Rhode Island

She was a suffragist, stage and screen actor, and RI's first female lawmaker | Opinion

Published

2 months ago

March 16, 2024

She was a suffragist, stage and screen actor, and RI's first female lawmaker | Opinion

Ken Dooley is a member of the board of directors of the Heritage Harbor Foundation.

Her Irish friends would agree that Isabelle Ahearn O’Neill, a stage and screen actor of the silent film era, a suffragist, and the first woman elected to the Rhode Island legislature, died most appropriately on St. Patrick’s Day, March 17, 1975. The resolution passed by the state House of Representatives recognizing March 8, 2007, as Women’s History Day mentioned O’Neill’s accomplishment in becoming the state’s first woman legislator “just two short years after women gained the right to vote.” To call her a pioneer would be an understatement.

Born in Woonsocket in 1880, Isabelle was the youngest of 13 children and moved to Providence in 1892 with her family. She attended the Boston College of Drama and Oratory. Marrying John O’Neill in 1907, she had one child, who died at age 3. Her marriage ended later in divorce, and she never remarried.

A powerful speaker, Isabelle was an actress on the vaudeville stage and in silent films, establishing the Ahearn School of Elocution in 1900 when she was 20 years old. Her students gave recitals at the Providence Opera House. She also worked as an actor for nearly two decades (1900–1918), taking both lead and supporting roles in primarily summer stock and vaudeville shows in Rhode Island and New York. In 1915, she began to take roles in silent films such as Joe Lincoln’s “Cape Cod Stories,” made by the Providence-based Eastern Film Corporation. O’Neill became a suffragist and began campaigning for Democratic candidates in Rhode Island.

More: Hope & Main’s Lisa Raiola is USA TODAY Woman of the Year RI honoree. Here’s why

Perhaps inspired by her father, a former councilman, she entered politics and made history in 1922 as the first woman elected to the General Assembly. O’Neill’s acting career and divorced status made her a somewhat risqué choice, but her solid Catholic background and maternalistic agenda affirmed her respectability. In that election year, she also chaired the women’s committee for the gubernatorial campaign of William S. Flynn.

Isabelle Ahearn O'Neill was the first woman elected to the Rhode Island General Assembly. — Isabelle Ahearn O’Neill was the first woman elected to the Rhode Island General Assembly.

Like other female politicians of her day, she built a career on “women’s” issues, such as pensions for widowed mothers, better teacher pay and protections for female workers. On June 18, 1923, she steered a maternity bill through the House, the first of its kind in the nation, only to see it killed in Senate Committee. Not content with the support of her middle-class Irish American peers, she courted the state’s polyglot electorate by delivering speeches in French and Italian. After eight years in the House of Representatives, the popular Smith Hill legislator moved to the Senate and served as deputy Democratic floor leader, the first woman in the nation to hold this position. Another career highlight came in 1924 when she was temporarily Chair of the Democratic National Convention.

More: Peace in the streets: Arkansas and RI settle world’s shortest St. Patrick’s parade battle

Throughout her career, O’Neill was known for her outspoken and principled stands. Despite, or perhaps, because of her unconventional life, some seized on her as a model of activist Catholic womanhood, frequently inviting her to speak to parish groups on such topics as “Women in Politics.” At the request of President Franklin Roosevelt, she left the state Senate after only two years to serve as the president’s legislative liaison to the Federal Bureau of Narcotics. In 1943, she resigned and returned to her home state, where she took an executive position at the Rhode Island Labor Department to work on the cost-of-living index. She retired from government service in 1954 and passed away in 1975 at the age of 94.

In 2011, the YWCA of Rhode Island created the Isabelle Ahearn O’Neill Award in her memory to honor the state’s women leaders. She was inducted into the Rhode Island Heritage Hall of Fame in 2014.

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: She entered politics and made history in 1922 as the first woman elected to the General Assembly.

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Rhode Island Captures 10th Atlantic 10 Rowing Championship Title

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4 hours ago

May 18, 2024

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Rhode Island Captures 10th Atlantic 10 Rowing Championship Title

PENNSAUKEN, N.J. – Rhode Island won it’s 10^th Atlantic 10 Rowing title, securing the win with a victory in the Varsity 8 Saturday at Cooper River Park.

It’s the third title in the last four years for the Rams, who earn the Atlantic 10’s automatic bid to the NCAA Championship. Rhode won the Varsity 8 and Second Varsity 8 races to secure the victory.

