NOW Members Pledge to Re-Defeat Bush in 2004
July 19, 2004
"It's time to send George W. Bush back to the ranch," said NOW (National Organization for Women) President Kim Gandy, addressing attendees of the 2004 National NOW Conference in Las Vegas, Nev. "And we're also going to send his corporate cronies who have tried to privatize the country back to the private sector—unless, of course, their jobs have been outsourced."
Echoing the theme of this year's conference, "Don't Gamble With Women's Rights," in her keynote address, Gandy traced the devastating policies to women that have been implemented by the Bush administration since taking office in 2001. "We will not go back to a time when women were second-class citizens," Gandy said. "We've come too far. It is time to move forward and elect a president who will stand up for women."
NOW conference delegates voted to endorse a nonpartisan campaign to bring gender parity to political office. Pictured: NOW President Kim Gandy (left) and former presidential candidate Carol Moseley Braun. All photos by Lisa Bennett.
Hundreds of NOW members gathered over the weekend to set the organization's agenda for the upcoming year. An overwhelming majority passed specific resolutions calling for emergency action surrounding the 2004 presidential election.
"We urged women everywhere to 'declare a state of emergency beginning immediately' and 'work to re-defeat Bush in 2004,'" said Gandy, who is also chair of NOW's Political Action Committee. "John Kerry has a very strong record, and I encourage every person who cares about women's rights to vote for him."
Other resolutions encouraged massive grassroots action and voter registration toward electing a progressive president and demanded that unbiased, international observers monitor the 2004 elections. NOW members also voted to endorse a marriage equality education campaign and former presidential candidate Carol Moseley Braun's nonpartisan "Every Open Seat Should be a Woman's Seat" campaign to bring gender parity to political office. Delegates also called for a Woman of Color Summit in 2005 and a Young Feminist Conference in 2006.
Stephanie Odle (left), lead plaintiff in the class action suit against Wal-Mart, inspired conference delegates to attend a demonstration at a local Wal-Mart. She was joined by former Miss America 1992 Carolyn Sapp (right).
In addition to NOW's 5th Annual Political Institute, workshops covered a broad range of issues including women and AIDS, the Promise Keepers, the war on drugs, and sexual assault in athletics and the military. NOW members were also able to participate in discussions about reproductive rights, campus organizing, economic justice, and equal marriage rights.
Throughout the weekend, speakers also addressed many of the crises facing women this year. Political guests included Rep. Hilda Solis (D-Calif.), Rep. Shelley Berkley (D-Nev.), first-time candidate Roselyn O'Connell (former National Women's Political Caucus president), and Nevada Democratic leader Adrianna Martinez. Anti-war activist and CodePink founder Medea Benjamin spoke about the "forgotten war" in Afghanistan and the devastation of life for Iraqi women. Benjamin's remarks preluded a resolution introduced Sunday to call for an immediate halt to U.S. military action in Iraq
NOW honored Dr. Donna J. Nelson for her groundbreaking research on the participation of women and people of color in the sciences.
The conference also focused on wage and gender issues facing women in the workplace. Stephanie Odle, lead plaintiff in the unprecedented class action suit against Wal-Mart, inspired delegates to pour out of the conference hall to attend an action outside a local Las Vegas Wal-Mart. To protest the retail giant's discriminatory practices, participants carried signs that proclaimed "Wal-Mart is anti-woman" and marched through the store's parking lot, passing out informative flyers to customers.
Other speakers included Laura Flanders, progressive radio talk show host and author; Wendy Shanker, comedian and writer, who addressed women and body image in the media; and Susan Polis Shutz, poet and co-founder of Blue Mountain Arts. NOW honored Dr. Donna J. Nelson with a Woman of Courage Award for her groundbreaking research on the participation of women and people of color in the sciences. NOW's inaugural Woman of Action Award was presented to Stephanie Alves, who created a radio station to counteract the negative depiction of women in music and a send positive message to teenage girls.
Stephanie Alves, who co-founded a radio station that counteracts the negative depiction of women in music, received NOW's inaugural Woman of Action Award.
Special awards were presented to longtime NOW activist Geraldine Miller, who has advocated for household workers and women of color for more than 60 years, and to Alice Cohan, the director of the history-making 2004 March for Women's Lives.
"These are women who are living their principles every day," said Gandy. "They serve as role models for all feminists as we re-commit to the challenging task of protecting and advancing women's rights."
