We’re Rising. We’re Mobilizing. We’re Making History – That’s the tagline of the 2020 Women’s March taking place this Saturday in Washington, DC and in cities across the country, but the tagline could also be viewed as a rallying call for 2020 and beyond.
We’ve entered a new decade and with that an opportunity to re-imagine what the next 10 years could and should look like. I’m not a huge fan of New Year’s resolutions per se. Despite the best of intentions, they always seem to result in broken promises to yourself, and I’d rather not kick off the new year disappointing myself!—but rather I like to reflect on the previous year in order to inform where I want to go in the coming year.
This year, I’ve been particularly reflective, in part because I’m a stone’s throw away from being an empty nester, and I know that the next 18 months will fly by. I’m watching my daughters grow into young women, beginning to feel their way through the world, asserting their independence and making their own decisions about the kind of world they want to live in. My oldest will cast her first presidential vote this year, while my youngest is arguing fiercely that the voting age should be lowered to 16. I work hard to suspend what some may call my “jaded and outdated” opinions in order to truly listen to, and receive, their ideas and opinions with an open mind and an open heart. It turns out that practice has taught me much lately and has actually fortified me for the coming year. And let’s be honest—it’s going to be a year.
It’s no coincidence that within days of the Women’s March we will commemorate the birthday of civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and mark the National Day of Racial Healing. The story of gender and racial equity are intertwined, and in 2020, the fight continues.
That is why The Women’s Foundation remains steadfast in our commitment to equity. It is our duty as a women’s organization to acknowledge and embrace the fact that the strength of our community lies in the diversity and identities of its members, and in order for us to effectively address the economic realities of women and girls, we must create space for the voices and experiences of women and girls who experience inequities to be seen and heard.
And that’s what The Women’s Foundation does best.
We amplify community needs and voices by convening unlikely allies to work together to center the voices of women, girls and gender non-conforming individuals in our region.
Young women like Kiran Waqar, one of our Young Women’s Advisory Council Fellows, who has made it a priority to amplify the voices of fellow youth, lifts others up by taking center stage and speaking up herself.
Or organizations like the DC Rape Crisis Center, our Grantee Partner, which provides survivor-centered advocacy with an equity frame as the only rape crisis center in DC.
Or partnerships like those between Prince George’s Child Resource Center and Maryland Family Network, who are organizing Prince George’s County early childhood educators to advocate for themselves in Annapolis.
And leaders like Samantha Davis, Founder and Executive Director, of the Black Swan Academy, who is fiercely committed to creating a pipeline of Black youth leaders through civic leadership and engagement.
Those are just a few examples of local women and organizations rising, mobilizing, and ultimately making history in their own way to better their communities. As we embark on this new year, we’re investing in our local leaders to ensure that women and their families thrive now and into the next decade.
Specifically, in 2020, we will draw attention to issues embedded in economic security that don’t necessarily garner the local spotlight that they deserve. Issues like the role that gender-based violence plays in creating barriers to women achieving financial stability, the need for high quality and affordable early education programs so that moms can work, and racial disparities in women’s reproductive health care that prevent women and girls from physical and emotional well-being. We will invest in and work across these primary areas, and others, because we recognize that in order for a woman to successfully complete a job training program or thrive in the workforce, she and her family members must be healthy, secure, and free of violence.
That is what we will do.
Now I have two asks of you in 2020: Think local. Invest local.
Take a moment to learn something about your community, a local nonprofit, or a local leader. Shop at a local women-owned business. Eat out at a woman-owned restaurant. Remind yourself that Washington, DC and the metropolitan region is more than the national political headlines. It is a vibrant and beautiful community that we all call home, and it is filled with boundless opportunities and potential.
So, when you’re marching this week, remember – you don’t have to look too far for the effective change you seek because it is already happening right here in the Washington region.
We’re rising. We’re mobilizing. We’re making history. Join us.
Sincerely,
Jennifer Lockwood-Shabat
