Vote for the best speech follow story

Read the speech follow stories below and vote for the one you think is the best. It should follow the guideline for  Writing the Speech or Meeting Follow. We discussed these in class, and they are included in Chapter 13 of our text.

After voting, explain why you think your choice is the best. Your comments will count toward your participation points for Week 10 of our Newswriting class.

Story #1:

Jackie Speier, a congresswoman from California, said Saturday that the fight for equality is not over for women.

During her speech in St. Louis, Mo., at an AAUW convention, Speier stressed that women must never stop fighting for equality and that it’s essential that “we stay vigilant.”

The American Association of University Women, AAUW, is an organization that aims to break through educational and economic barriers through advocacy, education and research so that all women have a fair chance.

“Barriers that women still face are nothing less than daunting,” Speier said as she went into her five commandments for women overcoming obstacles.

Her first commandment was that women should not assume that the system is fair. Speier cited several facts to prove her point. For example, women only hold 20 percent of university president positions in this country, even though they are 50 percent of the Ph.D. pool.

Speier believes that the system is “quite literally moving backwards.” In 1996, Proposition 209 repealed Affirmative Action that caused the faculty at UC, which was 80 percent male, to relax in their thinking. Male faculty members believed that everything could now go back to “normal,” meaning that men could once again hire other men like themselves.

“Thou shall not settle for less than they are entitled,” Speier stated as her second commandment. According to a recent study, 43 percent of individuals who earned MBAs in 2007 were women, which was up from 2.6 percent in 1963. Even with such a high percentage of women earning degrees, Speier explains that women still hold less than 16 percent of the corporate office positions at the top Fortune 500 companies.

These statistics, along with several others provided by Speier, illustrate how women are not being given what they deserve. She quoted New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristoff as saying, “Wall Street is one of the most male dominated bastions in the business world.” To overcome this, Speier said it is important for women to take advantage of all the building blocks for success they have in their hands.

Her third commandment was that all women must educate themselves and their daughters. She gave an example of the result from the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, where Ledbetter received nothing for being discriminated against for 18 years by Goodyear Tire.

Speier explained that companies like Goodyear, a federal contractor, should have their contracts “yanked” if they violate them, but this is not yet happening. Speier stated that this is a new issue for AAUW to take on.

Her fourth commandment emphasized the importance of women helping other women. “Women on the top bring more women to the top,” Speier said.

Speier agrees with the organization The Women’s Leadership Forum, WOLF, when it states that if women come together and are loyal to each other not only the workplace, but also women themselves will be reinvented. Speier says the only way women will see the kind of change they want is to do it themselves.

Speiers’ final commandment was to honor and protect our families. She stated that even though women have made strides academically, “we are still behind other industrialized nations in women’s professional achievement.”

The lack of policies that support women is one of the main reasons for this problem, according to Speier.  For example, 25 percent of women must forgo their paychecks on days they have to take care of their sick children. Speier also stated that 57 million full and part-time workers don’t have a single paid sick day granted by their employers.

Story #2

The crowd cheered as Jackie Speier, congresswoman from California, took the stage at the American Association of University Women’s National Convention to discuss five commandments for women to follow.

The AAUW convention, “Breaking Through Barriers,” was held in St. Louis, Mo. She discussed the inequalities between men and women and her five commandments for taking action to “make the wrongs right” and help women overcome obstacles.

In her first two commandments she said women should not assume the system is fair, and they should not settle for less than what they are entitled to.  Speier spoke of Lily Ledbetter, a woman who had assumed the system was fair.  Ledbetter worked at Goodyear Tire for 18 years and was discriminated against by not being paid equally.  She told Speier that she never thought for a moment that Goodyear was not playing by the rules because they had a federal contract.

Speier also used a group of women scientists at Massachusetts Institute of Technology as an example of how women were discriminated against.  These women got lower salaries, less money for research and half of the lab space the men received.  The women went into the labs and measured each.  Due to their actions, MIT admitted it was discriminating and increased research money, increased the lab space so it was equal to men’s and increased women’s salaries 20 percent to equal the men’s.

Speier’s third commandment was to “educate yourself and your daughters.”  Women make up 58 percent of all undergraduates and almost half of all medical and law school graduates in this country, she said. In 2007 women represented 43 percent of individuals who earned a master’s of business administration versus 2.6 percent in 1963. Yet women only hold 50 CEO seats and fewer than 60 percent of corporate office positions at the top Fortune 500 companies.

“According to current trends, it would take another 40 years for the number of female corporate officers to match the number of male officers among the top Fortune companies in the United States.  I don’t know about you, but I can’t wait that long.”

According to Speier, research shows that companies with several senior level women tend to perform better financially.  Profits among the 20 Fortune 500 firms with the best record of promoting women are up to 69 percent higher than the median Fortune 500 firms in their industries.

“Innovation and creativity thrive when mixed gender teams collaborate.”

In her fourth commandment, Speier said women should help other women. A study showed companies with two or three women board members in 2001 had 28 percent more female corporate officers in 2006.

Speier believes, “Quite simply, women on top bring more women to the top.”

Speier said she feels passionately about all the work that still needs to be done for women and girls in America. In Speier’s fifth commandment she told women to protect and honor family.  There are 57 million full and part time workers who do not get paid sick days or days to take care of their children.  She told the women at the convention that their fight was not over and everyone needs to help.

