WHEREAS, NOW Political Action Committees (PACs) have worked to increase the number of feminist women elected to positions of power; and
WHEREAS, feminists who have taken power with NOW/PAC support have made tremendous and necessary changes in the laws and public policies that empower and enhance women's lives; and
WHEREAS, although the elections of 1992, the so-called "Year of the Woman," increased the numbers of women in Congress from five to ten percent, this brought us nowhere near a critical mass of feminist women in Congress, state legislatures, or local governing bodies; and
WHEREAS, the radical right wing has very effectively organized at every level to elect anti-feminist candidates whose legislative influence and effect are far greater than the small percentage of people in the U.S. who support their regressive agenda; and
WHEREAS, NOW's strength is at the grassroots level with its members, chapters, and state organizations in congressional, legislative, and local districts;
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that NOW launch Victory 2000--The Feminist Face of Politics with the purpose of electing two thousand feminist candidates to office by the year 2000; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the campaign endeavor to create enthusiasm and provide resources to encourage every chapter to work for the election of at least one of its activists to local, state, or federal office by the year 2000; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that NOW work to increase its number of
chapter and state
PAC's; and
BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED, that NOW urge the NOW PACs to develop political training materials including video for distribution to NOW chapters to assist in the formation of Feminist Action Campaign Teams which, as they work to recruit and elect these candidates, will be the heart, soul, and muscle of the Victory 2000 Campaign.
WHEREAS, NOW has planned a Vision Summit as part of the 1998 National Conference in Rochester, New York, to create opportunities and respond to the challenges of the 21st century; and
WHEREAS, NOW recognizes the essential need for continued dialog on issues of race, class, and gender in order to successfully move forward in the new millennium;
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that NOW sponsor or participate in a "Women of Color and Allies Summit" to bring together women of color and supportive allies from across the country to discuss racism, classism, and feminism; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that this Summit will celebrate our commonality, share our ideas, and create a framework to ensure the value, vision, and inclusion of women of color in NOW; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that chapters be encouraged to support activist attendance through scholarships, fundraising, and philanthropy; and
BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED, that this Summit be held preferably preceeding, but no later than 1998, to be determined by the Racial and Ethnic Diversity CIC, the National Board, and the Executive Officers.
WHEREAS, students workplaces are on educational campuses; and
WHEREAS, these students will later enter the workforce;
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the National Organization for Women initiate a nationwide Women Friendly Campuses Campaign complementary to the Women Friendly Workplace Campaign; and
THEREFORE BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that National Organization for Women (NOW) chapters be encouraged to facilitate conciousness raising to support, mentor, and help students take action to create women friendly schools and campuses for all students.
WHEREAS, one of the long-standing goals of the Young Feminist Conference Implementation Committee (CIC) has been to develop a resource kit to assist young feminist activism;
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that NOW and the Young Feminist CIC work to produce a Young Feminist Resource Kit; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that this kit provide resources for both campus and community young feminist organizers; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Young Feminist Resource Kit, similar to the Racial and Ethnic Diversity and Lesbian Rights Resource Kits, will include written materials previously generated by the NOW Action Center as well as newly-produced materials; and
BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED, that this kit be completed in time for the 1998 NOW Conference which will concentrate on the vision for NOW's future.
