vision: Celebrating, honoring and uniting women worldwide to positively thrive in and change the world for the benefit of humankind. Definition: Celebrating, honoring and uniting women exude actions that represent a pro-found respect, deep care, and high regard for them and others. Purpose: To inspire women to choose language and take action that honor and celebrate them and others. By doing so, they can have a profound and positive impact on one another, their families, their workplaces, their communities and the world. Mission: Our mission is to mobilize and inspire women across the globe to honor, recognize and celebrate the contributions of women, leveraging their untapped leadership capabilities in order for them to thrive in the world so that they can lead productive lives. Focus: During all events, programs and meetings, CWI will focus on leveraging women’s untapped leadership capabilities, with a view to not only building community across cultures but also by creating a unique global education initiative that will assist individuals of all walks of life. CWI is committed to becoming a multicultural, multigenerational, and multifaceted entity.The Cornerstone of these Initiatives will be to establish a virtual Celebrating Women’s World-wide Center and Hall of Honour starting in 2020, to celebrate and honour women’s histories, contributions, sacred customs, and societal advances that have had a profound impact on the world in an effort to foster peace and goodwill globally.

CWI’s Operating Principles CWI commits to honoring and uniting its members and others by choosing language and ac-tions that show profound respect, deep care and high regard for them. I. Creating Connections and Partnerships

• Expecting the best from ourselves and others• Being fully present and attentive• Acting with compassion towards ourselves and others• Expressing what is so for ourselves and exploring what is so for others• Agreeing to disagree to ensure that all opinions are acknowledged• Agreeing that there is more than one right way to accomplish something

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II. Honoring Multi-culturalism, Diversity, and Inclusion

• Seeing ourselves and others as valuable human beings • Thinking about our perceptions, thoughts and feelings towards ourselves and others• Being open to new possibilities, and acting in new ways• Operating with curiosity vs. judgment• Asking for feedback and clarity to gain understanding

III. Educating and Learning from Others

• Challenging our assumptions and thoughts• Becoming more aware of our words and actions, and their impact on others• Discovering how others think and feel• Attending/participating in events and classes whenever possible

IV. Celebrating Ourselves and Others

• Celebrating and sharing our gifts, talents, and contributions with others• Discovering the gifts, talents, and contributions of others• Acknowledging and appreciating the gifts, talents and contributions of others

V. Inspiring a Spirit of Service and Giving among Women

• Offering to participate, serve, and help other women • Asking for support/help for ourselves• Preventing gossip or triangulation in relationships• Giving financially to help others go further

VI. Embracing Our Power by Taking Action to Lead

• Acknowledging our strengths• Building equal partnerships• Learning to mentor, champion, and sponsor all women

VII. Balancing Our Health, Safety and Well-being

• Recognizing and meeting our own needs to ensure our mental, physical and spiritual health • Engaging our minds and hearts in wholesome thoughts and activities to reach our fullest potential • Supporting the fight against HIV/AIDS, cancer and other debilitating diseases that affect women• Actively participating in activities that reduce stress and promote good health• Heightening awareness of our surroundings to foster a safer environment for ourselves and others

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Celebrating Women International Goals

Our goals are to:1. Unite, connect, engage and inspire women to honour and celebrate themselves and other women worldwide 2. Expand women’s global business and leadership opportunities 3. Create a virtual Celebrating Women’s Worldwide Center & Hall of Honour by 2020 4. Provide a one-of-a-kind global education initiative focused on honoring differences 5. Attract and sustain international tourism6. Inspire a spirit of service and giving among women

CWI’s Image As outstanding women of substance, we will establish a Celebrating Women’s Worldwide Center & Hall of Honour that will be connected to a circular conference center, surrounded by international cultural centers. On the outer ring, we will create futuristic, thriving businesses to acknowledge and further expand women’s contributions to the world.

