Every woman has something to offer in the fight for equal rights, no matter her profession, background or experience.

That's according to Dr. Anne York, associate professor of history at Youngstown State University.

The distinguished professor will give a presentation on women, faith and leadership during a Peace Luncheon at noon Wednesday in Sharon Country Club.

The luncheon is sponsored by Shenango Valley Women's Interfaith and the League of Women Voters.

Dr. York, who received her bachelor's, master's and doctorate degrees from the University of California at Los Angeles, has taught at YSU since 1992.

She is a past president of the League of Women Voters of Greater Youngstown and has served on the board of directors for the league and the Ohio Cultural Alliance.

She is also active with the Alliance for Congregational Transformation Influencing Our Neighborhoods, serving as president, and is a representative for the organization's Gamaliel Foundation National Leadership Assembly.

Dr. York got involved in activism while juggling marriage, motherhood and part-time studies at UCLA.

She said she noticed a lot of discrimination after the birth of her son; many people said she wouldn't be able to maintain her scholarly endeavors.

While going through major marital changes that inevitably led to a divorce in the mid-1980s, Dr. York said she was able to get by, in part, because of help and support from faith-based organizations.

Dr. York suggested that women join such organizations, or even the National Organization for Women or the League of Women Voters, to cultivate their inner activism.

"Martin Luther King Jr. and the civil rights movement did a lot to forward the push for equal rights," she said, adding that there are several challenging areas in today's struggle for women's rights, including equal rights in the workplace and funding for women's health care.

In some cases, she said, male employers may hold promotions over their female secretaries' or female staff members' heads unless the women give in to sexual advances.

Even on college campuses, she said, the playing fields are uneven and women still face discrimination.

Dr. York said that from the housewife to the scholar, if women are willing to accept the challenges, they can all offer their unique perspectives to the struggle.

"I think women have to realize when they have been oppressed, address that and become active," she said.