WHEREAS, the health of women around the world has been jeopardized for over 30 years by corporate greed in the promotion and sale of breast implants, because these implants have never been proven safe; and
WHEREAS, thousands of implant recipients have been silenced by court orders (gag rules) prohibiting them and their attorneys from revealing evidence against implant manufacturers disclosed during implant injury trials; and
WHEREAS, future generations may suffer from the effects of silicone crossing the placental barrier and contaminated breast milk because this evidence has been suppressed; and
WHEREAS, there is evidence that women around the world have been sickened, maimed for life, or died as a result of silicone shell breast implants; and
WHEREAS, women around the world are still getting breast implants even though there has yet to be any large scale, unbiased, independently funded research to determine the cause of illnesses suffered by hundreds of thousands of silicone implanted women or the reasons for the increasing numbers of early deaths among these women; and
WHEREAS, women disabled by illnesses, which silicone toxicity specialists attribute to silicone shell implants, are being added to the rolls of public financial assistance programs as their health further declines; and
WHEREAS, advocates of safe and adequately tested medical products for women are asking the Congress to approve full funding for the necessary studies, including volunteers from registrants in the breast implant product liability litigation designated MDL 926, Northern District of Alabama, so that all may know the full effects of silicone shell breast implants on the human body;
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that NOW support legislation funding research on possible side effects of implantation with silicone shell breast implants; and
BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED, the Disability Rights CIC provide information to state chapters re: establishing a disability rights task force that includes a silicone implant awareness component.
WHEREAS, 1998 marks the tenth anniversary of the last lesbian rights conference; and
WHEREAS, lesbian issues are at the forefront of political debate; and
WHEREAS, NOW must remain on the cutting edge of the lesbian rights movement; and
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that NOW hold or participate in a Lesbian Rights Conference by the end of the year 1999; and
BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED, that the Lesbian Rights Conference Implementation Committee (CIC) will function as the conference organizing committee working closely with the NOW Action Center staff and the National Board.
WHEREAS, President Clinton has made ratification of the United Nations (U.N.) Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) a top priority; and
WHEREAS, upon ratification by the U.S. Senate, the U.S. would gain a seat on this U.N. committee;
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the National Organization for Women undertake a campaign through state and local Chapters to press for this treaty to be ratified by the U.S. Senate.
WHEREAS, E.C. can prevent pregnancy up to three days after unprotected sexual intercourse; and
WHEREAS, E.C. consists of a Copper-T IUD or ordinary birth control pills that a woman can use even if she does not normally use them; and
WHEREAS, women need E.C. in addition to comprehensive reproductive health services, education, and safer sex technology; and
WHEREAS, E.C. is not an abortifacient, but rather prevents pregnancy by delaying or inhibiting ovulation, inhibiting fertilization, or preventing implantation of a fertilized egg in the uterus, though it will not affect the fetus if a woman is already pregnant; and
WHEREAS, the Reproductive Health Technologies Project (RHTP), a non-profit organization, has provided a confidential, toll-free emergency hotline (1-888-NOT-2-LATE) in both English and Spanish and a bilingual website since 1995 to direct women to E.C. providers in their area; and
WHEREAS, the effectiveness of RHTP's public service campaign in five test markets — Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami, San Diego, and Seattle — to inform women that E.C. is available, will largely determine whether non-profit funds will be available to extend the public service announcements to other cities in the future; and
WHEREAS, in spite of the Food and Drug Administration's February 1997 decision that birth control pills can be labeled for use as E.C., drug companies have stated that they have no plans to do so because of fear of boycotts organized by anti-abortionists against their other products; and
WHEREAS, a California pharmacist refused to fill a woman's prescription for E.C. pills based on moral grounds although E.C. is available by prescription only; and
WHEREAS, the National Organization for Women (NOW) believes that women should have complete authority over their reproductive lives and should have unrestricted access to any safe method of controlling reproduction;
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that NOW chapters make every effort to ensure that all members know what E.C. is and where it is available in their community; and
BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED, that information on E.C. be included on the NOW website and that such information be included in any national women s health or reproductive health project.
