Women Protest After Being Rejected as Elks Members

Getting in the Independence Day spirit, several longtime members of the Bellflower Elks Lodge ladies auxiliary called in attorney Gloria Allred on Friday and refused to cook, clean or serve meals until they are granted full membership.

Five women, most in their 60s and 70s, charged at a news conference that they and a sixth woman were rejected for membership in the all-male lodge earlier this week because of their gender.

Noting the men-only rules were dropped by the national Elks organization four years ago, the women vowed to fight and go to court if necessary to secure equal treatment.

“I don’t like to be treated as dirt under anyone’s feet,” said Dorothy Jensen, 77, a lodge volunteer for more than two decades and current chaplain of the Lady Elks Auxiliary.

The rebellion, the reporters and feminist attorney Allred--whom the women pointedly invited into the lodge’s bar for a soda--were all “kind of a shock” to the lodge’s leadership, Jensen acknowledged. “But I’m not the kind that quits. I keep on going until I get what I want.”

Auxiliary President Sandra Strong, 53, said three women, one a sheriff’s deputy, previously were denied membership in the Bellflower lodge. The timing of Friday’s protest seemed right, after the latest rejections, Strong said.

“Independence Day represents all Americans freedoms,” she said. “It should be for all . . . not just a select few. That’s what our forefathers intended it to be.”

Working the lodge’s fireworks stand several blocks away, Exalted Ruler Mike Bakel declined to discuss the matter.

“I can’t say anything until I’ve spoken with legal counsel. I’d like to talk but I can’t.”

According to Allred and some supportive members of the lodge, the issue was not one of qualifications. The women all had passed an investigation committee’s review, and demonstrated their dedication and character over many years of service to the lodge, Allred said.

But when the men voted--putting forward black marbles for “no” and white marbles for “yes”--the six women were literally blackballed, falling short of a required two-thirds vote, Allred said. At the same time, three men were admitted, Allred said.

Her clients “don’t wish to be Lady Elks in the ladies auxiliary,” she said. “They would like to be members of the Elks. They’ve more than earned that right.”

Although some men in the lodge supported them, Jensen alleged that opponents of admitting women made sure to get like-minded members to the meeting for the vote. “They stacked the deck, but good,” she said.

Jensen, who decided to call Allred, says that the issue came to a head partly because the lodge, like many fraternal groups with aging and shrinking membership, is in financial straits.

Membership has tumbled from 700 to 400 over the last several years, she said, and the “good old boys won’t do anything” to increase fund-raising and recruitment. But women, who are not even allowed in the lodge during Wednesday night member meetings, can’t initiate any action with out approval of the male members.

“I want to join so that I have a right to say what I want to say,” she said, “and help this place save itself before it closes.”

Strong said women members are helping revive other lodges.

By last year, an estimated 2% of Elks members nationally were women, and some lodges have admitted dozens of female members.

But in Bellflower, where many Elks are in their 70s and some have difficulty getting to meetings, there has been a strong current of resistance, some members say.

By Friday evening, the lodge’s dim, red leatherette motif bar had returned to an easier pace. Lee Harding, 74, a past exalted ruler and brother-in-law of a woman rejected last week, said it’s clear a lot of men just don’t want female members.

“They say, ‘It’s a man’s club.’ ”

Until that attitude changes, Strong says, the men can do more of the lodge’s chores. “Whatever it takes. We’re in for the long haul.”