It's Time to Put Women into the Debates

October 8, 2004

"Women have suffered tremendous setbacks since George W. Bush took office in 2001," said NOW President Kim Gandy. "We are asking John Kerry to spotlight these setbacks tonight. Women everywhere need to be reminded that 'W' really stands for 'War on Women.'"

The National Organization for Women is urging Sen. John Kerry to take the opportunity of the second and third Presidential debates to remind women that this may be the most important election of their lifetimes. With issues like reproductive health and civil rights hanging on the outcome of this election, NOW asks Sen. Kerry to bring women, especially the 22 million single women who declined to vote in 2000, into the debates.

Recently the Bush administration redefined the rules of overtime pay, creating more financial burdens on women who are often heads of single-parent households. Women are now being forced to work longer hours without additional pay, at the expense of their health and their children.

"Sen. Kerry, let women know you are committed to ensuring that we will have equal pay and benefits, that health care will become more accessible (including family planning and abortion) and that our children will have a chance to attend college without staggering debt."

"Does Bush really know what women want?" Gandy asked. "It's obvious that he doesn't. Women are worse off now than they were when he took office in 2001. We're still seeking equal pay, better health care, safer schools, and a cleaner environment—and by all of those measures George Bush has taken us backward, not forward."

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