Venice in the 1960s: A Series of Circles

By Lisa Marguerite Mora
Maria was a large woman, a round body, a series of circles. She scared me. But not because she was fat. It was because when she looked at you, it was like she could see not only who you were trying to be, but who you really were. Her eyes were blue [...]

The Jaya Mural

By Emily Winters and maryjane

In March 1974, Judy Baca of the City Wide Mural Project approached Jaya (Sanskrit for non-violent Revolution/peace/victory), an active, uppity Women Artists Collective, to create a mural about the Venice Canals community and its struggle to survive the intrusion of profiteers. Open public tedious meetings and hearings for this mural were [...]

Beachhead Women Writers Rock Out at Beyond Baroque

By Krista Schwimmer
On March 8th, as part of the day long celebration of International Women’s Day, the Beachhead presented readings from past and current women writers of the Beachhead at Venice’s poetry haven, Beyond Baroque.
The event started at 7:30 pm with Suzanne Thompson leading the way as emcee. Suzanne immediately charmed the audience with a [...]

VENICE WOMAN TOSSING TERRA COTTA PLANTER, HITS GUNMAN

Venice Couple Lives Happily Ever After
–Thanks to Fawn Walenski
VENICE WOMAN TOSSING TERRA COTTA PLANTER, HITS GUNMAN
By Philomene Long
Fawn Walenski’s aim is as true as her love.
–Evening Outlook
“Mind my bullet wound.”
I’ve just finished hugging Fawn Walenski because I love her
It is the first time I have ever heard those words—
“Mind my bullet wound.”
Before she would explain [...]

Celebrate International Women’s Day with Beachhead Women Writers and Poets

Celebrate International Women’s Day
with Beachhead Women Writers and Poets
at Beyond Baroque
7pm, Sunday, March 8 • 681 Venice Blvd. – $10 donation
Including: Krista Schwimmer, Jessica Aden, Lynne Bronstein, Amy Dewhurst, Susan Hayden, Hillary Kaye, Peggy Lee Kennedy, Erica Snowlake, Suzanne Thompson, Suzy Williams, Emily Winters and Antonieta Villamil

Lucy Parsons – A Life Dedicated to Justice

By Caeli Thibeault
History has a way of forgetting to mention common people when great discoveries or revolutions are discussed. Only the elite tend to be mentioned, but history was forced to remember one woman who would not be ignored, one woman who fought with an intense passion for what she believed in, justice for the [...]

International Women’s Day

International Women’s Day has been observed since in the early 1900s, a time of great expansion and turbulence in the industrialized world that saw booming population growth and the rise of radical ideologies.
1908
Great unrest and critical debate was occurring amongst women. Women’s oppression and inequality spurred women to become more vocal and active in campaigning [...]

September 2008 – A Profile in Courage – Venice Resident, and Secretary of State, Debra Bowen Makes Good

Debra Bowen got her start in politics as the attorney for the Venice Town Council. When she was elected California Secretary of State in 2006, like any good Venetian, her first act was to ban electronic voting machines. This courageous act earned her the attention of the Kennedys. Both Ted and Caroline attended her award [...]

September 2008 – Parade Demands Equal Rights for Men and Women to Shed Their Tops

By Edizen Stowell
In Venice  anything and everything happens. On  August 23, a number of men and women proudly took off their shirts and marched down the Venice Boardwalk to support a woman’s right to go topless in public on National Go Topless Day. Other cities involved included Washington DC, Los Angeles, New York City, Miami [...]

May 2008 – Angry Women Close Congress – In Mexico

By John Ross 
Mexico City – “The Adelitas have arrived/To defend our oil/Whoever wants to give it to the foreigners/Will get the shit kicked out of him!” yodeled the brigades of women pouring onto the esplanade of the Mexican senate to protest a petroleum privatization measure President Felipe Calderón insists is not a petroleum privatization measure [...]