WHEREAS, NOW's 1978 "Provision for Disabled Persons" supports equal opportunity for all; and
WHEREAS, NOW's 1985 "Elimination of Work Disincentives for Women with Disabilities" (who face double discrimination) committed NOW to work for legislation to achieve economic equality and psychological independence; and
WHEREAS, NOW's 1987 "Campaign to Free Sharon Kowalski" proclaimed that no one should be denied access or freedom of association, and supported Sharon's request that persons with disabilities have the choice to remain in their own homes rather than be institutionalized; and
WHEREAS, this resolution proclaimed that the medical and legal system would rather declare a person helpless mentally and physically than deal with the facts of that case; and
WHEREAS, it also mandates that NOW develop actions to confront "-isms" such as handicapism (now known as able-ism) so women can receive proper medical/mental/health care; and
WHEREAS, the medical, legal, and Medicaid/Medicare systems unnecessarily institutionalize and segregate more than 2 million people with disabilities, both young and old, rather than allowing their full participation and inclusion in society; and
WHEREAS, nursing homes and other institutions cost taxpayers an average of $35,000 annually; and
WHEREAS, home- and community-based services, such as attendant services cost on average $8,000 per year and allow for independence, freedom of association, and full participation; and
WHEREAS, legislation such as HR2020 (known as M-CASA) has been introduced in Congress to eliminate this institutional bias and segregation and allow real choice in health care and attendant services in one's own home and community; and
WHEREAS, disability is part of life and living;
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that NOW commit itself to further outreach to the disability rights community by developing a brochure for distribution to leading disability rights organizations and to NOW chapters and states to aid in membership recruitment; and
BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED, that NOW support and advocate for the passage of HR2020 and similar legislation to envision disability rights in order to reduce able-ism by removing the institutional bias, increasing equal opportunities, and eliminating work disincentives while providing quality health care for more individuals.
WHEREAS, one of the ways many women access employment training is through Carl Perkins Vocational Education Single Parent/Displaced Homemaker/Sex Equity Funding; and
WHEREAS, that funding is in jeopardy as part of a continuing attack on affirmative action and poor women;
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the National Organization for Women (NOW) both nationally and locally conduct a membership and media blitz to inform members of this funding issue; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that each chapter be supplied with a fact sheet, sample letters, talking points, and resource telephone numbers concerning this issue; and
BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED, that the NOW Action Center take immediate action to monitor the committee hearings and political action regarding this issue.
WHEREAS, the Promise Keepers agenda is to subordinate women and overturn the gains that women have made in the last century; and
WHEREAS, its agenda is deceptively innocuous so that it has insinuated itself into many mainstream churches and the mainstream media; and
WHEREAS, the Promise Keepers consists of 10,000 male only cell groups meeting weekly across the U.S. and the Promise Keepers promoted 24 stadium events last year with attendance into the hundreds of thousands; and
WHEREAS, the Promise Keepers is the fastest growing and a well-financed segment of the religious right wing and presents the greatest danger to women s rights; and
WHEREAS, it intends to hold a million man march in Washington, D.C. on October 4, 1997; and
WHEREAS, it has spawned a number of subordinate reactionary women's organizations, and its ultimate goal is to destroy the Constitutional principle of separation of church and state;
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the National Organization for Women (NOW) monitor the activities of the Promise Keepers and its subordinate women's groups, educate NOW members and the general public through the National NOW Times and other media to expose the Promise Keepers misogynist agenda, and actively campaign to defeat that agenda; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that in order to further this campaign, NOW's national leadership shall undertake, in partnership with others including the Center for Democracy Studies, whatever steps are necessary to further this goal at the national, state, and local levels; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that NOW act to raise awareness of the Promise Keepers intentions, specifically at the march on Washington, D.C. in October 1997; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that NOW chapters prepare to be on-site at Promise Keepers events to raise public awareness about their true mission; and
BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED, that this campaign shall allocate staff time as a resource to local chapters and encourage chapters to monitor the Promise Keepers in their community and conduct actions around Promise Keepers activities. National NOW shall develop an action kit for all NOW chapters.
WHEREAS, Dr. Betty Shabazz, educator, mother of six daughters, and widow of slain civil rights leader, Malik al-Shabazz (Malcolm X), demonstrated extraordinary courage and integrity in the face of unimaginable tragedy and hardship; and
WHEREAS, on June 23, 1997, Dr. Betty Shabazz died after a valiant fight to survive burns she received on over 80 percent of her body;
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that NOW acknowledge the contribution of Dr. Betty Shabazz and show its appreciation for her life s work; and
BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED, that NOW should express such appreciations and condolences to the daughters of Dr. Betty Shabazz and her surviving family.
