In partnership with Augusta University, the Greater Augusta’s Interfaith Coalition, the CSRA National Council of Negro Women Inc. and two local sororities, a panel of elected women were invited to discuss breaking societal barriers on earning elected positions within the judicial system on the Summerville campus on Wednesday evening, Nov. 8.
Filling AU’s Jaguar Student Activity Center’s ballroom, residents of the CSRA listened in attention to local officials answer various questions about achieving their title as a result of their passion for serving the state of Georgia. Panelists included: Supreme Court Justice Verda Colvin, Representative Lynn Gladney of the Georgia General Assembly, Judge Amanda Heath of the Augusta Judicial Circuit Superior Court and Solicitor General Omeeka Loggins of the Richmond County’s Solicitor’s Office.
Organized with the help of the Zeta Xi Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc. and the Mu Zeta Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Inc., panelists spoke to audience members about the importance of youth learning to pursue one’s passion with a heart of servitude rather than always chasing one’s desire for prestige or ultimate success.
“None of this was my plan. I tell people, when I tell my story, that this was God’s doing. I just wanted to serve and I just wanted to practice law and be excellent at it,” said Colvin. “My preparation was just doing the job and doing it well. I never worried about status or position; I just wanted to be excellent wherever I was … I will say this to all the young people here today and I tell this to my kids too, ‘just try to be excellent where you are and don’t run after success, because – if you’re excellent where you are – success will run after you.”
With her experience as a veteran, Gladney said she wholeheartedly agreed with Colvin’s sentiments about young people needing to understand their community as well as its needs.
“There is a scripture that says, ‘your gift will make room for you and will bring you before great men,’ and I believe in that wholeheartedly,” said Gladney. “Whoever it is that you are and whatever it is that you do – if you are authentic and genuine about your service – people will come to where you are and they will gravitate to your service and work.”
Telling of each of their individual experiences and discussing brief snapshots of their life, together the speakers weaved a tale of hope for the future of the state and the country – one where citizens would rise up to the occasion of acknowledging diversity and making a collective effort to put more women in elected positions of power to level the political playing field to forge a more understanding and empathetic future.
“If we want to have a society that functions appropriately, we have to have women in every arena, and I think that’s true for everything regarding diversity – diversity of race, cultural background, geographical background and gender,” said Colvin. “We have to learn as a society to value every difference that there is, because that’s the only way this is going to work.”
Emphasizing how every table needs to have room to invite new opinions and viewpoints, Colvin said there is no singular party or group that has all the answers, which means every institution needs to make adjustments to include more diversity in the hopes of creating a better community that can understand others problems and brainstorm solutions.
“I think everybody has a tiny bit of the answer and we have to put those together for it to work,” she said. “And if they don’t have a seat for you at the table, then you will bring your own chair.”
While Heath referred to women as life’s natural “fierce,” “multitaskers,” Gladney explained why she believed more women in elected positions were necessary to help significantly shape the future as they could understand and sympathize with families in various tough situations, where their male counterparts might not be able to due to their lack of experience with a more complex societal standards and expectations.
“I think women bring a perspective of consideration to the decision making process that has different narratives,” said Gladney. “Having women be a part of that decision making process adds to that value and quality of life … women only make up a third of elected officials in the nation, but we make up almost 60-70% of the voting population in most election cycles. We add something to that. We need more of us to be willing to engage in the process.”
However, for those aspiring to one day achieve a position of governmental power, all four panelists suggested that committed young women and men first decide their purpose – their “why” as to avoid burnout, depression and to hold oneself accountable at all times.
“Know your why and be able to recite that to yourself,” said Colvin. “So that you can stay true to that ‘why’ and don’t get distracted along the way.”
Comparing successful people to determined race horses that cannot stop to look and compare themselves to competitors, Colvin also suggested that hopeful future officials, women especially, need to prioritize making strides as an individual rather than focusing one’s efforts in being an overzealous yet unqualified candidate.
“You have to always be authentically who you are. I think there’s a lot of suffering going on in our society because there’s a lot of trying to meet an unrealistic expectation,” said Colvin. “You need to be true to who you are and what you want to do … just look ahead and don’t worry about anyone else.”
Concluding the event, President Tameka Allen of the Zeta Xi Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha, offered thanks to all participating panelists and attending officials, and stated her hopes for more women to “break the glass ceiling” by assuming more elected positions.
