North Las Vegas gallery event turns focus on gender equality

Teresa Bell, a 59-year-old League of Women Voters member, recalls the start of her postal service career in 1977 — when women were still considered an exotic species on the job.

While she delivered mail at a hospital, an elderly woman approached, wagging a finger and demanding to know why she was taking a job from a man, who could use the money to feed his family.

“I said, ‘I have to feed me,’ ” Bell recalled. “She said, ‘You need to find a man!’ ”

Nevada women are still confronting limits, such as the wage gap and the most recent death of the Equal Rights Amendment in the state.

Bell and approximately 90 women, plus a few men, attended discussion group Bursting Boundaries — Women of Vision April 16, presented by nonprofit Women of Diversity Productions Inc. at the Left of Center Gallery, 2207 W. Gowan Road.

The discussion touched on obstacles faced by women in Nevada, the limits women have “burst,” and solutions that benefit women everywhere. Former KLAS-TV Channel 8 news anchor Paula Francis served as keynote speaker and moderator.

The event grew out of the statewide project Nevada Women’s Legacy — 150 Years of Excellence, encompassing about 200 video interviews of women from every county; receptions; exhibits; a 2015 march at the legislative building in Carson City; an online virtual center; and a 317-page coffee table book. Activities related to Las Vegas’ 2005 centennial and the state’s 2014 sesquicentennial helped evolve the project.

Marlene Adrian, president of Women of Diversity Productions, and coordinator of the project, said the mission is “giving visibility to women and creating a woman-appreciated future.”

At the event, Francis told the audience about the boundaries she blew through: ageism and the realm of women’s pay. After years of living with the fear that she’d be fired for being over 40 — and receiving fan mail suggesting that she needed a facelift or asking where she’d gotten one — she left on her own terms at age 64. She also recalled, as a camera operator, scrapping with her boss for a 25-cent pay raise.

“I was in an unusual industry in that I always negotiated my own pay, and I think I probably did pretty well,” she said. “But not every woman has that good fortune.”

For women who weren’t raised to feel “empowered,” she suggested the time is always right to find female mentors.

About 12 other women either spoke at the podium or shared in the audience discussion later. They talked about combating child support caps in the state; shared information for women wishing to run for public office; expounded on the work of their organizations; and described overcoming language barriers.

Among the speakers was former Las Vegas Mayor Jan Jones Blackhurst, the first woman to take that office. She currently serves as executive vice president of Government Relations & Corporate Responsibility at Caesars Entertainment Corp. She called on women to join forces in creating a system of company scoring, based on female representation.

On display were four digitally printed quilts plus an installment of “book cases,” featuring the names and accomplishments of Nevada women nominated for recognition and/or interviewed for the Legacy project. Left of Center Gallery founder Vicki Richardson’s name appears on a quilt. She allowed the project to use the space free and opened her gallery and treasure trove of African art to attendees following the discussion.

“It’s the power of women,” Adrian said. “Women love coalitions. Women love to share ideas if they’re working on a project.”

“I think, on paper, we’ve done a lot,” said Sondra Cosgrove, a history professor at the College of Southern Nevada, co-chair of CSN’s Women’s Alliance and president of the League of Women Voters of Las Vegas Valley. “But we have to change the mindset. That takes longer, and it’s harder.”

Women are still working on the issues “because they have, in the past, always put others first,” Adrian said.

Contact Adrian at 702-655-2146 or adrianmjlv@gmail.com. Visit nevadawomensvirtualcenter.org or womenofdiversity.org.