100 years of Soroptimism 1941-1951 Soroptimist Movement Wartime When the 1940s began, the Soroptimist International Association was firmly established worldwide. It had three Federations: America, Europe and Great Britain & Ireland (GB&I). GB&I was created in 1934 and includes Clubs in Commonwealth countries.   Today we have five Federations:  South West Pacific arrived in 1978 and Africa in 2020. 1946 was a milestone :  the Association celebrated its 25th anniversary.   But the chaos and hardships of  World War II brought new challenges.  Many Soroptimist Clubs in Europe had to close. A new Soroptimist tradition was born in 1948:  the Procession of National Flags marks the start of all  Conventions and Conferences.  Our photo from the Barbados convention in 2008 shows what a colourful and uplifting tradition it has become. Peacetime – “Working for the world we want’ When peace came, much in the world had changed. 

Soroptimist International celebrates 100 years of history in 2021. As we go through the year, we will remember how our organisation came to be what it is today. Before Soroptimist International began 2021 is fast approaching.  Time to think about the world just before Soroptimist International started…. Throughout the 19th century, women were increasingly prominent in society.  Governments had begun to pass laws for the first time on social matters such as health.  Women were especially interested in those subjects.  They were also more able to continue their education – women’s colleges opened in the US and UK towards the end of the 19th century.  And many women’s clubs were set up at that time. In the US, they were just about socialising at first. Soon they were also trying to bring about social change. Then as now:  the 20th century saw great upheaval during

Injustice Advent Calendar An Advent Calendar with a big difference – Traidcraft’s special calendar reminds us all of those who need help – and not just at Christmas.  Day 15 is about the Right to Mental Health. You can see how much you know about it and learn more by taking the quiz here. Child poverty Child poverty in parts of the United Kingdom is now so severe that the United Nations Children’s Fund -UNICEF – is coming in to help.  Read more about it in this Daily Telegraph article Women’s organisations highlighting current social problems Two women’s organisations – Young Women’s Trust and the Fawcett Society – have published reports on problems affecting young women in particular. Covid-19 impact on employment of young women Young Women’s Trust and the Institute for Fiscal Studies have published statistics on the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on

In the news in October 2020 Endometriosis is a miserable disease that only affects women.  Many years ago, radical surgery was often only the option.  We hoped that much better treatments were on  the way.  But the newspapers show that the situation hasn't improved very much at all. The Daily Telegraph published an article with a grim title: ‘It took 14 years for my GP to take my endometriosis seriously’ It's a condition that affects one in 10 women in the UK and yet it can be astonishingly difficult to be correctly diagnosed by doctors The Daily Telegraph interviewed Eleanor Thom in an article that seemed to show that doctors have real difficulty finding the correct diagnosis, let alone the right treatment: 'Doctors said endometriosis was all in my head'  And Emma Barnett interviewed in The Guardian,  waited even longer than Eleanor Thom for a

What are Woking Soroptimists doing now? We’re reaching out to the community, learning more about our world, looking forward with hope.