Got 10?

April 9, 2004

Yes, Bush's policies will have disastrous results for thousands upon thousands of women and children—from criminalizing a safe abortion procedure to broad cutbacks in family planning funding.

Yes, the Republicans' misogynist policies, such as their "solution" for poor women in the midst of government cutbacks (just "find yourself a man and get married, honey"), recreate and reinforce women's dependence on men.

Yes, Bush speaks his own language of deceit and doubletalk, where "Clear Skies" means a field day for polluters; "Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies" means less autonomy and rights for pregnant women, and "fairness and equality" means further privileges for rich, white, apparently straight men.

Yes, his foreign policies are dangerous and arrogant—from the global gag rule that is killing women overseas, to an irresponsibly unilateral war in Iraq, to preaching abstinence to stop AIDS in Africa.

And yes, we often feel overwhelmed. Yes, we want to create change. YES, we want to save reproductive rights. Yes, we want George W. Bush out of the White House!

But can we do it on our lunch break? Yes, we can!

In just two weeks, NOW and NOW Foundation will launch a new campaign called "10 for Change." The premise is simple: If you and each of your friends, family members and colleagues make sure that 10 people you know register and vote, and if people like you all over the country do the same, we will win in November—and George Bush and his cronies will no longer be passing judgment on our reproductive decisions and lives.

All it takes is 10. Got 10 minutes in between meetings? Ask your colleague in the next office if she is registered to vote. Need to pick up your kids at daycare? We'll send you some voter registration forms to hand out. Got to pick up some groceries at the supermarket? Every one of us can throw 10 voter registration forms in our bag and talk to people while waiting in line. That's how politics really work. That's why it's so easy and why it's something each one of us can do. All we need is 10. And you.

This is a feminist campaign through and through. We know that the personal is political, and that all politics is local. We know that individual, daily acts of rebellion are the heart of every great widespread movement. We know that every woman is a leader in her own way. And we know that everyone's activism must fit into their life. Yes, we're all stressed out and stretched thin, but if we each do just a little, it will add up to a whole lot.

If you register 10 people, and each of those 10 people register 10 more, and each of those 10 register 10 ... well, you get the idea. Let's multiply the power of change, so none of us has to carry the whole load and all girls and women benefit.

Yes, we have a lot of work to do. And yes, sometimes it seems overwhelming. But we can make it happen if we all pitch in a little. There's hope ahead if we stick together. Stay tuned for all the details in NOW's next News & Action Summary, or look for the "10 for Change" petitions at the March for Women's Lives on April 25. Just give us 10 people or 10 minutes a day.

Got 10?

—Kim