CWI’s Values and Commitment We are committed to:1. Celebrating our accomplishments and the difference we are making in our lives and the lives of others 2. Showing honor and respect to every race/nationality and culture3. Creating common ground to work in partnership, and build community, with one another and others4. Using inclusive language to foster and cultivate positive relationships 5. Exploring possibilities and creating solutions to challenges 6. Acknowledging, learning, and growing from our life experiences 7. Recognizing and celebrating all successes along the way8. Providing enjoyable, educational and multi-cultural entertainment 9. Thriving financially and modeling good financial practices10. Honouring and reflecting on the influences of women in our lives

CWI - Looking Back & Moving Forward TogetherThis year The Bahamas will mark its 41st anniversary of Independence. There is no doubt that we as a people have made notable progress politically, economically, socially and culturally since July 10, 1973. The many worthy accomplishments of Bahamian women over the years have been undeniably significant to say the least. They have made, and continue to make, their meaningful mark in every sphere of society with recorded success in politics,

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education, religion, healthcare, business/finance, law, the judiciary, law enforcement, trade and industry, sports, media, the public service and civil society. However, notwithstanding their many achievements, their struggle for equality, justice and fair play in certain key areas continues as they seek to address and remedy issues that impact or impede their full participation within our society.

The Women’s Suffrage MovementThrough The Women’s Suffrage Movement, women from all walks of life have played a significant role in advancing the political, economic and social rights for Bahamians, particularly Bahamian women. It was a movement that embodied the struggle by women to gain the same rights as their male counterparts, particularly in politics. Through it, Bahamian women secured the right to vote and run for political office. It is fair to say that, with a few exceptions, women around the world today enjoy the same voting rights as men, and this, no doubt, constitutes considerable progress when compared to that of the Colonial days in The Bahamas when voting was limited to adult males who owned property. The interesting rationale at that time seemed to be that property owners had the strongest interest in good governance and, therefore, were best qualified to make decisions in this regard.

Nonetheless, a brief review of Bahamian history will show that changing political, social and economic conditions, and the ideal of equality in the early nineteenth century, led to the beginning of the Suffrage Movement. This period was characterized by the increased participation of a growing number of educated women in politics and reform movements. It was therefore only a matter of time before individuals (referred to as suffragists) began to question why women were not allowed to vote, and this eventually led to the drive to advance the cause for a woman’s right to vote.

The Bahamian StruggleThe first petition for the establishment of a women’s suffrage in The Bahamas was presented in 1952 by the Great Improved, Benevolent, and Protective Order of Elks of the World under the leadership of Mary Ingraham, who also served as the leader of The Women’s Suffrage Movement of The Bahamas. The Elks, an organization whose membership consisted of thousands of women throughout The Bahamas at the time, enjoyed considerable support for its cause. The records show that during this period, even though women represented more than one half of the total Bahamian population, they were disenfranchised.

After multiple failed petitions in 1958 and 1959, victory finally came on January 10, 1960. On July 31, 1961, the governor at the time assented to an Act to enable women to register and vote. However, the Act never came into force until 1962, and during the general election, held in November 1962, women voted for the first time in Bahamian history.

Discrimination against Bahamian WomenArguably, women’s suffrage and, consequently, universal suffrage, acted as springboards, among other events, to the attainment of Majority Rule in 1967 and Independence from Great Britain in 1973. The Bahamas Independence Order, made on June 20, 1973, was laid before Parliament on June 26, 1973 and came into force on July 10, 1973. While the document is hailed as being one of the best written Constitutions in the region, there are a few articles within it that clearly point to discriminatory features that adversely affect Bahamian women.

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On September 18, 1979, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), which is sometimes referred to as the International Bill of Rights for Women. The Convention, which came into force in 1981, describes the various forms of discrimination against women as, “Any distinction, exclusion or restriction made on the basis of sex which has the effect or purpose of impairing or nullifying the recognition, enjoyment or exercise by women, irrespective of their marital status, on a basis of equality of men and women of human rights and fundamental freedoms in the political, economic, social, cultural, civil or any other field.”

The Bahamas ratified this Convention on October 6, 1993, joining 186 countries that have done so. In ratifying the CEDAW, The Bahamas has expressly sought to end all forms of discrimination against women. However, The Bahamas has maintained reservations to two of the 30 Articles of the CEDAW, specifically Article 2(a) which embodies the principle of the equality of men and women in their national Constitutions or other appropriate legislation, and Article 9(2) which states that women shall be granted equal rights with men with respect to the nationality of their children.

Addressing the DiscrepanciesThe referendum held by the Free National Movement government on February 27, 2002 sought, among other things, to rectify the discrepancies regarding gender discrimination within the Constitution of The Bahamas. However, more than two-thirds, or 66 percent, of some 87,961 persons voted against the proposed constitutional amendments.