Massachusetts finished second in the standings with 46 points, winning the Varsity 4 and placing second in the Second Varsity 8 and third in the Varsity 8. George Washington placed third overall, just one point behind UMass with 45 points, placing second in the Varsity 8 and third in the Second Varsity 8 and Varsity 4.

Fordham was fourth with 33 points, followed by La Salle (29 points), Saint Joseph’s (26) and Duquesne (21). George Mason and Dayton rounded out the team standings.

Rhody’s Varsity 8 team won a tightly contested grand final over George Washington and Massachusetts with a time of 6:45.204, topping the Revolutionaries (6:49.544) by four seconds.

URI also claimed the Second Varsity 8 with a time of 6:55.6. UMass (6:59.771) and GW (7:02.350) earned silver and bronze respectively.

Massachusetts won the Varsity 4 with a 7:39.620, followed by Saint Joseph’s (7:44,.487) and GW (7:53.112).

UMass also won the two non-scoring events, taking the Varsity 4B at 8:04.765 and the Third Varsity 8 with a 7:22.861. GW was second in the 3V8, clocking in at 7:25.761 and Duquesne was third with a 7:28.857. The Revolutionaries also were second in the Varsity 4B with a 8:12.167 while Rhody was third with a 8:16.705.

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CHAMPIONS! Rowing Wins 10th Atlantic 10 Title – University of Rhode Island

Published

11 hours ago

May 18, 2024

Press Room

CHAMPIONS! Rowing Wins 10th Atlantic 10 Title – University of Rhode Island

KINGSTON, R.I. – Rhode Island Rowing won its 10th Atlantic 10 Championship in program history on Saturday in thrilling fashion, with racing coming down to the final event on the Cooper River.

The Varsity 8+ crew of coxswain Lily Stasaitis, Catie Castle, Bethany Nordstrom, Nicole Jones, Samantha Gumprecht, Cait Reardon, Emma Barnhart, Sarah Pecoraro and Bella Bruno sprinted past George Washington in the final 1000m of its race for a first-place finish (6:45.2) that lifted URI to the team title.

Rhode Island finished with 51 points, followed by Massachusetts (46 points) and George Washington (45 points).

The Second Varsity 8+ joined the aforementioned boat by finishing first in its event. Coxswain Ellie McGee, Jessica Tosi, Olivia Kowalski, Hailey Pardi, Sammie Gorecki, Eryn Wale, Amanda Cubit, Maia Hembruff and Emma Larsh bested second-place UMass by half a length to pick up what was the team’s first gold medals of the day.

Rhody’s Varsity 4+ crew of coxswain Evelyn Tabor, Emily Olin, Emma Brookins, Jasmyn Hayes and Alexis Moore began the competition amongst the scoring boats with a fourth-place finish (7:55.0). The Third Varsity 8+ just missed the podium as well, crossing the line fourth (7:31.6).

URI’s Second Varsity 4+ crew of coxswain Sawyer McNish, Irma Accius, Anna Kann, Abby Galayda and Brigid McShea placed third in its final with a time of 8:16.7

Castle, Jones and Nordstrom earned spots on the All-Atlantic 10 First Team while Barnhart received a Second Team nod. Head coach Shelagh Donohoe won A10 Coach of the Year for the ninth time in her career.

Rhode Island has secured the conference’s automatic bid to the NCAA Championship, which is being held on East Fork/Harsha Lake in Bethel, Ohio from May 31 through June 2. The Rams will learn of their seeding in the selection show, which is at 5 p.m. on Tuesday, May 21. It will stream live on NCAA.com.

Team Standings
1. Rhode Island – 51
2. Massachusetts – 46
3. George Washington – 45
4. Fordham – 33
5. La Salle – 29
6. Saint Joseph’s – 26
7. Duqeusne – 21
8. George Mason – 11
9. Dayton – 7

Rhode Island Finals Results
Second Varsity 4+ – Grand Final
1. Massachusetts – 8:04.7
2. George Washington – 8:12.1
3. Rhode Island – 8:16.7
4. Fordham – 8:57.2
5. George Mason – 9:09.2

Third Varsity 8+ – Grand Final
1. Massachusetts – 7:22.8
2. George Washington – 7:25.7
3. Duquesne – 7:28.8
4. Rhode Island – 7:31.6
5. Fordham – 7:55.4

Varsity 4+ – Grand Final
1. Massachusetts – 7:39.6
2. Saint Joseph’s – 7:44.4
3. George Washington – 7:53.1
4. Rhode Island – 7:55.0
5. Fordham – 8:09.9
6. Duquesne – 8:19.3

