From Tidy Time to Tidal Time*: Reflections for Winter/Transitions as the Wheel Turns
Wednesday, December 28
During this time of hibernation, the Northern Hemisphere is dark and still. Our bodies and breathing slow down. We rest and rejuvenate as we wait for the returning of the light.
Let’s turn to our heart-center (not only our minds). As we plod through patriarchal tidy time to the “new year,” let’s consider what it means to be in Tidal Time of Old Lesbian interconnections. What transitions have we experienced this year as we turn towards the light of the next season. What inspires us? What feeds our spirits and our hearts with the courage to continue in our aging?
This Zoom will feature music, readings of poetry or stories, and other surprises.
Curated by Mev Miller (1955) with many OLOC Affiliates participating.
(*inspired by Mary Daly)
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End White Dominance — Interconnectedness of Dominance Part 2
Friday, December 23
In part one of Interconnectedness of Dominance, utilizing characters and their inherent identities, we spoke about how cultural hierarchy exerts a structure of power in today’s Amerika. Using this intersectionality of identities, part two will focus on the interconnectedness of these identities in peer groups that exert power and control.
The Unfinished Revolution with Merril Mushroom
Wednesday, December 7
“The Unfinished Revolution” continues the discussion begun in OLOC’s post-election open house last month. Discussions in breakout rooms led us to focus on a primary issue for Old Lesbians: healthcare, an area in which we (and all seniors) experience particular injustice.
We know that among so-called advanced nations, the U.S. has one of the most expensive and dysfunctional medical systems. What would a health care revolution look like?
In breakout rooms, we’ll discuss needs, share strategies, and propose approaches to achieve possible solutions in these areas:
- Political action and advocacy
- Confronting the medical/pharmaceutical profiteers that strangle our health system
- Working with community services such as senior centers, state organizations, and other resources
- Holistic health and alternatives to traditional/Western medicine
- Death and dying
Feel free to think about these issues ahead of time and bring notes if you like. Coming together as a community, we can share our collective wisdom.
The healthcare revolution begins with us.
Facilitated by Connie Barrett (1945), Merril Mushroom (1941), and Rose Norman (1949).
End White Dominance — More on Thanksgiving…
Friday, November 25
Honoring Indigenous culture and acknowledging the Indigenous Peoples existence. Their ancestors resisted and survived the horrors of colonization. To honor a people empowers them, restores their identity, and tells the authentic story of Native America.
Post Election Open House
Monday, November 14
Results of the Nov 8, 2022, midterm elections will either help bring about more positive change or start a rapid undoing of what has been achieved so far. This Open House will bring up issues raised by election results and provide opportunities for discussing these issues in breakout rooms.
General topics include health care, education, legal issues, and voting, as well as other topics you may want to raise in breakout rooms*.
Before we break into small groups, you are invited to give a two-minute description of an issue in your state that concerns or encourages you. We will have time to read about 10 of these, so we will use a “first come, first served” process. You will also have an opportunity to raise your topic in a breakout room.
Facilitated by Connie Barrett (1945), Merril Mushroom (1941), and Rose Norman(1949).
OLOC International Gathering via Zoom
The Focus IS Lesbian: Body, Mind, and Spirit
October Thursday, 27-Saturday, 29, 2022
CLICK HERE for more details
A recap of the 2022 International Gathering coming soon. Please check back.
End White Dominance—Topic: Racism and Middle Eastern Communities
Friday, September 23; open to all OLOC affiliates and supporters.
The horrific post-9/11 backlash devasted Arab and Muslin American life which ramped up government attacks on people perceived to be Muslim and therefore “terrorists”. This racism has many roots since the 7th century with contemporary racism growing out of the post-Cold War period when the U.S. began launching its imperialist wars in the Arab region.
This event is for Old Lesbians Attending the Gathering
How To Create an Attendee-Led Discussion at the 2022 Gathering
Monday, September 19
This training event will guide you through the process of how to sign-up to lead an Attendee-Led Talk Session at the October Gathering.
Training Provided via Zoom.
End White Dominance—Topic: Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls
Friday, August 26
Native American women are murdered and sexually assaulted at rates as high as ten times the average in certain counties in the United States. These crimes are overwhelmingly committed by individuals outside the Native American community.
Film & Discussion: 24th Michigan Womyn’s Music Festival [1999]
Wednesday, August 17
This award-wining film provides a brief documentary on one of our most beloved Lesbian Events – the Michigan Womyn’s Music Festival. The event was built, staffed, run, and attended exclusively by women, with girls, boys and toddlers permitted.
Film presentation was followed by discussion with the filmmaker.
