By B.C. Manion
The small group of women sat around the table at Rapscallions, a restaurant in Land O’ Lakes, talking about issues that are important nationally to women.
It’s the kind of conversations these women often have, and they are particularly mindful of the need to continue working on issues such as pay equity, equal opportunity and women’s reproductive rights as they prepare to help Tampa host the National Organization for Women’s national conference June 24-26.
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Eleanor Cecil of Lutz, one of the chief organizers for the conference, met recently with Doris Rosen, the committee chairwoman and president of Pasco NOW; Bonni Axler, vice president of Pasco NOW; and Helen Wall to discuss the upcoming event.
Planners are expecting around 600 members of NOW to converge on Tampa for the conference, which has the theme of “Daring to Dream: Building a Feminist Future.”
The event will be at the Embassy Suites on the University of South Florida campus.
Conference speakers will include national, state and local women, including actress Lynn Chen, political strategist Celinda Lake, slam poet Katie Makkai and Tampa Police Chief Jane Castor.
Organizers of the conference are pumped.
“We are very excited,” Rosen said. “It’s the first time that it has been in the Tampa Bay area. The last time it was in Florida was in Miami in 2001.’’
Rosen said national NOW officials encouraged Florida to bid for the conference after visiting Florida’s state NOW conference at the TradeWinds in Clearwater.
The national conference will touch on a wide range of issues that pertain to all facets of women’s lives, Rosen said. A final lineup has not yet been determined, but the list of workshops at last year’s conference in Boston offers an idea of what conference-goers might expect.
Workshop topics at Boston’s conference last year included: “America the beautiful, are we obsessed with beauty?” “Young feminist leaders, effectively engaging and organizing young activists,” “Women warriors: Issues confronting service women and women veterans,” “Moving beyond abuse: The journey from victim to survivor.”
Although it is called the National Organization for Women, NOW’s membership includes a fair number of male members. Rosen estimates that 20-25 percent of the members are men.
She notes that many men share concerns about equal treatment and support NOW’s efforts to help guarantee a level playing field for their wives, sisters, mothers, daughters, aunts, grandmothers and friends.
Inequalities still exist, Cecil said.
“Women are still only making 76 cents for every dollar a man makes, and there’s still the glass ceiling, Cecil said.
“Our rights are being taken away as we speak,” Rosen said.
Many people equate NOW with abortion rights, the women said. The organization is adamant about reproductive rights, they said. But NOW also advocates on a much broader spectrum of issues that are important to women.
For instance, “Title IX is not just about being able to play sports in college. Title IX covers everything that relates to women on college campuses,” Cecil said.
Axler said she joined NOW decades ago, but remains a member of the organization not only for herself but for future generations of women.
“Nothing has changed. If anything, we’ve gone backwards,” Axler said.
“The recent tirade against Planned Parenthood” offers a good example about why the fight for women’s rights must continue, Axler said.
“When I was in college, I didn’t have health insurance. I was between my parents’ policy and working on my own. I used Planned Parenthood as my primary physician.”
That’s still true for many women today, she said.
Wall, who has about a half dozen granddaughters and numerous great-granddaughters, said “somebody has to make sure that we keep the rights that we’ve worked so much for.”
One of her granddaughters was told in high school that she couldn’t go to the shop class because it was for boys, Wall said. “She couldn’t go to the bodybuilding class because it was for boys.”
That sounds like the dark ages, Wall said, but it wasn’t all that long ago.
This year, NOW is making a special effort to reach out to young women, to encourage them to attend the conference, Cecil said. Some scholarships are available for young women in high school and college, who want to come to the conference, Cecil said.
Not all women share NOW’s positions on various issues, but when the group fights to establish or preserve rights, it seeks to protect rights or expand opportunities for all women, Rosen said.
“When we do something to better women, it’s to better all women.”
Besides updating attendees on various issues, the conference also provides a great forum for personal growth and inspires members of the organization, the women said.
It also fosters connections and deepens friendships, they said.
“You go home feeling energized. It’s a wonderful feeling being around people who are so serious and so heartfelt about the issues. There’s a lot of good conversation. You feel very empowered when you come home,” Rosen said.
It also helps women remain in the loop about issues that must be addressed, Cecil said.
Despite much progress through the years, the work continues, Cecil said.
“There are still issues that are out there. We haven’t arrived,” she said.
For additional information about the conference, contact Eleanor Cecil at .
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