Judy Rosella Edwards

When residents of Peoria County think of women’s rights, they are more likely to think of Betty Friedan. But, she was actually a latecomer.

In 1915, Mrs. Harrison M. Brown welcomed dozens of suffragettes to Peoria because she was an advocate for women’s rights, but also because she had been nominated for president of the Illinois Equal Suffrage Association. She was giving away “Brown” buttons—little chocolate colored pins—promoting her cause. Just weeks before the suffragists came to Peoria, Mrs. Brown had given a presentation to the Peoria Women’s Club, explaining the history of suffrage and the current movement.

In keeping with the times, she went by the name Mrs. Harrison M. Brown. Or, sometimes Mrs. Harrison Monroe Brown. Or, Adelie Brown.

She was actually Flora Adella (Maxwell) Brown and lived in Chillicothe. Her husband was vice-president of the F. H. Pfeiffer Crockery Co., in Peoria.

She and her husband were members of the First Universalist Church. She was a member of the Peoria Women’s Club, and the Amateur Musicians Club.

When Mrs. Brown was elected as president, she was the only downstate officer. The first and second vice-presidents, recording secretary, corresponding secretary, treasurer and auditor were all from Chicago.

At the time, the suffrages were involved in automobile tours to get the word out about womens’ rights. After being elected, Mrs. Brown hit the road. She attended four state suffrage conferences. In December, she went all the way to the west coast where she participated in the National Suffrage Assocation get together in Washington. In May, she was present at the Mississipi Valley Conference in Minneapolis.

One of the most remarkable photos of Mrs. Brown is that of the “rainy day suffrage parade” in Chicago. She was among those who were marching in support of Grace Wilbur Trout, who Mrs. Brown succeeded as president. The women were marching at the Republican National Convention at the Chicago Coliseum, urging the convention to add suffrage to their political platform. It didn’t matter that it rained. The women marched, and Mrs. Brown was among them.

She attended the National Council of Women Voters in Cheyenne, WY, in July. Mrs. Brown also attended the National Suffrage Association in Atlantic City, the following September. Carrie Chapman Catt was president of the association and Woodrow Wilson, president of the United States, addressed the convention. Mrs. Harrison Monroe Brown’s photo was among those in Carrie Chapman Catt’s photo albums, now archived at Bryn Mawr.

Mrs. Brown died in the mid-1940’s. What others have done is important. But, we owe a huge debt of gratitude to those early activists.

I was invited to photograph archival materials at the Grand Army of the Republic building, in Peoria. The most convenient time to do that was during the twice-monthly dances held at the GAR.

I photographed some items and then took a moment to peek in on the dancing upstairs. Ever wonder what librarians do for fun? They dance! You’re likely to recognize Linda Aylward, from the Peoria Public Library. Also known as “Queen of Springdale”—yes, I have heard even staff call her that—joined the fun and kicked up her heels at last night’s dance. She’s the one in the plaid skirt and boots, with her hair up.

http://youtu.be/w2T916xzZd4

The African American Hall of Fame, located in Peoria’s Proctor Recreation Center, is a treasure deserving of much more attention.

The one and only disappointment about last night’s Black History Month celebration at the Proctor Rec Center was that it wasn’t a packed house. Instead of a hundred or so, the evening should have drawn thousands.

The first part of the evening was a live performance by the Heritage Ensemble, the ‘authentic voice of the negro spiritual.’ They have been performing in the area in conjunction with Black History Month but experiencing them in the Proctor Rec Center was especially poignant—and beautiful, as always. (Click to see a video.)

Afterward, there was a ‘breakfast for dinner’ featuring soul food.

But my real reason for being there was I wanted to visit the African American Hall of Fame. There has been endless talk about Build the Block for years but I have not heard much about the AAHOF museum. I knew it existed and that they do recognize local leaders—but I jwasn’t sure where it was.

