Washington, DC
I went to the National Network of Presbyterian College Women (NNPCW) conference (Speak Truth to Power) in Washington, D.C. at American University. We were able to go to the office of the National Presbytery and learn about such issues like the Farm Bill, reproductive rights, immigration, and healthcare. We were then able to discuss these issues and how we felt about them during a “Speak Your Mind” forum.
Every night we had different plenary speakers. One of the most interesting women that spoke to us was Mara Vanderslice at Common Good Strategies, which is a political consulting firm for Democratic candidates. She served the Kerry campaign as the Director for Religious Outreach. It really got me thinking about the connection between religion and politics. And there can be one by using faith as a “moral compass” to drive political thought. Also, by using the power of the vote as well as writing letters to representatives and congressmen, this can really make a difference.
We also learned what we could bring back to our campuses to have successful programs in which people come and care about the issues. The biggest way to accomplish this and get participants is to build relationships. We learned that this is the key to not doing all of the work ourselves.
Touring the city, we visited the National Organization of Women (NOW), which is a feminist organization working toward women’s rights. They were organized originally to help pass the Equal Rights Amendment. The other groups visited the Center for Community Change, to give members of communities tools to change their communities for the better, and the Mary McLeod Bethune Council House. The biggest thing that I took away from this conference was to just be involved and informed. Knowing the issues and writing letters is one of the best things you can do because Washington cares what their constituents think.