Evening star., 1926-05-23
WOMAN''S PARTY FIGHTING
LEGISLATION AGAINST SEX
Insist 'Protective" Laws Are Really
Discriminating, and Urge That
Jobs Be Sole Action Basis.


to serve on juries.
The advisabi of carrying the fight
for the economic equality of women
into the international field has been
borne in upon the National Woman's 8
Party recently by a suggestion sent
to many national governments by the
International Labor Office of the
League of Nations, proposing legisa-
ton prohibiting night work for won-
en-. Such a suggestion Is in direct con-
flict with the aims of the National
Womar's Party. which believes it
should offset such activity If possible
through the influence of an interna-
tional body of women.
The National Woman's Party is not
a member of the World Congress Of
the International Women's Suffrage
Alliance. But it has been invited to
send fraternal delegates to the con-
gress. Americas official representa-
tive in this world congress is the
National League of Women Voters.
The league is Numerically opposed
to the National Woman's Party in
regard to the so-called protective labor
laws for women. Lively sessions be-
cause Of these antagonistic views OF
the American women at the Paris
meeting are predicted.
Working women of the Scandinav-
ian countries are declared to be heart
and soul with the National Woman 8
Party in its opposition to the protec.
tive labor laws for women. They in
sist that women should be allowed to
work on an equality with men.
Recently the National Union of So
cieties for Equal Citizenship of Great
Britain passed the following resolu-
tion and proposes to place 1t on the
agenda of the Congress of Interna-
tional Woman's Suffrage Alliance, of
which it is a member:
"An regulations and restrictions
which aim at the true protection of
the worker must be based not upon
sex. but on the nature Of the occupa-
ton; and that any international syS-
tenn of differential legislation based on
sex. in spite of any temporary ad-
vantage must develop into an intOler-
able tyranny and result in the segre-
cation of woman workers and impose
fresh handicaps on their capacity as
wage earners."
The stand taken by this organiza.
tion will be helpful to the campaign
which the National Woman's Party
will wage at the congress in Paris.
Delegates From L. $.
Included in the National Woman's s
Party delegation will be Miss Doris
Stevens of New York Mrs. o. H. p.
Belmont. president: Miss Jessie Dell.
civil service commissioner: Mrs. Abby
Scott Baker of Washington. political
chairman of the party. and Miss
Anita Pollitzer, secretary of the party.
Other members of the delegation
are Mrs. Loring Pickering and Mrs.
James Hamilton Moore of California,
Miss Elsie Hill of Connecticut, Mrs.
Florence Bayard Hilles, Miss Mabel
Vernon and Miss Anna Allmares of
Delaware; Mrs. Townsend Scott, Mrs.
Isaac H. Dixon. Mrs. Amelia Hines
Walker. all of Baltimore: Miss Eleanor
Calnan Of Massachusetts, Mrs. Bur-
nita Shelton Matthews Of Mississippi.
Miss Anne Martin of Nevada. Miss
Lucy Rranham and Miss Amy r.
Juengling of New York, Miss Emma
Brownell and Mrs. Elizabeth Culbert-
son of Pennsylvania, Mrs. Lee Loeb
of South Carolina, Miss Nell Mercer
and Mrs. Dexter Otey of Virginia:
Dean Powell of Washington, d. c.:
Miss Estelle P. Hellman Of Wyoming.
A considerable number 'of members
of the party now travelling in Europe
also will attend the sessions.
Good Results Claimed.
The campaign of the National Wom-
ans Party for equal rights for
women in industry and the re-
tective legislation based on sex is
already beginning to bear fruit. mem
bers of the party say. When the
equal rights amendment of the Won.
ans Party was introduced. mo organ
iZation existed through which women
could unite their efforts against pro-
tective legislation. Individual women
joined the party in large numbers.
The opposition of organizations is
being gradually drawn through the
insistence of their own members.
An example of the way in which
protective labor laws hamper women
in industry cited is that of a New
York woman. a. member of the typo
graphical union. who was a typesetter
on a New York newspaper. She was
able to make $50. $40 or even 800
week with overtime. When a law
was passed, declared to be in the in
terest of women, prohibiting certain
employment Of women at night. she
promptly lost her job. For several
years she found it difficult to earn as
much as $40 or $25 a week.
With the recent repeal of the law,
so far as it covered the employment
on newspapers. she was able to return
to her old position. An effort is being
made to repeal the entire law in New
York prohibiting women from work
ing at night.
So members of the National Wom-
ans Party insist that if there is to
he protective labor legislation at all it
shall not be based upon sex. but shall
apply to men and women alike Only
under such condition. they say will
women have an equal opportunity in
industry.