Muriel Siebert and Suzanne Shank Recognized as Women of the Century
Today marks the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment which gave women the right to vote. Siebert Williams Shank & Co., LLC pays tribute to its namesake, Muriel Siebert, and congratulates its President and CEO, Suzanne Shank, on their recognition as Women of the Century by USA Today.
PHOTO: RAY HOWARD, ASSOCIATED PRESS, ILLUSTRATION: USA TODAY NETWORK
How do you narrow down all the innovative, courageous, creative, trailblazing American women from a state or Washington, D.C. to a list of 10?
That was the task we gave journalists last fall in many of the USA TODAY Network’s 260-plus newsrooms as part of the Women of the Century project. And, at first, it felt impossible.
We considered profiling more women, but with the demands of covering news, we had to be realistic about what we could handle – and that was before a pandemic swooped in and changed everything – even the date we planned to start publishing many of these stories.
We invited the public to nominate women. We met, we brainstormed, we researched, and we brought in historians, politicians, community leaders and others in the know to help us.
We set the parameters. Since we are commemorating the 100th anniversary of women being granted the right to vote in the United States, we would limit the women to those who lived between 1920 and today. The women needed to be U.S. citizens.
We focused on women with documented and outstanding achievements in areas such as arts and literature, business, civil rights, education, entertainment, law, media, nonprofits and philanthropy, politics, science and medicine, and sports. To spotlight as many women as possible, we aimed to have every list be unique. For instance, if a woman hailed from one state but made her mark in another, we would have to decide which state could claim her.
Written By: Philana Patterson August 14, 2020 USA Today