Author: Jean Godden (Jean Godden)

Jodee Fenton, Head of Special Collections, myself and Marie Mccaffrey, Library Board Trustee in front of the Seattle Room

Seattle’s Central Library building, internationally acclaimed when it opened 10 years ago, still has the power to amaze.  Just how much so became clear last week when a group of us from City Hall took a guided tour of the Seattle Room, led by Jodee Fenton, who manages the Library’s special collections.The Seattle Room on the 10th floor of the iconic building houses the library’s rare books and documents. In some ways, the collection is an anomaly in this internet age. When we want … Continue Reading »

We need your nominations for the Jeanette Williams Award!

I have some exciting news!  I’m partnering with the City of Seattle’s Women’s Commission to present this year’s Jeanette Williams Award to individuals or organizations in our community which are making waves by speaking out or taking action to end the gender wage gap.

As you know, the wage gap between men and women is a scourge that has persisted for far too long.  I often share the story of being a young columnist at the Seattle Post-Intelligencer who was the sole bread winner and made less than my male colleagues doing the same work.  My family could have used that extra money.  Today, I’m angry that Seattle … Continue Reading »

After four days in New York City, off on a Seattle Chamber intercity study mission, I could tell you about dozens of experiences: How to survive two days bucketed by torrential rain. Or about how New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg launched Applied Sciences NYC, instantly expanding sciences and engineering campuses. Or about how significant the arts are to the Big Apple’s quality of life (and sometime I’d like to do just that).

But my biggest take-away from the jam-packed, fast-paced tutorial was in learning about the New York area’s crown jewels, its varied parks and recreation facilities, some located in nearby burbs (think Brooklyn).  Many of these amenities, invitingly programmed and culturally captivating, are managed by public … Continue Reading »

Council has been overwhelmed by the Seattleite response to the minimum wage discussions over the last few months. From the letters and emails, to the public meetings and forums, the immense amount of feedback has shown us just how important this topic truly is, and how significant a minimum wage increase could be to both business owners and workers across all industries.

As you already know, yesterday, Mayor Ed Murray announced a recommended path to a higher minimum wage for Seattle. The recommendation includes a phase-in period and provisions for both small businesses and total compensation. Council will most likely receive a public briefing of the legislation on May 5th and begin discussions at that time. I hope you will join Council at the many meetings … Continue Reading »

Welcome to my semi-regular blog column. As a longtime Seattleite, history buff and chronicler of city life, I will combine civic activities with current topics and experiences, along with recollections from the past and some favorite anecdotes. As for the name of the column, it comes from Seattle’s original address: Duwamps.

Early Pioneer Square

In November, 1851, the first white settlers landed on the West Seattle peninsula, naming the settlement “New York, Alki,” meaning “New York, by and by.” Later, in search of a deeper harbor, they moved the settlement to the shores of Elliott Bay. Its first post office address was Duwamps, echoing a Native American designation.

In 1852, David S. Maynard, better known to us as … Continue Reading »

Sen. Barbara Mikulski – the longest serving woman in Congress- speaks out about the gender wage gap.

Republicans in the U. S. Senate blocked the measure that would have helped ensure equal pay for equal work. And, to add insult, they did so on Equal Pay Day, April 8, the day when women, on average, caught up to what men, on average earned the previous year. It still takes women better than 15 months to earn what men doing equal work can earn in 12.

The vote came after Washington’s Sen. Patty Murray delivered a speech on the Senate floor urging … Continue Reading »

It was Toasted Cheese Sandwich Day on Saturday, quite appropriate for the fun, yet formal ribbon cutting at the Bell Street Park, a four-block long play space for the many residents of Belltown.

Celebrating the sunny opening were several hundred enthusiastic Belltown residents, a handful of winsome youngsters, many of them toddlers, and at least a dozen adorable dogs. There were jugglers and musicians, artists and brightly-colored food trucks – one of them, of course, selling toasted cheese sandwiches. And what kicked off the celebration? A lively bunch of Lion Dancers, accompanied by ritual drummers.

Mayor Murray was there to wield the ceremonial scissors, as were former Parks Chair Sally Bagshaw and myself, the new … Continue Reading »

Today, April 8, is Equal Pay Day in the United States. That means that the average woman (paid 77 cents for each dollar earned by a man) had to work all of 2013 and until today in order to earn the same wages as a man earned in 2013.

In Seattle, Equal Pay Day won’t come even this soon. Women in this supposedly progressive city receive 73 cents on the dollar. Not until the end of the month will Seattle women earn as much as Seattle men did in 2013 and catch up with the Gender Pay Gap.

However, times may be getting better. Nationally, President Obama and his Democratic allies will work to provide compensation data with a breakdown by race and gender.

Congress is drawing attention to women’s wages. This morning Obama signed … Continue Reading »

Last Wednesday Mayor Murray and I announced bold, new steps to close the gender wage gap. As a woman I often faced gender wage inequity as a journalist, I could not be happier to announce our action plan which is based on the recommendations of the Gender Wage Inequity Task Force. This Task Force went to work last year researching the gender wage gap in Seattle, and developed a Gender Justice Initiative with a list of solutions for this disparity. With the Mayor’s support, we can fully move forward on action for equal pay in Seattle.

Working with the Personnel Department and Office of Civil Rights, we are digging in. First, we plan on collecting more and better city worker demographic data … Continue Reading »

Beautiful blossoming cherry trees.

Who owns the Arboretum?

That was the question that Dr. Sarah Reichard, Director of the UW Botanic Gardens, asked as I stepped into the golf cart, about to take a springtime spin through the 230-acre botanical garden and park on Union Bay led by Kenan Block, Fred Hoyt and Jack Collins.As luck would have it, I had covered enough Arboretum events as a former newspaper columnist to be able to guess at the answer: The park belongs to the University of Washington and the City of Seattle.  The way it works is that the city owns the land and the UW owns the botanical collection – more than … Continue Reading »