It is remarkable little museum housed in the Proctor Recreation Center and chock full of historic information, art, and a display of items invented by African Americans. Most Peorians have heard the name Romeo B. Garret. The Dr. Rome B. Garrett Collection is housed in the AAHOF, including a copy of the book “The Presidents and the Negro,” written by Romeo B. Garret.

There are displays of the original Colored School House. There is story after story about Peoria’s own.

It is truly a remarkable venture. Take some time to visit, and not just during Black History Month.

According to a spokesman at the Proctor Center, the museum is open Monday and Tuesday afternoons, and on Saturday from 10 to 2. Admission is free.

The recent argument over required coverage for birth control by all insurers baffles me. Those who support it need a math lesson.

The coverage is just that: financial coverage if –and that is the key issue—if a health provider prescribes contraceptives, the insurer is required to cover the cost. No one—absolutely no one—is saying that the health providers have to prescribe contraceptives. The law simply says that, if a health provider does write a prescription, that the insurer has to cover the cost.

By preventing the law from doing what it was intended to, the Republicans are limiting freedom. There is no calculator in the world that will report 1+1=0.

For a political party that has overused the word freedom until it barely has meaning, it is baffling to hear them claim that the right to use your insurance premiums to pay for your healthcare is taking away a freedom. Why would anyone pay insurance premiums for less coverage?

No one is saying that anyone is required to prescribe contraception. The law simply says that, if a provider does prescribe them, the insurer has to use the woman’s own premium to pay for it. It’s not requiring women without insurance to have access to birth control. It isn’t free contraception.

Only the insureds who have paid their insurance premiums are even affected by this. Nowhere does the law say that anyone is being forced to prescribe anything.

The entire argument is disingenuous.

I admit it. I often skip reading mass emails. I collect them and randomly read them, and then hit delete. In so doing, I missed a really great email—but it is still worth sharing in case, like me, you missed this one.

The recent flip-flopping of the Susan G. Komen Foundation, during which they showed their true colors, generated a remarkable response. Daily Kos encouraged $5 donations to Planned Parenthood, bypassing Susan G. Komen.

But, wait—there’s more. This “weekend” is actually last weekend now….

On a more local note, the Peoria “affiliate” proudly boasts that they have never funded the local Planned Parenthood, so the issue doesn’t touch them. I find that disingenuous. In fact, I would suggest that they START funding Planned Parenthood.

But, perhaps, the local chapter doesn’t need to. They have created a firestorm inspiring people to bypass Komen and donate directly to Planned Parenthood. The links should still work, if you’d like to participate.

Kudos!

No one –and I mean no one—frivolously practices the most extreme form of birth control. But, take away a woman’s easy access to contraception, and she will find her own solution.

The recent debate over insurance funding for contraception saddens me.

I know women who have had abortions. One was a catholic who was later married in the catholic church. At the time, she was a college student and, in her case, the catholic church forbid her to use birth control. She hoped for the best and got pregnant anyway. I watched as she nearly lost her mind over what she had done—that she had gotten pregnant and was on her own to deal with it as best she could.

I still wonder who paid for it. It certainly wasn’t her parents or the church, because she could not bring herself to tell them. I know the woman physician who performed the abortion for her. I never asked either one of them.

When I was in junior high, I loaned a bicycle to married neighbor woman. I remember my mother and I laughing at that 30-year-old woman suddenly borrowing my bicycle and pumping hard up and down the hilly road. We didn’t even know she was pregnant until she had a miscarriage the next day. She already had two children and didn’t want more. But, she was forced into a situation where someone else attempted to take control of her life and her body.

She liked kids. She loved her husband. And they already had a couple of kids. She just didn’t want any more.

Not one of them would have chosen that option unless it was the last one available.

Here is what men don’t understand and many women don’t want to admit. A woman has control of her body. No one can change that. Period.

It has been that way since the beginning of time. I applaud the Obama administration for giving her the tools to do it wisely. It is such a shame that religious zealots are trying to take away those rights.

I am old enough I thought we had come to a sane understanding of birth control ages ago. I never thought I’d see a horrendous fight like we’re now experiencing in congress, and even among the recent Susan G. Komen soap opera.