WHEREAS, attacks on documented and undocumented immigrants have occurred periodically and systematically throughout U.S. history and increase during periods of economic decline; and
WHEREAS, the U.S. government supports global economic policies that generate oppressive and degrading labor conditions by depressing employment opportunities and wages in affected countries, thereby contributing significantly to global labor migrations that strain families and communities; and
WHEREAS, propaganda targeting immigrants as the cause of native-born people's hardships serves only to deflect attention from failures of an economic system that supports corporate welfare, outsourcing, and downsizing, and leads to a divided society of haves and have-nots; and
WHEREAS, racism is commonly the underlying basis for selective immigrant-bashing; and
WHEREAS, anti-immigrant sentiments are fueled by false statistics and misinformation which lead to deportations, beatings, and brutality, including abuse by U.S government agents; and
WHEREAS, the anti-immigrant provisions of so-called welfare reform have the potential to subject more immigrants to sweatshop conditions and could force them to work at far below minimum wage in order to survive;
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the National Organization for Women (NOW) expose the racism and xenophobia, including the targeting of certain immigrant groups, inherent in anti-immigrant sentiments; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that NOW speak out against the scapegoating of documented and undocumented immigrants, produce a fact sheet educating the public on actual statistics and facts, and challenge the false claims that immigrants are the cause of economic depression; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that NOW speak out against all forms of oppressive and degrading labor; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that NOW oppose any legislation that restricts immigrant access to federal- or state-funded programs such as health care, education, and welfare; and
BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED, that NOW support feminist grassroots actions on immigrant rights.
WHEREAS, the National Organization for Women (NOW) has been working in coalition with local and national groups to fight back against this backlash; and
WHEREAS, the underlying causes and many net effects of poverty are related to all the issues NOW works on;
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that NOW create a Poverty/Welfare Conference Implementation Committee (CIC) and appoint its members at the next National Board meeting; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the CIC develop working relationships with other organizations similarly committed to advocating for full employment and universal living incomes as a permanent solution to ending poverty; and
BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED, that the CIC develop an educational campaign including the creation and distribution of relevant materials and activist trainings and because poverty and welfare issues are of immediate and pressing concern to all women, NOW continue to hold these issues at the forefront of all National NOW events and conferences.
WHEREAS, black suffragists efforts were important to the victory achieved with the passage of the 19th amendment; and
WHEREAS, some white suffragists historically exhibited racial bias against the black suffragists; and
WHEREAS, current efforts to recognize the struggle for women's suffrage included the June 26, 1997, rededication of a statue of Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Susan B. Anthony, and Lucretia Mott, for a temporary display in the Capitol Rotunda; and
WHEREAS, concerns have been raised that the contributions of black suffragists, such as Sojourner Truth, should be recognized; and
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the National Organization for Women (NOW) Executive Team, Board of Directors and the Racial and Ethnic Diversity CIC remain in communication with and inform the membership regarding current efforts to recognize Sojourner Truth's contributions which are being led by C. DeLores Tucker of the National Political Congress of Black Women.
WHEREAS, the transgendered and transsexual communities confront oppression daily and are systematically mistreated because of artificial gender constructs in our society; and
WHEREAS, there is a lack of understanding and information on issues affecting transgendered and transsexual people; and
WHEREAS one of NOW's goal is to eliminate all sex stereotypes including so-called gender roles; and
WHEREAS, NOW affirms and honors the right of people to self-identify; and
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that NOW and its subunits encourage education and dialogue within NOW and with other organizations on gender and sex stereotypes, including the issues of those who are transgendered and transsexual people; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that NOW reaffirm its commitment to ending all sex and gender stereotypes; and
BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED that we acknowledge that gender is a patriarchial social construct used to oppress women.