Remembering Alice Kitchen CoL: Cities for CEDAW Role Model

In our work at the United Nations, we have long been blessed with an impressive intergenerational team of activists and advocates. Last fall we unexpectedly lost one of our key wisdom figures, Loretto Comember Alice Kitchen. So this spring is a perfect time to remember her as one of our mentors and role models.

Each year the U.N. Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) prioritizes different topics. This past March the priority theme was “Ensuring and strengthening access to justice for all women and girls, including by promoting inclusive and equitable legal systems, eliminating discriminatory laws, policies, and practices, and addressing structural barriers.”  This year, the 70th gathering of the CSW, also focused on the review theme of “Women’s full and effective participation and decision making in public life, as well as the elimination of violence, for achieving gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls.”

Alice Kitchen worked for peace and acted for justice in many ways over her lifetime. One of her most effective U.N. tools was the U.N. Convention for the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW). Created in the late 1970s and signed by U.S. President Jimmy Carter, CEDAW was never ratified by the U.S. Senate, making the U.S. the only developed nation not to do so. In response, women in this country started the Cities for CEDAW movement in the late 1990s in San Francisco. 

In Kansas City, Mo., Alice joined with other feminist activists to work for equal access for women and girls. After many years, Kansas City is now a fine example of a City for CEDAW. We were thrilled to partner with the Women’s Intercultural Network and the Dominican Leadership Conference to host our CSW70 parallel event “Alice Kitchen: Cities for CEDAW Role Model for Justice.”

Our guest speaker was Gail James, Ph.D., a close friend and colleague of Alice. We also heard from several Gen Z participants about why CEDAW is still relevant in the U.S. today. Alice excelled at turning a principle into a policy, and the ability to make rights real. This event — both a memorial and an inspiration to action — was summed up by our 2024-26 intern, Grace Broome, who noted that Alice “challenged me to think critically about the impact I wish to make, and this led to one of most inspiring intergenerational dialogues I had while interning with Loretto/BVM at the UN.”

A recording of this event can be viewed on YouTube here.

Beth Blissman has served as the U.N. Representative for the Loretto Community since 2017 – she notes that this journey would not be possible without our 15-year partnership with the BVM Community, whose unwavering support empowers students to find their voice and take action. Together we are fostering the next generation of leaders who will drive meaningful change.