University of Texas Austin - Cactus Yearbook (Austin, TX)

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Broken barriers give women clout by JOANNA FIELDS 1984 was a landmark year for women in politics in the United States, and in Austin specifically. Geraldine Ferraro was the first woman to be nominated for vice president by a major party in the history of the United States. Even though she was defeated, her nomina- tion broke a long standing barrier into the world of national politics, a world long dominated by men. Austin had many women break this barrier and prove themselves competent on the local political scene. Carole Keeton Rylander, Austin ' s first woman mayor, served the public for a decade and spoke out on many issues. When Rylander ran in the mayoral race in 1977, she said being a woman was a downer you could not come on too strong or too soft. Rylander (then McClellan) managed to find a proper balance, as she defeated eight male op- ponents in what was Austin ' s closest mayoral race. Lena Guerrero and Sally Shipman were two of the women Rylander worked with who were involved in politics in 1984-1985. Guerrero worked on Ry lander ' s 1977 campaign, then graduated from the University with a bachelor ' s degree in broadcast journalism in 1980. In 1981, she became part-owner of Bravo Com- munications. In 1984 she won the state representative seat for district 51. Shipman served on the University student government with Rylander, and continued to socialize with her after she graduated. Shipman married and had children, consequently getting involved in community work when some of the other mothers in her neighborhood called her to form a car pool because it was not safe for the children to walk home without sidewalks. I was horrified, Shipman said, so I organized the neighborhood committee. I was treated like a little old woman in While on the campaign trail the Democrats made a stop in Austin. During their visit Ferraro spoke out on many issues. Photo by Cris Bouroncle tennis shoes. Shipman came back to the University in 1978, studied urban and community planning, and was appointed to the City Myra McDaniel is sworn in as Secretary of State by Gov. Mark White. McDaniel was the first woman to hold this position. Photo by Morris Goen : bi :. -. 50 Women in Politics

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the groups, especially of the Black Stu- dent Alliance, an umbrella organization for all black groups on campus. BSA President Randy Bowman had been involved in the group since its for- mation in the 1981-82 academic year, and had a chance to mature along with the organization. We have grown into the role, that of constructive agitation, that we were thrust into three years ago, said Bowman. I see the role of black students now and in the future to be primarily similar to that of the ' 60s: we have to be the torchbearers for blacks across the nation. Success ' 85: Profiles in Mexican-American Ex- cellence earned 14 Hispanic student groups the Union ' s Best Co-Sponsorship award. Photo by Kevin Gutting Fulfilling that role meant addressing issues considered priorities by the dif- ferent sectors of the black community. A few of the major issues BSA brought before the UT System Board of Regents and other University officials concerned divestiture of UT System holdings in South Africa, reformation of Texas Stu- dent Publications policy to require organizations appearing in the Cactus yearbook to register with the Student Activities Office which would require that the organizations sign a statement saying they do not participate in discriminatory practices -- and refor- mation of TSP policy to prohibit com- panies with interests in South Africa from advertising in TSP publications. The efforts of the BSA brought mixed results: the regents voted unanimously in December to retain the System ' s holdings in South Africa, but Bowman said that a BSA member had been working with state legislators to author a bill regarding UT System divestment. TSP did rule that or ;,:.;. , pages in the Cactus inu i the Student Activities UU H ' :. .i.|..r in the ' 86 Cactus, but, on a l .i. .1! iiu- University ' s lawyers, maintained its open advertising policy. La Amistad was also working to balance improved academic perfor- mance with more social opportunities. We ' re a social support group where Hispanics from all over can meet we try to make an environment where it ' s easy to make friends, Rodriguez said. Even so, half the group ' s efforts were geared toward h elping students do bet- ter academically, Rodriguez said. Retention, keeping students in school once they had enrolled, was an area of special emphasis for La Amistad. While interactions between minority and white student groups signified a step in the right direction, a poll con- ducted by the Students ' Association that asked students if they felt there were enough minorities on campus, more than 60 percent answered Yes, proving there was still a long way to go before the University could become a university of the first class for all students. Rodolfo de la Garza, executive assistant to UT System Chancellor Hans Mark, addresses the con- ference with state Sen. Gonzalo Barrientos and Troup Coronado, conference coordinator. - Photo by Kevin Gutting Highly visible black student leaders Eddie Reeves, Reginald Baptiste, Randy Bowman, Dar- rick Eugene and Major Thomas celebrate Black History Month Feb. 19 on the West Mall. - Photo by Kevin Gutting Minority Affaire 49

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Planning Committee with the help of Rylander. In 1982 her term was up, so Shipman decided to run for City Coun- cil, again with the encouragement of Rylander. She won the election and was the only woman on the council that term. By examining the political careers of Guerrero and Shipman, it was evident that Austin women were joining together and forming a network to help each other. Rep. Wilhelmina Delco, D- Austin, said in a Daily Texan article Oct. 23, 1984: We ' re seeing women ' s groups channeling money and volunteers into women ' s campaigns. Even woman who would never dream of running for office themselves are en- couraging those who want to. They ' re telling them, ' Right on, sister, you can do it. ' Even though all these women had ac- complished a lot, society was still plagued with backwards thinking. Hispanic women are seen as women who can make tortillas, beans and babies, but not laws, said Guerrero, the second Hispanic woman representative in the history of Texas. The first was Irma Rangel of Kingsville. State Treasurer Ann Richards won her office with 60 percent of the vote in 1982. She was the first v(.mau elecu a state office since M Ferguson in 1932. She rxpi- sentiment that it was hard to get in the door, but added that the struggle was made easier by all the help she received from so many women. Richards also started her career work- ing on other women ' s campaigns. She worked on Sarah Weddington ' s 1972 campaign, and Delco ' s 1974 campaign. Secretary of State Myra McDaniel was appointed by Gov. Mark White in 1984 and became the highest ranking black in Texas government. She credited her appointment to being in the right place at the right time. Shipman said she had to appoint women to political positions for them to get appointed at all. Women have long been an untapped resource of talent and ideas. We haven ' t been in the smoke-filled back strategy rooms, Guerrero said. Women have new, fresh approaches to politics, she said. Addressing an enthusiastic Austin crowd are Lloyd Doggett, Ann Richards, Walter Mondale, Geraldine Ferraro and Mark White. Photo by Grit Bouroncle Top Texas women Lena Guerrero, Carole Keeton Rylander and Ann Richards gather for Ci- ty Council candidate Shyra Darr ' s conference. ' Photo by Robert Cohen Women in Politics 61