On Sept. 27th, the Business and Professional Women of Niagara Falls hosted a “Laugh, Listen and Learn” seminar on a variety of topics that affect women all around the globe.
The Business and Professional Women League (BPW) is a non-profit organization that is concerned with equality for women in economics, politics and employment. The BPW’s goal is to improve the status of women in the community, especially in the business and professional industries.
Anne Knicley, a member of BPW Niagara Falls chapter, says that BPW’s main prerogative is to work together to improve the lives of women all over the world.
“We send resolutions to the government asking them to help improve the lives of women in other countries,” Knicley said. She described one of their biggest projects, tackling the lack of education for women in many countries.
In 2021, BPW Niagara Falls, the club Knicley is a part of, wrote a resolution request to the government of Canada to urge the United Nations to prioritize the protection of women’s rights in Afghanistan, including the right to education and health care. The resolution request can be found here.
Knicley also said that “Equal pay [is important to BPW], which women have been fighting for since the 1960s.” The fight for equal pay started far before 1960 but was only addressed in the United States of America in 1963, when Congress passed the Equal Pay Act as an amendment to the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938. Women still fight for equal pay today.
In 2010, BPW Canada reaffirmed its resolution from 2009 and urged the government of Canada to repeal the Public Service Equitable Compensation Act from 2009. They also urged the government to implement the recommendations of the 2004 Federal Pay Equity Task Force. That resolution request can be found here.
To bring women together to discuss these topics, the BPW Niagara Falls holds a variety of social events and gives back to the community with the help of several active committees. These committees support local women’s shelters, provide bursaries for female students and provide lunches to children in the community.
The BPW Niagara Falls chapter also holds monthly dinners to provide the community with information on issues that impact women all around the world. They are also an opportunity for women to network with other working women.
At these monthly meetings, members will be treated to a seminar from a guest speaker as well as a chance to network with other women in the community.
This month’s dinner was broken up into three portions, “Laugh”, “Learn” and “Listen”. The seminar ran from 5 p.m to 7:30 p.m at the Niagara Falls Library, located at 4848 Victoria Ave., Niagara Falls.
Starting with “Laugh”, attendees heard from Dr. Sharon Abbey, a former professor at Brock University. She presented “Things My Mother Never Taught Me”, drawing on her experiences as a mother, grandmother and former director of Women’s Studies and Adult Education.
Continuing with “Listen”, attendees heard from Tricia Cosgrove (M.Ed.) from the Niagara Region Sexual Assault Center. Cosgrove gave an in-depth and informative seminar on human trafficking in Niagara. She also discussed the proper way to handle a suspicious situation, including who to get in contact with while keeping yourself safe.
Finally, the night concluded with a Niagara Regional Police officer who taught attendees how to avoid online scams as well as the universal “HELP” signal.
The night was an interesting mix of both serious and comedic topics to bring together women of all ages in a night of laughing, learning and listening.
While this event has already passed, more information about the BPW and their next meeting can be found on their website.