By
Barbara Payne
Ever
feel ostracized because you’re single? Ever been treated like you were a
threat? Ever been talked to like you were easy pickings? So have we. And we’re
out to change all that NOW.
SWWAN—the
Single Working Women’s Affiliate Network—was founded to celebrate the passion
and courage of single self-supporting women. Women who use their creativity to
meet the challenges and overcome the often-tough hurdles society puts in the
way of living singly. Single by choice or by chance doesn’t matter. What’s
important is to change the world so that no woman ever has to feel ostracized
or embarrassed for being single.
With 40% of births in the
In
the past, before women fought for and achieved the simple rights men took for
granted for centuries—did you know that once-upon-a-time-in-America married
women not only could not own property, they were actually considered property!?—single women were at an extreme disadvantage.
In the days when few women could earn a living wage in any case, marriage was
the only option that provided some measure of financial security. It wasn’t
always an ideal situation, but society supported it, and the sexual revolution
was a long way off, so most men actively sought marriage. Single women often
had to be taken care of by their family of origin or resort to
tough—sometimes-appalling—ways of making money. Most jobs available to the
majority of women were on the level of slave labor. In the dark past, women
were grateful to work only 12 hours a day and to get Sundays off. Check out our
Brief
History of Single Women in 20th Century America.
Since
“single woman slavery” ended—at least in some parts of the world—single women
have been finding many creative ways to support themselves. Fortunately, today
the Internet is expanding the universe of affordable ways for women to reach
out—to each other, and to potential employers, customers, and business
partners. In the process, more women are learning to dream big—and finding the
chances of achieving their dreams much more promising than they ever thought
possible.
That’s
why we invite single working women to share their milestones, their triumphs,
their stories with others. It’s the best way to encourage each other—by sharing
our courage, our challenges, our burdens, and our joys and wins! Share
your stories here.
In 2006 SWWAN approached Chase’s Calendar of Events, the official guide to global holidays published by McGraw-Hill. We
submitted the idea for celebrating a holiday—Single Working Women’s Week—during which single working women could become the focus of
attention…and yes, even receive gifts! Chase’s—which does a rigorous screening-out
process for ideas that are submitted—agreed that this was a demographic worthy
of declaring a holiday for.
So now, just as the
Take the survey – “On Being
Single” – just visit www.swwan.org/ and click the link.
Got a neat idea for celebrating the new holiday? Naturally,
chocolates and flowers are great. But how about these ideas, too: Take a single
woman friend to dinner (or cook for her). Take her garbage out. Walk her dog.
Take her car to the car wash, or even watch her kid(s) for a couple of hours.
What can you imagine as a way to give a break to people who are not only the
sole breadwinner but also the only person responsible for all of life’s
household duties? We’d love to hear from you!!
Send your ideas to info@swwan.org.
We are excited to see the response we are receiving.
We have members from all over the
It’s time to change the world! To send us an idea,
get more information, or join the fun—basic membership is free—email membership@swwan.org. Or visit www.swwan.org. We offer a
warm welcome—any country, any condition, partnered or not—to every single working
woman in the world.
SWWAN – “Enhancing the single lifestyle—and making
the world a better place for everyone!”