I can’t seem to find the photo, but I took one of protestors on North University a couple of years ago. They stand outside an abortion clinic here in Peoria and try to…well, I’m not really sure what they hope to do.

But, I took the picture because I was so glad to know there is an abortion clinic here in town, for those who are forced to take that most awful of routes. Every single time I drive by there, I am tempted to stop by and just thank them for the work they do. I wish they didn’t have to. I wish every woman had access to birth control when she needed it. And I do want to thank the protestors for making me aware of the good work the clinic does. I’m old enough I don’t need their services, but thank goodness they exist.

Don’t take away contraception. Force a woman into a corner, and she will take action. As a genealogist, I am constantly coming across obituaries for women who died as the result of “an operation practiced upon herself.” It’s code for “gave herself an abortion.”

Take away her insurance, and a woman can get really creative. Herbalists have known for centuries that black or blue cohosh, pennyroyal, tansy and a number of other common herbs, can cause an abortion and no one would ever be the wiser. Well, except that the side effects are rather unpleasant and could still include death.

These herbs are inexpensive and, before I moved from the house out in the country into a condo, you would have found some of them growing in my yard. Enough to give yourself an abortion. All it takes is a few cups of tea. (Don’t panic. I’m mostly joking. I have never offered anyone an “herbal miscarriage,” as it is called.”

I am not a fan of abortion. No one is. Preventing in the first place is so much better.

Keep your hands off our contraception. It isn’t yours to dictate and anyone who even thinks that they can completely misunderstands women—even if they are women.

While the nation honors Martin Luther King Day, there is a plethora of other black leaders who contributed to advancement of this country. I count local resident Ajay Martin as one of those.

In April 1947, Ajay Martin, a local civil rights leader, did something remarkable.

A professor at Bradley University invited the “baritone Paul Robeson” to sing in Peoria. At first, the Peoria Star ran advertisements of the concert to be held in the Shrine mosque downtown. As was usual, he was to be accompanied by William Schatzhamer and Lawrence Brown on piano. This trio was cutting edge. They performed the classics—and they sometimes performed with the likes of Clara Rockmore, thereminist.

An editor for the Star, either Gomer Bath or Claude Stone, went berserk. They were not having that “communist” Robeson in their town. After all, Robeson and Rockmore, along with Theremin (the inventor of the theremin), were blacklisted. If you don’t know who Paul Robeson is, it could be because blacklisting by the US House Committee on Un-American Activities nearly destroyed Robeson’s career.

Fortunately, things do change. Paul Robeson’s story, “Scandalize My Name,” is available on Netflix Watch Instantly. The film is thirteen years old now, so you’ve had plenty of time to do your research.

Locally, you’ll find a couple of copies of books about Robeson in the Peoria Public Library, along with “Classic labor songs [sound recording] : from Smithsonian Folkways Recordings.”

Now that you know who Paul Robeson is, let’s get back to Ajay Martin’s living room. In April 1947, Mayor Carl Treibel and Gomer Bath were in a tizzy over an alleged communist—and a black communist, at that—performing in Peoria. Gomer was like a rabid dog. His life appeared to consist of teaching Sunday school and charging that WMBD and the Peoria Public Library needed to be censored for spreading propaganda, and writing editorials for the Star.

The mayor declared that Robeson was to be banned from performing in public. The program didn’t sound very ominous. According to the Star, Robeson, Brown and Schatzhamer were planning to rock the house with “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot,” “Every Time I Feel de Spirit,” and “Lord God of Abraham,” along with a Hassidic chant, an old English piece called “Over the Mountains” and an Italian piece called “Invocations de Orfeo.”

But Gomer Bath wasn’t about to let “Comrade Paul,” as he called him in his “Straws in the Wind” column, sing in his town. And, Bath was on a roll. He collected comments from numerous local leaders in his mission—nay, his self-appointed calling—to ban Paul Robeson from Peoria.