Presenter: Natalie Williams was trained in Filmography, Television & Video production at Manhattan Neighborhood Network & DykeTV in New York City.
End White Dominance—Topic: Poverty and Racism
Friday, July 22
The session covered the issues of racism and how they purposely created poverty.
Terry Baum One Dyke’s Theater—Online Book Party!
Wednesday, June 22
An anthology of 40 years of groundbreaking plays by slightly-world-renowned Lesbian playwright Terry Baum.
In celebration of Pride 2022, Terry and Carolyn Myers, her longtime theatrical partner and editor of One Dyke’s Theater, performed excerpts from plays in the anthology. These included their first play, Dos Lesbos, and Terry’s recent award-winning show, HICK: A Love Story (The Romance of Lorena Hickok and Eleanor Roosevelt).Between the scenes, Terry and Carolyn shared backstage stories of many of Terry’s plays, written and produced while living as a Lesbian through the passions, struggles, and wild good times of the Women’s Movement.
Presenters: Terry Baum, 1946, and Carolyn Myers, 1950
What Am I Forgetting? Experiences with Alzheimer’s and Memory Loss
Thursday, May 26
Have you had that experience of going from one room to the other and not remembering why you went there? You wonder: are you just forgetting? Or is there something really wrong? These are questions—even fears—faced by many Old Lesbians. Whether you are caring for a loved one with dementia or Alzheimer’s, or concerned about caring for yourself, join us for this panel on personal experiences and reflections.
Lisa Albrecht, 1951, currently lives in a senior cooperative. She has vascular dementia and experiences memory loss. Her partner currently lives with Alzheimer’s in memory care. Lisa talked about her experiences and coping strategies.
Elda Dawber, 1944, lives with her wife, Mariellen Langworthy, who has been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. They have participated in some studies and experimental trials hoping to hold off Mariellen’s decline. Together, Elda and Mariellen shared their experiences.
Char Brown is a Research Assistant with Aging with PRIDE: IDEA (Innovations in Dementia Empowerment and Action), the first federally funded program designed to help those experiencing memory loss and their caregivers in the LGBTQ community. She shared some of their insights and suggestions for coping with Alzheimer’s and Dementia.
Facilitated by Mev Miller, 1955, and Janet Holstine, 1949
Click here to download chat notes.
You DO Have the Last Word: Writing Your Own Obituary
Tuesday, March 29
Your obituary is a mini-memoir of who you were and how you lived your life. This mini-workshop took the elements of memoir writing to help guide you with writing your own memoir rather than leaving it to someone else. It’s YOUR life; you should have the last word!
Author Dr. Ronni Sanlo, 1947, led this fun workshop on writing your life.
End White Dominance —Topic: Women of Color Suffragists: Racism and the Right to Vote
Friday, March 25
Participants learned about the lives of Women of Color Suffragists. There is a history of suffrage that does not start with white women and one that really deals with the racism of the suffrage movement. African Americans, Native Americans, Latinas, and Asians were denied the democratic process and excluded from the movement, so they organized in their communities and nationally for the right to vote.
Event was recorded and will be placed on this site.
“I am a free-born citizen of America and by the 14th amendment of the US Constitution I shall not be denied the right to vote because of race, color, or sex, and I will not move until I have been registered.” —Indiana Tuggle Little
Panel: Learn Our History and Repeat It!
Tuesday, March 8 – Celebrate International Women’s Day
In early 1971, independent women’s groups—including many Lesbians—in both New York City and Cambridge, Massachusetts, took over and occupied buildings to create women’s centers. These actions raise many questions about feminism, organizing, and social movements which are still critical for us today.
On March 8, International Women’s Day, OLOC hosted a panel presentation with women who were involved in each action. Links to the documentary about the Cambridge action called Left on Pearl and a shorter film about the 5th Street takeover were provided prior to the panel discussion.
Panelists: Susan Sherman, 1939; Rochelle Ruthchild, 1940; Susan Jacoby, 1948; and Reeni Goldin, 1948. Moderated by Zinetta Hope, 1998.
Women of the Harlem Renaissance: A Multimedia Presentation
Thursday, February 24
After World War I, Black people flocked to New York City from the American South and the Caribbean Islands. Many settled in Harlem, and from 1918 to the mid-1930s, they created a cultural, artistic, and intellectual revolution that influenced other artists around the world. At the time, it was called The New Negro Movement, and many brilliant women were a part of it. Who were they, and what did they do? In this presentation, we’ll talk about the experiences and unique talents of a number of these women—many of them Lesbian or bisexual, all of them groundbreaking. Join us for a glimpse into this historic, dynamic era and into the lives of the amazing Black women who shaped it.
Presented by Jorjet Harper, 1947.
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