On December 23, 2002, the Progressive Liberal Party government, led by the Hon. Perry G. Christie, appointed a Constitutional Review Commission, headed by the late Hon. Paul Adderley, to propose recommendations for this and other amendments to the Constitution.

In its preliminary report and provisional recommendations, the Commission accepted the proposal to eliminate discrimination against women regarding the passage of citizenship to their children. The committee, however, expressed reservations regarding the granting of citizenship instantaneously upon marriage to non-Bahamian nationals who married Bahamians and recommended a period of five years before such a grant regardless of gender.

Beginning in 2002 to 2007, the Christie administration further committed to holding a referendum on the aforesaid matters; however, twenty (20) years later, the findings and recommendations of the committee have not been discussed or brought to a referendum. Hence, the status quo, which perpetuates discrimination against Bahamian women in these areas, remains to date.

Even though the current and former administrations are to be commended for their efforts, thus far, in addressing this pressing issue of eliminating all forms of discrimination against Bahamian women, more needs to be done to completely remove the final vestiges of discrimination against women in The Bahamas. It is our hope and prayer that this becomes a reality in the not too distant future as it will pave the way for the withdrawal of those lingering reservations to Articles 2(a) and 9(2) of the CEDAW.

“Her children arise up, and call her blessed, her husband also, and he praiseth her” (Proverbs 31:28)

Intentional spaces to recognize the impact of girls and women in our lives are necessary to restoring the public’s memory of the presence of strong, inspiring girls and women within our society. This is especially necessary in patriarchal societies where the influence of girls and young women might be more easily underestimated or forgotten. Many may agree that women in leadership are noticed more often than those who fill every day of our lives with little surprises. These women work continuously, with selfless interest, throughout our communities just to make the lives of others easier. They give us advice that helps us notice how great we are doing, in spite of everything, or because of everything. Sometimes this is true of a woman we’ve known for years or a woman we’ve just met at the grocery store, on the sidewalk, or in a prayer circle. Whatever the circumstance or situation, she carries our story with her.

Honouring women for their accomplishments and hard work is a wonderful way to thank and inspire them and others within our community. This project seeks to do just that as it highlights the influences of women who have made significant contributions to the arts, business/finance, trade/industry,

religion, law, civics, media, and sports in The Bahamas.

While women have had more equal representation in the community as recipients of service honours, they were largely under-represented in the higher order honours. This project seeks to address this anomaly as the women we intend to honour will come from many walks of life. We are, and should be, very proud of their achievements, just as they should be. Whether you agree or disagree with them or their politics, we can sit back and marvel at the fact that that we have some amazing women in The Bahamas who, right here and now, are fighting for women on so many different levels with the simple purpose of making life better for women. Some of these women have already been honoured or acknowledged for the contributions they have made, but many haven’t. So, we would like to take the time to honour these women and the countless others who have fought, and are fighting and advocating for women throughout The Bahamas.

Celebrating, as well as appreciating, the life and work of women throughout The Bahamas has come into its own. Bahamian women are moving forward in a determined stance to address the remaining elements of discrimination that are evident within our society.

Celebrating and Honouring the Women in Our Lives

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The Women’s Suffrage Movement in The Bahamas has been, and continues to be, an integral part of such a progressive move, as we, like our ancestors, seek to remove all forms of discrimination facing Bahamian women in our society. We believe such a move will benefit not only this generation, but also generations to come. While we note and applaud the progress made, thus far, in our country regarding women’s issues, there is still much ground to cover. Nevertheless, we are confident that we will overcome these challenges as we will, as the African proverb says, “stand tall because we stand on the shoulders [and successes] of many ancestors.” Today, we salute and praise the efforts of these dedicated men and women who, fighting for what they believed in, have gone on before us. May their legacy live on in the hearts and lives of all. Today too, we salute all of the wonderful women in our lives! May God continue to bless the CWI and women everywhere!

The inaugural event of the CWI-“Woman 2015” will take place in August 2015. This will be followed by a series of events/activities in October 2015.

Celebrating Women International

“Woman 2015”Nassau, The Bahamas

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Celebrating Women International“Woman 2015”P. O. Box CB11790

Maritime House 1st floorFrederick street

Nassau New-ProvidenceThe Commonwealth of The Bahamas

Tel :242-325-5731Fax: 242-356-7803

Email: [email protected]

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