The month of March brings us International Women's Day, on the 8th this year, as well as Mother's Day on the 10th, but celebration of women and all their achievements permeates the whole month nowhere more so than in the USA.
In tune with the theme, our Powerwomen Awards USA will take place tomorrow, 14th March, in New York City, in the impressive building of Deutsche Bank, in the heart of Manhattan.
Will the Citywealth Powerwomen Awards International that took place earlier in the month in London, set the tone for the New York event?
The awards in London were indeed a celebratory and joyful occasion at the 5 star Grosvenor House in the city's smart Park Lane.
Karen's inspirational speech reminded the audience of all the struggles women had to endure, from getting the vote, back in 1928, thanks to Emmeline Pankhurst.Though born in England, the famous suffragette delivered her defining speech, Freedom or Death, in America.
Karen's quote of contemporary British author Jeanette Winterson “Behind every great woman is a man who tried to stop her " brought applause and laughter from the audience, not only from the women but also from the supportive and good-natured men attending the event.
Indeed involvement of men is a defining feature of the Citywealth Powerwomen Awards that also recognise the support men give to female leadership and career progression.
Award winning Hazel Bowen from Canaccord Genuity Wealth Management with her supportive husband
Amongst
the award winners on the night was Lauren
Cramer, Corporate attorney and partner at law firm McLaughlin & Stern,
who flew in from New York especially to attend the London awards. In
appreciation of her presence, her gold award in the Woman of the Year –
Government, Regulatory and Not-for-profit Organisations category was exceptionally
announced during the evening, ahead of the Powerwomen Awards USA, to her great
surprise and delight.
Congratulations to all the brilliant winners - women, men and companies - that have contributed towards opening up greater opportunities for women, continuing the work of suffragette Emmeline Pankhurst, started over a hundred years ago.
We are now looking forward to Powerwomen Awards USA, happening tomorrow. Watch this space!
Karen's speech on the night
Powerwomen speech 2024
Karen Jones, CEO,
Citywealth
I am Karen Jones,
Editor and CEO at Citywealth. I Studied Women’s Leadership at Said Business
School Oxford University and have run the Citywealth business for 18 years with
eight staff and 450 blue-chip, global clients. The Citywealth powerwomen awards
is just one product that we have, and it has run in Europe for over a decade
and in New York for 4 years. It was set up with a London School of Economics
professor with its aim to have influence and to support career progression for
women at whatever level of their career.
And although it seems contrary,
we have always promoted the inclusion of men within the Powerwomen awards to
ensure they know about the issues women face and are able to put their energy
and skills behind the movement.
There is a year long
process to find the winners which involves submissions and recommendations; an in-person
lunch in London and New York with 10 judges each. We have online voting for
clients and peers to contribute to your success. We then have an aggregation of
votes from the judges and the global wealth management community to find the
winners.
Our mission is to raise the
profile of all women involved with our editorial, networking, user ratings and
awards products to ensure visibility for business development and career
progression.
Whatever Citywealth does
though to help now and in future, I always think, that it is worth reflecting
on whose shoulders we stand.
I am
asked frequently what advice I would give to women, but I feel it is important
to first read about the struggle women have had to get a vote or seat at the
table. In the UK for instance 1975 was the first time a woman could get a
mortgage or loan without “asking her husband.”
English
author Jeanette Winterson who explores
gender polarities wrote a short book after a speech for the BBC in July 2018.
It
documents a her-story that is sad and unpleasant. I believe it should be on
school curriculums along with financial education for girls. It looks into
women on boards and new advances like A.I., as well as #metoo and sexbots. She does not pull any punches.
(My
kind of woman).
The
back cover quote says, “behind every great woman is a man who tried to stop
her”.
Winterson
also publishes a speech from Emmeline Pankhurst, an English political activist who organised the British
suffragette movement and helped women win the right to vote. She was born in
Manchester, England (as Winterson and also I were) but she delivered this now
famous speech “Freedom or Death” in America, actually in Hartford #connecticut in 1913.
Pankhurst roused crowds on
both sides of the Atlantic, as part
of a speaking and fundraising tour.
The Suffragettes who were women who organised protests to get the vote, were ultimately
imprisoned for their militancy and forcibly fed during hunger strikes to
prevent them dying because they were causing tremendous embarrassment to the
British government. Pankhurst said at the time “we have to face the alternative
either women are to be killed or are we are to have the vote.”
She said in Connecticut “You
won your freedom in America with the revolution and sacrifice of life. The same
with civil rights but women have been left to work out their own salvation.”
According to the 2022 Gender
Gap Report from the world economic forum, it will take 151 years to close
gender gaps and although women’s economic advancement would mean contributions
of 12 trillion dollars a year added to global GDP progress is stagnating.
Coming back into the
present, Tik Tok made infamous the name Karen, saying it is usually a
stereotype of a difficult customer. Considering everything I have said today, I
am happy to be that difficult, ‘militant’ customer and to speak up for mine and
others rights .
Like the women who won the right to vote, we
must keep our foot on the peddle. we need to shout up, reach out, be courageous
to finish the job.
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