The Future of the American Woman
Guests:
- Jodi Hicks - CEO and President, Planned Parenthood Affiliates of California
- Adama Iwu - Activist and Co-Founder of We Said Enough; VP of State and Local Government, VISA Inc.
The death of RBG is the tragic culmination of an administration that has overseen a reign of disrespect, misogyny and policies aiming to pull back many of the protections and rights guaranteeing women’s autonomy in this country. The election of Donald Trump in 2016 spurred many women (and others) to action with millions taking to the streets during the Women’s Marches and a national conversation on sexual assault and workplace harassment that propelled the Me Too movement to international prominence. This movement coupled with record numbers of women running for office created a feeling of genuine optimism for a future where women would be at the helm with abusive men running scared.
COVID-19 along with the increasingly hostile federal administration have lead to a much less hopeful reality and have exhausted activists and ordinary citizens alike. During the pandemic women have seen the balance between work and home life obliterated comprising 80% of people dropping out of the workforce. This has widened the gender wage gap, and many Mothers are having to grapple with the cost of childcare (if it is even available), working and the health of their families if they are essential workers. The Trump administration has packed the courts with young, hyper-conservative judges who aim to rollback access to reproductive healthcare, with the nomination of Amy Coney Barrett the final nail in the coffin of Roe Vs. Wade. Most dispiritingly, after the most diverse field of Presidential candidates ever in history with many qualified and popular female candidates, the field once again is narrowed to two nearly octogenarian white men. It feels very bleak!
But all is not lost, and hopefully this moment is a wake up call that the fight is very very far from over, and that there are many reasons to be hopeful about the near and long-term future of women in this country. We invited two extremely impressive and experienced women to discuss how to interpret our present and how to prepare for our future. Adama, a lobbyist and now activist, landed herself on the cover of Time Magazine’s Person of the Year cover in 2017 for her work exposing sexual assault and harassment in the California State Capitol; Jodi, also a lobbyist, has taken the helm of California’s Planned Parenthood Affiliates at one of the most pivotal and perilous times for women’s reproductive health in a generation. Together they paint a compelling picture for why the threats cannot be underestimated but also why a new era for women is within reach if we work together and encourage a new, inclusive, and fearless generation of female leaders.
This is our 30th episode! We are so excited to share this with you so please don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast: https://whatwegondo.captivate.fm/listen
