Vote!

Hey Jacksonites! Maybe you knew this already but we can vote early in Wyoming. We don't have to wait for next Tuesday. So if for any reason you think your Tuesday schedule will be too busy or hectic to make it to your polling station, stop by the County Courthouse today and vote!
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Guest Post: Local Election Results!

This is from Guest Blogger Zora Neale Hurston:

Power to Teton County, Wyoming! Do you know that Teton County had the nation's first all-woman town and county governments? In the early 1900s every town and county official from Mayor to Sheriff was a woman. Finally, some thoughtful, strong, sensible women are stepping up to the political plate to help fix local politics. Not one, but two great advocates for my home town have advanced to the general election in November. Louise Lasley is Public Lands Director at the Jackson Hole Conservation Alliance. Her participation on the Town Council is critical during the current Master Planning cycle.

Claire Fuller, a 24-year-old 3rd generation Wilsonite, couldn't be a better advocate and example to women of all ages. Fair, intelligent, and motivated, Claire will carry her ideas and values into the world. Her grandmother is one of my heroes. Ginny Huidekoper taught me how to drive a tractor on the ranch she homesteaded at the base of Teton Pass. With views of the valley from the bench, huge granite boulders dot her hay fields like a Wyoming Zen garden. Ginny's an author, homesteader, pilot (the first woman pilot in the state), entrepreneur (she started one of Jackson's news paper on a dare received at the Stagecoach Bar in Wilson), Olympian, and a no-nonsense liver of life.

If Claire has been smart enough to pick up one iota of the magic possessed by the women in her family (her mom, Zadie, is an outstanding musician and fantastic educator), then we'll be in damn good shape for her term of office. And I know she has been.

"To me success means effectiveness in the world, that I am able to carry my ideas and values into the world - that I am able to change it in positive ways." - Maxine Hong Kingston
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Skulking

Look at this man's posture. He's positively skulking! Could it be that he actually feels a tinge of shame over the fact that he votes in this county even though he only spends a few weeks here a year? Could it be that the 90,000 (!!!!) civilian deaths in Iraq are finally weighing heavy on his shoulders?

Nah.. his bones are just brittle. Leave it to gravity to be the force that finally brings this man to his knees.

There's a sad story in Planet Jackson Hole today about the declining ranks of abortion providers in the West. This lack of access has driven some women to do some very scary things in order to terminate their pregnancies on their own.

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Local Issue - Suicide

Hi everyone. It's not a feminist issue per se, but in light of recent suicides in the valley, including the death of Snake River Brewery baker Mike Webb on Tuesday, I wanted to offer some resources for survivors and for people struggling with depression. The Brew Pub is a favorite meeting spot of the Cowgrrl Up crew, and I think I can speak for us all in sending our love and thoughts to Mike's family and friends.

On a personal note, I lost one of my best friends, Stephen, to suicide four months ago. It's been utterly devastating. I didn't know before Stephen died that there is a name for those left behind after suicide: we are known as suicide survivors. At first I thought this term referred to those who had attempted suicide but had not succeeded. In fact, it's for those of us in this "club nobody wants to join," people who have lost love ones to suicide.

I HIGHLY recommend the monthly suicide survivor support group that meets at St. John's Medical Center the third Thursday of ever month. It's held from 6-7:30 PM in the Eagle classroom, downstairs. For more information, please contact the Jackson Hole Community Counseling Center at 733-2046. There is no charge for the group.

If you need help for depression or suicidal thoughts, call the Jackson Hole Community Counseling Center at 307-733-2046 or by calling 911. The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is also available at 1-800-273-TALK (1-800-273-8255).

If you are a suicide survivor, I recommend Carla Fine's book No Time to Say Goodbye: Surviving the Suicide of a Loved One.

Also, these websites have information for survivors:
www.save.org
www.afsp.org
Wyoming Suicide Prevention Initiative

There is a lot more information out there, so please know that you are not alone. There are many caring individuals and professionals in our community who want to help.
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Affordable Housing and Women: A Conversation with Melissa Turley

Cowgrrl Up! recently spoke with Jackson Town Council member Melissa Turley about how affordable housing issues impact women in our area. This is the first in an occasional series of conversations with women leaders about women and housing in Jackson Hole.

CU: Do you think affordable housing in Jackson is a women's issue? If so, how?

MT: Across Wyoming, we know that seventy-one percent of single parent households are headed by women, and thirty-eight percent of these families live in poverty (Department of Family Services - 2003). We also know that Wyoming’s wage gender gap is the worst in the nation: women in Wyoming earn 66 cents to every dollar earned by men. (Status of Women in Wyoming - 2004). But in Teton County, affordable housing is an issue that impacts a large cross-section of our community - it certainly impacts single female heads of household to a great extent, but it also impacts families with two heads of household, singles, and the whole range of economic levels, ages, and careers. So while I understand that affordable housing is one of many challenges that is more difficult for female heads of household, it is definitely not an issue that is limited to women.

CU: What can women do to advocate for themselves as Jackson moves forward with its comprehensive plan?

