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Women of UB realize vision of honoring trailblazers
Members of the steering committee for the Monument Project pose at a statue of Geraldine “Gawo:sid-Tah” Green, a Seneca longhouse leader and educator of Haudenosaunee language and traditions, at Old Erie County Hall in downtown Buffalo. Photo: Meredith Forrest Kulwicki
By JAY REY
Published October 4, 2024
Kelly Hayes McAlonie at a statue of Louise Blanchard Bethune, America’s first professional female architect. Hayes McAlonie wrote a book about Bethune. Photo: Meredith Forrest Kulwicki
Three bronze monuments now standing outside Old County Hall at 92 Franklin St. are a tribute to three of Western New York’s pioneering women and a testament to the women who made this honor a reality — including several with ties to UB.
The Monument Project honoring trailblazing women of Western New York was spearheaded by the Erie County Commission on the Status of Women, which set out in 2018 to begin remedying an inequality dotting the local landscape: Of the 106 public statues, only two commemorated women.
Among those from UB chosen to serve on the project steering committee were Kelly Hayes McAlonie, director of campus planning; Lillian Williams, associate professor in the Department of Africana and American Studies; Barbara Seals Nevergold, former director of student support services in the Educational Opportunity Center; Carolyn Malone, associate professor at the EOC; and Jessica Ackley, a PhD student at UB and a grandniece of one of the honorees. Karen King, executive director of the county’s Commission on the Status of Women, is also a UB alumna and former university employee.
“The project committee has been working on this project for almost seven years,” Hayes McAlonie says. “We had to take a break during the COVID pandemic, and we worried then that the project might not come to fruition. But due to Dr. King’s leadership, the unwavering support of Erie County and the hard work of the steering committee, we are thrilled to see the statues in place.”
A ceremony was held at the end of August to commemorate the new monuments of:
- Louise Blanchard Bethune (1856-1913), the first professional woman architect in the U.S. and a staunch advocate of equal pay for equal work.
- Mary Burnett Talbert (1866-1923), an internationally recognized civil rights leader and suffragist.
- Geraldine “Gawo:sid-Tah” Green (1929-2009), a Seneca longhouse leader and educator of Haudenosaunee language and traditions.
UBNow reached out to Hayes McAlonie, who has been involved with the project from the outset.
How far back does the Monument Project go and what has been UB’s role?
The University at Buffalo has been involved in this project since its inception. The idea for the project began at the Economic Justice for Women Conference hosted by the Erie County Commission on the Status of Women in December 2017.
Kari Winter, the executive director of the UB Gender Institute at that time, challenged the attendees with a short speech about how women are erased and disappeared from history, and the importance of making them visible in public landscapes.
Bonnie Lange Lawrence, Erie County deputy commissioner for environment and planning (and a UB alumna) agreed with Winters’ position and suggested an initiative to place statues to women in our region. Early in 2018, Karen King, Erie County commissioner of public advocacy and executive director of the Erie County Commission on the Status of Women (also UB alumna and a former staff member in the Office of Student Life) convened a group of interested people to discuss the feasibility of the project.
Can you describe a bit of the process for selecting the candidates to honor?
Karen assembled a steering committee that was composed of community leaders, museum curators and academics throughout the community. This committee reached out to the community through the press and social media for nominations.
Why did the steering committee choose these three women, in particular?
We were interested in women who were early trailblazers in their field. We were also interested in women who had called Buffalo and Western New York home but who had also made a national or international impact due to their efforts.
Are there more statues on the horizon?
The committee is about to launch a plaque program where we will place exterior plaques on buildings or at landscapes in honor of the contributions of other women trailblazers. We expect that every year we will celebrate five to six women with this honor. Over time, we will expand our public “trail” that honors the remarkable women who call or called our region their home.
Can you give us an idea of what trailblazers might be considered next?
We will be asking the community for suggestions on our website very soon. We are very excited to begin the next phase.