|
WILPF US Celebrates Women on International Women's Day
WILPF was founded by extraordinarily tenacious and courageous women from around the world. They built an organization and a community that supports women's rights, human rights, the planet and peace and has thrived for over a century.
TODAY, on International Women's Day, we celebrate our heritage... but we also celebrate EVERY woman activist, whether they organize actions and marches, show up to support them, or simply keep the hope of peace and justice.
We celebrate the way our branches around the country support and empower the passions and energy of women activists:
- The way that Fresno branch encouraged and supported Jean Hays to produce a video about fracking in California that continues to inspire anti-fracking groups across the US.
- The way that Santa Cruz branch has supported Randa Solick's environmental work, sanctuary city work and the new efforts on creating a public bank in California.
- The way that Philadelphia branch is supporting Courteney Leinonen in her work to restart the Beloved Community Committee in WILPF.
- The way that so many branches have reached out to public schools with donations of Jane Addams Peace Association book award selections to underscore the importance of justice, empathy, understanding and courage for emerging generations.
- The way that the St. Louis branch supported Yvonne Logan's efforts on the Baby Tooth Survey of radioactive traces documented far from nuclear testing sites in the 1950s, as a means of determining the effects of nuclear fallout in the human anatomy by examining the levels of radioactive material absorbed into the deciduous teeth of children.
- The way the Cape Cod branch supported a ground-breaking Water Course to raise awareness of the threats to our water systems during the 1990s.
- The way many of our branches marched on June 17th last year in Women Ban the Bomb Marches around the country, supporting the efforts of WILPF International's Reaching Critical Will program and the International Campaign Against Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) in their work on a UN Treaty to ban nuclear weapons that won a Nobel Peace Prize in 2017.
- The way that WILPF US is supporting the continued work of Dixie Hairston and Melissa Torres, PhD to assemble students at the UN Practicum in New York City next week, and their participation on a Parallel Panel of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) that examines the way leadership is shared in feminist organizations.
- Another Parallel Panel during the CSW62 is lifting up the role of women farmers and rural leaders in a revolution in sustainable, local farming in collaboration with grassroots and NGO organizations around the nation and world. Women are leading the way to defend human and environmental rights by building an eco-system ensuring food security and revitalization of our soil, water and air.
Tonight, the WILPF US All Member ONE WILPF Call will be our first PUBLIC organizing call. PLEASE INVITE PROGRESSIVE WOMEN interested in system change and empowering women activists to join us. It's at 7pm eastern/4pm pacific.
Tonight's call will honor International Women's Day by featuring the work of WILPF members in the past, current WILPF members and an exceptional analysis of how to protect voting rights and fix gerrymandering by a woman organizer with amazing credentials,
Jan BenDor of the Michigan Election Reform Alliance. Jan will explain how WOMEN can be the force to demand paper ballots, document the chain of ballot custody, and train Election Observers. She'll offer a look at what impact the next CENSUS will have on either voter suppression or voter rights, and what we can do NOW to demand a Fully Funded US Census.
This call has a different PUBLIC Registration Link. So even if you are registered for our regular ONE WILPF Member Calls, you'll want to re-register for tonight's call.
Here's the link.
Finally, International Women's Day is a good time to being planning for actions and solidarity events around Mother's Day and the launch of the Poor People's Campaign Days of Action. On Mother's Day (May 14th) the PPC is asking for actions at State Capitols around the nation. The details are still emerging for the kinds of actions being requested, but now is a good time to begin planning a bus or car pool to your state capital, with your WILPF banner, or a new banner the WILPF4PPC Committee is designing and making available. Contact
[email protected] for more information. And Mother's Day is a good time to also raise the issue of School Shootings and support the Gun Control campaigns which our children and grandchildren have been so eloquently and bravely leading.
On International Women's Day, and every day, I celebrate YOU, our members, friends and donors, who inspire us with action and courage, energy and commitment.
- What does empowering women look like to you?
- How will you share your vision with other women today?
In appreciation for all you do for peace and for WILPF US,
Mary Hanson Harrison
President, WILPF US Section
|