MT: It's important for all members of our community to get engaged and make their voices heard through the comprehensive plan update. I hope people will visit the comprehensive plan website, www.jacksontetonplan.com, or Town Hall, to learn more, and let us know what's important to them. This process will define how we want our community to grow for the next five to ten years, and we need to hear if people value more affordable housing, or better public transit, or so many other things!

CU: Do you think town and county leaders need to take women's issues into account as they move forward with planning? (Wage differences, occupational demographics, need for proximity to health care..)

MT: I would hope that as our community's local elected leaders plan for our future, they are creating a plan that supports a vibrant community for all citizens. I think our current leaders have been very supportive of social services that serve women and children, but they would appreciate hearing from women in the community about other steps they can take to support women's issues. Please contact them!

Melissa Turley serves on the Jackson Town Council. She is the owner of the consulting firm m.e.t. solutions; she serves on the boards of Equality Initiatives and Girls Actively Participating. She is the proud owner of a Jackson Hole Community Housing Trust affordable home.
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Women and Housing in Teton County

Dear Readers,

We Cowgrrls are launching a series of themed posts discussing the housing crisis/issue in Teton County and how women are impacted. Check back frequently in the next several weeks for interviews, anecdotes, and opinions on this as yet undiscussed aspect of this very hot topic in our valley.

In the meantime, I wanted to pass the word that if any of you are having trouble paying your property taxes due to crazy increases, there is help. Check Rep. Keith Gingery's site for a full listing. He mentions specifically:

The legislature did pass the Property Tax Refund Program this past session that refunds ½ of your property tax bill if your income does not exceed 2/3 of the median gross income for Teton County. If you think you may be eligible, I would urge you to call our local county assessor, Cathy Toolson, (733-4960) and talk to her about these programs.

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Race v. Gender redux

I wanted to share this excellent analysis by Betsy Reed (The Nation) of the way Hillary Clinton's campaign has used race as a wedge issue against Barack Obama.

Reed deftly looks at many sides of the race/gender divide -- and implicates Hillary in helping to create that divide, which was not a major issue at the beginning of the primary race. She gives voice to my own misgivings about Hillary, as well as my suspicion that some men support Obama because they are more comfortable with his gender.

The support Obama has seen in Teton County is revolutionary. Growing up here in Jackson, I heard tales of one black resident being roped and dragged on his bicycle through town. My 8th grade buddy, Colin, lasted only a year here in 1983 before his family decided it was too isolating. (I don't know the specifics about racism they faced, but I imagine it was significant.)

So we've come a long way, and I'm proud of Jackson for that. Still, in such a macho town, I have wondered if some people are dismissive of Hillary because she's female. Or perhaps the overriding issue is that her being an east coast, Washington insider doesn't play well in the libertarian-leaning West. Obama has certainly built bridges and found ways of reaching westerners along with people all over the country.

Your thoughts?

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Community Cupboard Needs More Food

If you didn't see the article in the Planet:

"Anyone who wishes to donate to the Cupboard can stop with food donations during their hours of operation, 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. Mondays and Thursdays, on the north side of the Browse-n-Buy parking lot, downstairs in St. Johns Episcopal Church. People who can’t make it during those hours may drop off the food outside the Cupboard’s door and someone will bring it inside.

Expired food cannot be accepted, and wild game meat must have been processed by a licensed game processor. The items most needed are those most taken: stew and canned meat, canned soups, cereal, peanut butter, jelly and anything that can be easily prepared. Donations need not be limited to these items, however, as any food will be greatly appreciated."

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Affordable Housing is a Women's Issue

As Teton County considers a moratorium on new development south of town, I'd like to urge county commissioners and town planners to consider women in shaping the comprehensive plan for the county.

You know, women. Women, fifty+ percent of the population, who in Wyoming earn only 66 cents to a man's dollar for the same work (the worst gender-based wage gap in the nation). Women who, in Wyoming, occupy only 30 % of managerial positions.

While we don't have the stats specific to Teton County, based on state averages it is safe to assume that women comprise a majority of service industry workers, teachers, nurses, and other employees that essentially make Jackson Hole run. These women deserve to live here in the town they love, the town they make function every day.

It is incumbent upon town and county officials to create housing here in the valley that a Wyoming woman, who makes on average $25K/year, can afford. And it is essential for women as a class to join together to demand that housing that fits our economic reality.

For more stats and info on women's status in Wyoming go to: http://www.iwpr.org/States2004/WY.htm.


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From the Teton County Library Events schedule:

"Thursday, March 20 200812:00pm -
1:30pm
What’s News? Discussing the Papers with the Editors
Guest speaker
Mary Sheridan-Rabideau, a University of Wyoming professor who studies popular
and media culture, joins this monthly brown-bag luncheon. Presented by the
Wyoming Humanities Council, Teton County Library, Jackson Hole News & Guide
and Planet Jackson Hole. Coffee provided; no preparation necessary. Cost: Free.
Location: Conference Room. Contact: Adult Program Coordinator, 733-2164 ext.
135."

Mary Sheridan-Rabideau is the author of Girls, Feminism, and Grassroot Literacies: Activism the Girlzone (SUNY Series in Feminist Criticism andTheory) and a co-editor of Feminism and Composition: A Critical Sourcebook.