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REMEMBER: VOTERS NEED YOUR HELP

We are working with Common Cause Indiana and the Chicago Lawyers for Civil Rights to place thousands of volunteers on the ground for the mid-term elections as part of the Election Protection Project.

Please visit protectthevote.net to sign up.

Proposed ConstitutionalAmendmentson our Ballot this Fall

The League of Women Voters of Indiana is opposed to Public Question #1 on the November 3, 2026, ballot based on the League’s long-standing position on Pretrial Release.

Voters are being asked to amend the Constitution of the State of Indiana Article I, Section 17 relating to Bail.

Article I is the Indiana Bill of Rights.Amending it to reduce citizens’ rights should not be taken lightly. Liberties given away now are not easily reclaimed in the future.

The LWVIN Board voted to state our opposition on September 28, 2026. The full statement appears here: https://www.lwvin.org/docs.ashx?id=1829976

Public question #2 proposes a state constitutional amendment that would require both city and town court judges to reside in either the county where the court is located or the bordering county closest to the court. LWVIN has not taken a position on Public QuestionNo. 2. If passed, the amendment would expand where city and town court judges could live, potentially helping to address city and town judicial shortages in Indiana.

The League encourages people to vote early!

Vote weekdays now through noon on November 2 and the two Saturdays
prior to Election Day.

On October 6, the first day of early voting,

600 voters voted in Marion County

800 voters voted in St. Joe County

400 voters voted in Michigan City

Add your vote to the mix!

The Voices and Votes: Democracy in America exhibit will be at the Prindle Institute for Ethics in Greencastle October 10 - November 20. Based on an exhibition by the National Museum of American History, itis part of Museum on Main Street, a collaboration between the Smithsonian Institution and State Humanities Councils nationwide, andtravels in 2026-2027 tocommemorate the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.

The League of Women Voters of Greencastle is collaborating in the programming during the exhibit.Duringthe opening celebration, visitors hada chance to add their signature to a virtual Declaration of Independence. Visit the Prindle Institute website to explore other programming planned for the exhibit.

The exhibit has been in Angola, French Lick, Rushville, and Upland, and will go to Vernon and Columbia City when it leaves Greencastle. It will remain in the state until March 14, 2027.

''If you have a chance to see the exhibit in at least one place, do so. It's well worth the time and the drive to reflect on our nation's experiment with democracy."

Linda

FORGOTTEN FOREMOTHERS
Profiles of lesser-known heroines in the fight for women's rights

Mary Ware Dennett

Mary Ware Dennett and husband Hartley welcomed their first child, a son Carleton on Dec. 23, 1900. Delivery was exceptionally difficult for Mary and nearly fatal. She was so ill, she was not able to breastfeed, and the couple soon hired a nurse to help her care for baby Carleton while she recovered.

Then, in 1903, she had a second child, Appleton, born on Dec. 11. “Again, the delivery was hideously difficult,” said Constance M. Chen in her biography of Mary. “And this time, the baby had a hard time as well. Not only did Mary become very ill, but little Appleton died of starvation at three weeks of age.”

In May of 1905, Mary gave birth to a third child, Devon, and again, “the mother emerged in gruesome shape.” Doctors told Mary and Hartley that they should stop having children. One more pregnancy, they asserted, would undoubtedly kill Mary. But as Constance pointed out, “not one doctor, however, offered the slightest information about birth control.”

To read this entire article go HERE.

Kathryn Gardiner