Volume XVVIIII, Issue 12
Educating Women to Excel
September 27,2006
ON THE
INSIDE:
Dinning Hall
Delemma
Page 2
Nappy Roots
Review
Page 2
Around Raleigh
Page 3
Ben Harper
Concert Review
Page 4
Francis Gale
Vintage
Page 4
Doris Kearns Goodwin speaks
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Natalie Braswell
Guest Writer
For a relatively
small campus, Meredith
College has opened
its doors to some
big names. On Aug.
31, Meredith wel
comed another big
name: Doris Kearns
Goodwin.
Goodwin is a
renowned historian.
Her historical accounts
have placed her on
the New York Times best
seller list more than once.
Her accomplishments are
widely recognized in
the community sur
rounding Raleigh and
beyond; however,
on Meredith's campus
she was also known as the
lady who wrote the really
long summer reading
program book.
The incoming freshman
class was told to purchase
a copy of "No Ordinary
Time: Franklin and
Eleanor Roosevelt:
The Home Front in
World War II" over
the summer and read
through it before
school. Some stu
dents, including one
who asked not to be iden
tified, had an admitted
ly hard time making it
through the book, daunt
ed by its "long pages and
lack of pictures in the
margins." However,
the general consen
sus among the stu
dent body that made it
through the book was that
it was a wonderful read,
and a lot more relevant
than the students had
originally thought.
The book focuses on
and outlines in great detail
the lives of Franklin and
Eleanor Roosevelt
in a completely can
did manner. During a
question-and-answer
session, , one stu
dent asked Goodwin
if she thought that
the current war was any
thing compared to World
War II. Goodwin had a
lengthy, detailed response,
summed up with the state
ment, "We are in really
tough times right now, but
nothing compared to what
we went through with
Hitler." She also spoke
of the parallels between
Eleanor Roosevelt and
current female political
figures, including Hillary
Clinton, a woman she
feels "channels" the
famous first lady.
Some students were
interested in. the process
of writing such a work.
Goodwin admitted to
being nervous about
accuracy, saying that she
feared "a panel of the
presidents I have inter
viewed and asked about
waiting for me in heaven
to tell me what all [she]
got wrong." She stressed
the importance of citing
sources and being metic
ulous with direct quotes
- a subject that hit home
with any Meredith stu
dent with a respect
for the honor code.
She also hit home with
several Meredith students
with her discussion on the
role of women in today's
society. Goodwin talked
about the hardships of the
women in the home
front during WWII
and their struggles
to choose between
work and traditional
maternal roles at the end
of the war. "All of us, as
women, have these
mixed desires," she
said, regarding the
pulls between work
and family.
Shifin Ebadi comes to campus
Molly Gluck
Interim Editor
On September 14,
2006, Meredith College
was lucky enough to be
the host of Shirin Ebadi.
She was a the winner of
the Noble Prize in 2003
for her work as an activ
ist for refugee rights as
well as those for women
and children. From 1975
to 1979, Ebadi served as
president of the city court
of Tehran and she was also
one of the first women to
be a judge in Iran. In 1979
she was forced to resign
her position and become
a desk clerk solely she
was a woman. It was then
when she dedicated her
life to human rights.
Ebadi graduated with
a law degree from the
University of Tehran.
From there she has writ
ten many books and arti
cles which focused main
ly on human rights issues.
These are tools that are
still used in classrooms
throughout the world
, today. She also started
to write her own auto
biography in 2003, after
she received the Nobel
Peace Prize. She finished
the book, Iran Awakening;
A memoir of Revolution
and Hope, which was
published in the United
States in 2006. This book,
though it is printed in
many different languages
and known throughout
the world, has not been
printed in Ebadi's native
language and is not even
allowed to in Iran.
Ebadi's visit to
Meredith's campus was
one that was not only very
informative about her life
and the challenges that
she had to overcome, but
it also was very inspiring
to young women. Shirin
Ebadi left an impression
on most when she stated,
"The path I have chosen is
the right path. I have been
able to convey my message
to more people all over the
world."
Not only does this
quote really play into the
theme of the lecture series
for the year, "The Status of
Women: Our Future, Our
Responsibility," but it also
helps to instill the hope
into young women and
the future generation that
their voices can be heard
and that they can make a
difference.