Women’s March Update: August 2017
Test wrote Justine Lyons, volunteer of CURE Foundation.
Since January, the Women’s March organizers and participants have been continuing to organize and act for causes relevant to the intersectional feminist agenda. Highlights of these activities in the USA include:
Elections: Since January, approximately 16,000 women around the US have begun to seriously consider running for office, whether local, state or federal, according to Emily’s List. Organizations like Run for Something have been established to recruit and assist unconventional candidates, such as young women, run for lower level offices to build a more progressive legislative base from the ground up. The Women’s March has also created and expanded activist networks, leading more people to volunteer for progressive candidates running in special or local elections.
The Women’s Convention: Organizers from the Women’s March are in the process of planning The Women’s Convention in Detroit, Michigan for October 27-29, 2017. The convention will involve workshops, planning sessions and platforms for women who are often marginalized to make their voices heard. It will be an opportunity to expand feminist activist networks in the USA, with the goals of increasing intersectional inclusivity in all parts of the feminist agenda, and getting more women elected to office to implement it. In order to ensure that women from all walks of life are represented at the Convention, the organization will be offering scholarships to some participants who would be otherwise unable to attend.
Protest Actions: On March 8, 2017, International Women’s Day, the A Day Without a Woman protest called for women to strike; those able to were urged not to work or spend money for the day, and supporters of the strike wore red. According to reports, a few school districts actually closed for the day because so many employees participated in the strike. Women’s March organizers and participants have organized a number of other demonstrations in the past 8 months, notably protests against the proposed GOP healthcare bill and the National Rifle Association. In the past few days, Women’s March organizers have collaborated with other organizations to hold over 700 vigils across the USA for the victims of the violence committed by participants in the appalling white supremacist “Unite the Right” event in Charlottesville, Virginia.
Sources:
https://www.runforsomething.net/
http://www.womensconvention.com/
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/updates/school-closures-day-without-woman-draw-mixed-response/
