Meet the woman behind the Kindness Matters SLO, the organizer of “A Day Without A Woman March” set for the the International Women’s Day, March 8.
Debbie Gedayloo started the Kindness Matters SLO huddle group in January, right after attending the Women’s March in San Luis Obispo where her spirit of resistance, organization and facilitating the empowerment of others was reignited. Her drive to encourage people to speak up comes from the fact that her father is an Iranian, Muslim-raised nuclear physicist and she is a public school teacher whose entire career with children was spent teaching illegal migrant farm worker kids.
As a woman who was raised to speak her mind and to use her intelligence and creativity for the greater good of humankind and in defense of animals, she has started a group that meets in Los Osos on Tuesday afternoons and stands in solidarity and resistance on the corner of LOVR and South Bay Blvd to inspire passersby and to remind them that their voices and ideas matter.
The goal of A Day Without A Woman is to recognize the enormous value that women of all backgrounds add to the socio-economic system – while receiving lower wages and experiencing greater inequities, vulnerability to discrimination, sexual harassment, and job insecurity. Debbie says: “It is important to write letters and postcards and make phone calls. It is equally important to be in the public view with a positive message of collaboration and resistance. We need to keep our momentum up throughout this marathon that we are in, and coming together – sharing stories, getting to know each other, walking together – will lift each of us and propel us forward.”
Kindness Matters SLO group meets once a month in Los Osos (the next meeting is Fri, March 3, from 5-7pm. For more information email kindnessmattersslo@gmail.com)
To learn more about A Day Without A Woman March, please click here.