I Got Called “Ma’am” During Hadassah’s Day on The Hill

I got called “Ma’am” today.

I always knew that to be “ma’amed” is polite: “May I help you ma’am”? “Can I carry your groceries, Ma’am”? To be called “Ma’am” is not ageism; it’s just deference to women of a certain age.

But I thought it was only the politeness of life below the Mason-Dixon line. I had never been called “Ma’am” when I lived in Boston. Yet I was addressed that way during my recent visit to our Capital for Hadassah’s American Affairs Advocacy Day on the Hill in Washington, D.C.

On first hearing myself called Ma’am, I swallowed hard. Certainly, I do not see myself as anything other than what I have always been: a person who is physically and mentally active, curious about the world and her place in it. With a childhood in the 1970s, am I now seen by others as “Ma’am”?

I looked around at the Hadassah women who came from across the country for this special advocacy day. Some were seasoned; some were new — many had never walked the halls of government or seen the inner workings of democracy in action. And I wondered: Do these women define themselves by the years the mirror reflects or by the experiences they have had?

In any case, we were there to see first-hand how our system of government works. We were 21 teams of advocates. Over 100 women and some men, too, walked the halls of the Cannon, Rayburn and Russell Office Buildings. We spoke with legislators and their staff about pending bills and upcoming legislation we wanted them to support, as well as other issues that are important to Hadassah’s mission. Bills such as the S. 3855 United States-Israel Framework for Upgraded Technologies, Unified Research, and Enhanced Security (FUTURES) Act, which would advance our defense partnership with Israel.

We encouraged our representatives to co-sponsor legislation such as the S. 2947 Pray Safe Act and the S. 3724 Improving Reporting to Prevent Hate Act.

In the 48 hours immediately following our Day on the Hill, the media was filled with reports of an increased number of antisemitic attacks –underscoring the vital need for these bipartisan bills to be enacted.

Our Hadassah delegation also graciously thanked our legislators for what they have already done on behalf of women’s health (cosponsoring H.R. 3916 My Body, My Data Act and H.R. 4977 Connected MOM Act). We also discussed the importance of expanding funding for women’s health research.

During our lunch in the historic Kennedy Caucus Room, we were graced by the presences of Sens. Jacky Rosen (D-NEV), James Lankford (R-OK), Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) and Elissa Slotkin (D-MI). Collectively, representing a cross section of America, they reminded us of the impact our presence on Capitol Hill has on the congressional legislative process.

As I sat in my meetings with the various legislative staffers, I noticed that they were young and eager. And that we Hadassah volunteers, who were there to share our personal connections to the bills we were advocating for, were important to these staffers! I realized that the staffers respected us as a collective group of “Ma’ams” — no matter our ages. They saw us as women who are passionate about the all-encompassing, lifechanging work Hadassah does for people around the world.

Returning to our own congressional districts, we continue the work with calls, letter writing and zoom or in person meetings with our state or federal representatives. We make our voices heard through Hadassah’s online National Action Center. And I, for one, embrace the deference of being called “Ma’am.”

Randi is a member of the Hadassah Writers’ Circle, a dynamic and diverse writing group for leaders and members to express their thoughts and feelings about all the things Hadassah does to make the world a better place. It’s where they celebrate their personal Hadassah journeys and share their Jewish values, family traditions and interpretations of Jewish texts. Hadassah members are proud of their Zionist mission and their role as keepers of the flame of Jewish values, traditions and beliefs as well as advocating for women’s empowerment and health equity for all. Since 2019, the Hadassah Writers’ Circle has published nearly 800 columns in The Times of Israel Blogs and other Jewish media outlets. Interested in writing? Please contact hwc@hadassah.org.