“Our goals will not be achieved if we do not help each other,” she said.

Story #3

Women are still working towards equality in the workplace, California Congresswoman Jackie Speier said Saturday in St. Louis.

Speaking at the American Association of University Women’s national convention, Speier connected to the conventions theme, “Breaking Through Barriers,” by explaining that women’s fight for equality is far from over.

“The barriers that women still face are nothing less than daunting,” Speier said.

AAUW holds a national convention every two years and advances equity for women and girls through advocacy, education and research.

Speier’s speech focused on five commandments women can follow to help them break the cycle of inequality.

• Ÿ  Do not assume the system is fair
• Ÿ  Do not settle for less than you are entitled
• Ÿ  Educate yourself and your daughters
• Ÿ  Help other women
• Ÿ  Honor and protect your family

Each commandment included anecdotes and examples that supported Speier’s beliefs about what women need to do to ensure they are represented equally in business.

Although women now make up more than half of all college undergraduates, these statistics are not seen in the workplace.

In 2007, 43 percent of individuals who earned MBAs were women, up from 2.6 percent in 1963. Despite this significant increase, women hold only 15 CEO seats and make up less than 16 percent of corporate office positions at the top Fortune 500 companies.

According to Speier, “companies with several senior level women tend to perform better financially” which should persuade them to incorporate more women into their male-dominated workplace.

Speier said women should work together and use their positions of influence while striving for equality.

“Every single one of our challenges will not be achieved if we don’t support each other,” she said. “Women at the top bring more women to the top.”

An example of women helping each other occurred in 2000 when Safeway Inc., a Fortune 500 company and large supermarket chain, established Championing Change for Women.

This initiative emphasizes career development and mentoring programs for women, by women.

Its success is already showing.

Since its inception, there has been a 40 percent increase in the representation of women in store management positions and a 25 percent increase in the representation of women as vice presidents.

While advancements have been made for women in the workplace, the United States still trails other industrialized nations in women’s professional achievement.

This is due to a lack of policies that support women and mothers, according to Speier.

That may start to change.

The Healthy Families Act has been proposed that would set a seven-day paid sick leave minimum for all Americans.

This is a start, but Speier stresses that women “must push for other measures of similar value that don’t force them to choose between career and family.”

Story #4:

Women’s fight for equally is not over, so women must take action, stressed Representative Jackie Speier at the American Association of University Women National Convention banquet Saturday.

Jackie Speier spoke about her “Five Commandments” for women overcoming obstacles to help women take action, or “Break through Barriers”, in a society where women are still unfairly discriminated against.

The American Association of University Women, otherwise known as AAUW, advocates equality for women and girls through advocacy, education and research. The convention held yesterday focused around the theme “Breaking Through Barriers.”

Speier said in 1963, a mere 2.6 percent of women earned an MBA compared to an alarming 43 percent of women who earned an MBA in 2007. This impressive statistic is one of many regarding the advances women have made in their educational careers. Women now make up 58 percent of undergraduates, more than 50 percent of PhD recipients and almost half of all law school and medical school graduates in this country.

During Speier’s time in the state senate she had many meetings examining why only 31 percent of the faculty at the University of California were women, even though women made up 49 percent of the Ph.D. pool. Six years earlier, women made up 46 percent of the Ph.D. pool.

“That is a gap that is dramatic. A shift from 46 percent to 41 percent. We were quite literally moving backwards,” said Speier.

Although the statistics prove that women are becoming more academically equal to men, “Thall shall not assume that the system is fair”, according to the first of Speier’s “5 Commandments.”  Women hold only 20 percent of presidential positions in colleges throughout the country.

To change what was happening at the University of California, Speier held three annual meetings to exert political pressure. The president of UC created a gender equality council.

She said that since she has left, the California has done nothing more to solve the problem and the number of women faculty has remained stagnant. Speier’s said, “It’s a great example of how we can never rest and how we must stay vigilant.”

Speier shared another similar and unfair example of discrimination women face in her second commandment, “Thall shall not settle for less than you are entitled.”

Despite academic achievement, women only hold 15 CEO seats and fewer than 60 percent of the corporation office positions at the top Fortune 500 companies. She said it would take another 40 years to match the number of male officers among the top Fortune 500 companies. “I don’t know about you, but I can’t wait that long,” added Speier.

“So there you go. All of the building blocks for success are in our favor: education, productivity, contributions, and the big one, producing revenue. We should settle at nothing short of the boardroom. We should rightly deserve to have women seated in those boardrooms and in those corner offices,” she said.

In her third and fourth commandments, Speier stressed the importance of women’s persistence in reforming the law to promote equality. For example, since women have the primary responsibility for child care, they often feel they must choose between career and family. The Healthy Families Act is a new bill that is created to set a seven- day paid minimum sick day for all Americans. Speier said, “We must push for other measures of similar value that don’t force us to chose between our careers and our ever importance families.”

In order to create equality among men and women and stop discrimination, Speier said it is important for women, especially those who hold positions of power, to help other women. This important action was said in her fourth commandment “Thall shall help other women.”

“As I look across this room, I see lots of women with the ability to ‘femtor’ other women and it’s just not the ‘please do it,’ it’s a ‘please you must do it.’” She said the only way women will see the kind of change we need to see in this country is to “do it ourselves.”