Second Varsity 8+ – Grand Final
1. Rhode Island – 6:55.6
2. Massachusetts – 6:59.7
3. George Washington – 7:02.3
4. LaSalle – 7:09.1
5. Fordham – 7:14.6
6. Duquesne – 7:18.6

Varsity 8+ – Grand Final
1. Rhode Island – 6:45.2
2. George Washington – 6:49.5
3. Massachusetts – 7:00.1
4. Fordham – 7:01.8
5. LaSalle – 7:05.2
6. Saint Joseph’s – 7:12.5

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Rhode Island

‘Warehousing’ children; RI’s most wanted; Friars prospects: Top stories this week

Published

18 hours ago

May 18, 2024

Press Room

‘Warehousing’ children; RI’s most wanted; Friars prospects: Top stories this week

Here are some of The Providence Journal’s most-read stories for the week of May 12, supported by your subscriptions.

Here are the week’s top reads on providencejournal.com:

Rhode Island has violated the federal civil rights of hundreds of children with mental-health or developmental disabilities by “routinely and unnecessarily segregating” them at Bradley Hospital, U.S. Attorney Zachary Cunha said Monday.

Rather than placing children with such disabilities in intensive in-home or community-based programs, Cunha said the state’s Department of Children, Youth & Families has over-relied on hospitalizing them at Bradley, leaving them there for weeks, months and, in a few cases, more than a year.

“Rhode Island has failed, miserably and repeatedly, to meet its legal obligations to children with mental-health and developmental disabilities,” he said.

What comes next for DCYF after U.S. Attorney’s scathing accusations?

Mental health care: ‘Appalling’: Feds accuse RI DCYF of ‘warehousing’ children at Bradley Hospital. What to know.

Gov. Dan McKee has quietly asked lawmakers to approve a tax relief-and-spending package for Citizens Bank that includes the proposed state purchase of a Citizens-owned building on Tripps Lane in East Providence for more than twice its current $16.9 million assessed value.

A second of two unannounced budget amendments has Democrat McKee asking lawmakers to allow a tweak in the state’s “financial institutions tax” that could potentially cost the state millions in revenue.

Within the State House, it is believed to be a targeted effort to assist Citizens for unstated reasons, though it does not specifically name the company.

Read on to find out what we know about the Citizens Bank deal – and what we don’t.

Business: Inside McKee’s 11th hour pitch to keep Citizens Bank – and its jobs – in RI. Here’s the deal.

Spread too thin as owner/chef, and with two other businesses, Ben Lloyd will close his Salted Slate this month. The Wayland Square restaurant has had a 10-year run serving lunch, brunch and dinner in Providence. The last day of service is May 31.

News of that closing was compounded by a Facebook notice that a second Wayland Square institution, Minerva’s Pizza at 20 South Angell St., has also shuttered. Kabalan and Kaylin Habchi bought the restaurant in 2002 and have run the pizzeria since.

Did the traffic disruptions of the Washington Bridge closure play a role? Journal food editor Gail Ciampa talks with Lloyd about the stresses that led to his difficult decision.

Dining: Two restaurant closures stun Wayland Square. How much is the Washington Bridge to blame?

Byron Valle and Douglas Leon were in a crowd of about 2,000 soccer fans gathered at Merino Park when they were shot to death in 1987.

Thirty-seven years later, police are still trying to find the man who pulled the trigger. The accused killer is Julio Merida, and he’s among a small group of fugitives identified as “Rhode Island’s Most Wanted.”

Featured on a webpage maintained by the Rhode Island State Fusion Center at state police headquarters, each of the most-wanted fugitives has a story. Read on to learn more about Merida and seven other men on the most-wanted list, as well as instructions from the state police about what to do if you have any information that could aid in apprehending them.

Crime: Have you seen these men? Here’s the list of Rhode Island’s most wanted fugitives

The end of this month could see Providence College already well down the road with respect to building its next men’s basketball recruiting class.

The Friars already hold a commitment from a 2025 prospect and could see two more before the calendar flips to June. The first could come as soon as Sunday afternoon.

Jamier Jones will announce his decision live on Instagram, and he was scheduled to start a final visit to Providence over the weekend. Jaylen Harrell is set to pledge May 27, and the Friars are also among his last six schools under consideration. Journal sportswriter Bill Koch explains the impact they could have on PC’s basketball program.

College sports: Two more top prospects might commit to Providence basketball this month. Who are they?

To read the full stories, go to providencejournal.com. Find out how to subscribe here.

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