Prior to the gig in Peoria, Robeson performed at the University of Illinois, in Champaign-Urbana. While there, he admitted to reporters that he had been threatened with violence if he appeared in Peoria. The Star claimed that the police had no such reports on file, but there was also inuendo that the police were the alleged source of potential violence.

Robeson’s contract was cancelled for some rather illogical reasons. At that time, the venue was the city hall assembly room, and it was never really clear why the event was moved from the shrine auditorium.  There were reportedly low ticket sales yet the city council decided against allowing Robeson to sing in that “miniature auditorium” in city hall, which could not seat more than 200. Once the council worked itself into a panic, spurred on by Mayor Treibel and Gomer Bath, it was declared that Robeson would find the auditorium “sadly lacking in good acoustic qualities.”

Robeson said that he was not easily frightened and that he would come to Peoria “with adequate protection.” No doubt, that terrified poor Gomer Bath beyond words.

“Since when in America does a city dare keep an artist out because of his political beliefs?” Robeson demanded. “In no country in the world has such a thing been allowed. Certainly it cannot happen in America. We will fight this violation of civil liberties. The Peoria city council is using fascist techniques. Right now, labor men and other progressive groups are arranging for my Peoria concert Friday night.”

Ajay Martin Enters the Picture

According to Robeson’s account, he was “awakened at 4 o’clock this morning by some Peoria people who had seen the council’s action and realized what a dangerous and undemocratic thing it was, so they drove to Champaign to tell me and to ask me to come to Peoria despite the council’s resolution.”

And, so he did. But, first, he stopped in Decatur to give a concert at Milliken University.

By Friday night, Mayor Triebel had denied use of the city hall assembly room, and the Shrine mosque. There were rumors that the mayor might reconsider, but they were only rumors.

That Friday night, 14 police and a crowd of onlookers were allegedly been waiting for Robeson to arrive by train. Fourteen police, for an event that was predicted to draw only 200 people. Let’s do the math. That was one policeman for every 14 concert goers.

The police were anticipating that Robeson would arrive on the 4:45 pm train. He didn’t. And they waited nearly four hours before being convinced that he wasn’t coming after all.

But they were wrong. While the throngs were waiting at the train station, Robeson was having dinner in a downtown Peoria restaurant, just a couple of blocks from the police station. In plain site. In public. And there were no riots and the residents of Peoria were not overthrowing the government.

Afterward, Robeson went to Ajay Martin’s home, at 613 Shipman Street, where he was treated to a reception. As far as I can tell, that house has been razed to create a parking lot.

The next morning, April 19, 1947, the top story in the Peoria Star, included a photograph of Paul Robeson—in Peoria. The headline read, “Robeson Here: Does Not Sing.” In the photo, Robeson was surrounded by a group, most of whom were not identified. In fact, there was only one person identified in the caption, aside from Robeson and Ajay Martin: “The woman, right foreground, with back to camera, is Joel Lawless.”

But Robeson did come to Peoria, thanks to Ajay Martin who was a labor organizer and international president with the CIO. And, contradictory to the Peoria Star’s gigantic headline announcing otherwise, Paul Robeson did sing in Peoria—in Ajay Martin’s living room.

Robeson had been invited to Peoria by Bradley University violinist Dr. Allen Cannon, who continued to teach there and, in 1957, became Director of the School of Music. It is remarkable that Dr. Cannon and Byerly Bros. Music, the ticket outlet for the concert, appeared to have survived the event unscathed while Robeson’s career was nearly destroyed by the Red Scare.

CIO Affiliation

A Peoria publication, The Bronze Citizen, wrote, “That ain’t window dressing. That’s democracy. For there is no clause in our constitution which provides for board members by race-creed or color,” when Peorian Ajay Martin was elected as “full vice-presidency” of the Farm Equipment and Metal Workers convention of 1946. At the same election, Pope Huff, was elected as international board member-at large. Both were elected unanimously even though only about five percent of the voting body was black.

Ajay Martin had been the first black ever to be elected to that level by the union. He was secretary of Local 105 at Caterpillar Tractor.