Playwright, actor reflects on legacy of Elizabeth Peratrovich
Posted by Joe Viechnicki | Feb 16, 2021
Diane Benson (Photo courtesy of Diane Benson)
Today, February 16 is Elizabeth Peratrovich Day in Alaska, marking the anniversary of the signing of an anti-discrimination bill passed by Alaska’s territorial legislature in 1945. The holiday honors the civil rights leader born Elizabeth Wannamaker in Petersburg July 4, 1911. She was instrumental in the passage of that law during a time when women were rarely a part of the political world and decades before the national movement for African American civil rights.
Lately Peratrovich has gained more national recognition with her face on a dollar coin issued by the U.S. Mint last year. She was also the subject of a Google doodle at the end of 2020 and a biography written for teens published in 2019. Long before that she was the focus of research for Petersburg resident, playwright and actor Diane Benson.