California State University, Northridge

July 23, 1996

Contact: Carmen Ramos Chandler,
Director of News and Information,
(818) 677-2130
cchandler@exec.csun.edu

Northridge Honors Four "Phenomenal" Women

This is the second year of the awards, which honor women who embody "feminism in action." This year's recipients will be honored during a special reception and silent auction on Oct. 6 at the University Club.

This year's honorees are being honored for their distinguish service and contributions to the community. They are:

• Los Angeles Times columnist Robin Abcarian, who writes about life, love and politics from a feminist perspective. She has received several awards for her work, including an honor from the Los Angeles Commission for Women for being someone who has "made a difference in women's lives" and a national media award from the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Discrimination.
• Juana Beatriz Gutierrez, director of Madres del Este de Los Angeles, Mothers of East Los Angeles, which successfully fought proposals to build a state prison, an oil pipeline and the construction of toxic waste incinerators and treatment plants in the East Los Angeles area. Las Madres also operates a child immunization project, a scholarship fund and a community youth graffiti abatement project.
• Betty Kozasa, a longtime senior citizen activist and community volunteer who spent 17 years directing programs at the Los Angeles Volunteer Center. She is considered one of the nation's leading experts on issues affecting senior citizens and has testified before a variety of governmental agencies, including the House Select Committee on Aging and Action, the California Commission on Aging, the National Pacific Asian Resource Center, the Roybal Center on Applied Gerontology, and the Los Angeles City Council. In 1981, Kozasa was appointed to the White House Conference on Aging.
• Avis Ridley-Thomas, administrator of the Dispute Resolution Program for the Los Angeles City Attorney's Office since its inception in 1989. The program has grown from four staff members to include more than 400 volunteer mediators, trainers, facilitators and peacemakers who handle thousands of disputes annually. The program specializes in violence prevention, cross-cultural relations, and has provided consultation, training and support to institutions, businesses and organizations and communities throughout Southern California. Ridley-Thomas is the wife of Los Angeles City Councilman Mark Ridley-Thomas.

Proceeds from this year's reception and auction, which are open to the public, will fund student scholarships, faculty development, information resources, guest lectures and special programs.

Last year's ceremonies raised more than $5,000. Some of those funds were used to bring in guest speakers such as Goulnar Baltanova from Russia, who spoke about Muslim women in the new Russia; activist and transgender theorist Susan Stryker; and Bonnie Thornton Dill, professor of women's studies at the University of Maryland and founder of the Women's Research and Resource Center at Memphis State University.

The reception and auction are from 4 to 6 p.m. in the University Club on Oct. 6. For tickets and more information, call (818) 677-3850.