Sisters Are Doin’ It For Themselves

  • Mar 27, 2012
  • Allison Abney
I’m a child of the 70’s.  As a young girl, I knew I could do anything the boys could do.  That feeling has grown stronger over the years and I’m continuously inspired by my Emerge sisters.  Our sisterhood is strong and powerful.  Before, during and after every session, I feel more confident and powerful because of my Emerge sisters and the strength we give each other.  To quote Aretha Franklin and Annie Lennox “Sisters Are Doin’ It For Themselves”.  Yet as Emerge CA prepares for its 10th anniversary of inspiring and empowering Democratic women, we are seeing a war on women that I never believed I’d see in my lifetime. 
 
We’re seeing this attack at all levels of government.  Republican Presidential candidate and former Governor Mitt Romney has called for an end to Planned Parenthood.  The Violence Against Women Act passed the Senate Judiciary Committee but it did so down party lines.  Really?? Since when has violence against women been a partisan issue?  On the state level, we are seeing states like Virginia pass bills that force women to undergo an invasive and unnecessary ultrasound procedure if they choose to have an abortion.   According to Senator Barbara Boxer’s PAC for a Change, this year alone, Republicans in Congress have introduced 40 bills and state legislators have introduced more than 600 measures that would restrict a women’s access to reproductive health care, including attempts to defund Planned Parenthood.
 
And don’t even get me started about Susan G. Komen and Rush Limbaugh.
 
This is why it is so important that women be elected to public office – and why programs like Emerge are so vital.   We can’t expect others to fight our battles.  We must be prepared to take up the fight ourselves because it’s our lives, our healthcare, our choice that is on the line.  
 
Let’s make 2012 the Year of the Woman 2.0.  Let’s take back our rights – for us and for future generations. Sisters ARE Doin’ It For Themselves! 
 
Tracy Krumen
Emerge California
Class of 2012