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NEWS & LETTERS, July 2002
NOW takes on Bush
St. Paul, Minn.—I just got back from the national
conference of the National Organization for Women (NOW) held in St. Paul, Minn. We did an action on Saturday, June 22, at a Wal-Mart in
Vadnais Heights, which has been named National NOW's latest "Merchant of
Shame." It faces allegations of sex discrimination in pay, promotion, and
compensation; wage abuses; excluding contraception coverage in insurance plans;
violations of child labor laws and the Americans with Disabilities Act; and
discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. Besides all this, Wal-Mart is
also anti-union and also still refuses to distribute the contraceptive Preven. At the Plenary discussing our resolutions, we voted on
16 and passed on nine for the board to consider. Some issues the body voted on
were: 1) "Opposition to the Opportunistic War"—that NOW opposes the
use of fighting terrorism as an excuse for massive imperial expansion, for a war
on Iraq, and for unilateral policies in violation of international law." 2)"Reduce the Poverty, Not Just the Welfare
Rolls"– ending lifetime limitations on TANF (Temporary Assistance to
Needy Families) benefits; removing caps on education and training; providing
full child care funding; maintaining the 30 hour per week work requirement,
which includes education programs; making the family violence option a
permanent, mandatory requirement for states; and immediately restoring TANF
benefits and food stamps to legal immigrants and their dependents. I don't have the space to go into the fun things we did,
from salsa dancing to hearing actresses read from the book THAT TAKES OVARIES!
BOLD FEMALES AND THEIR BRAZEN ACTS (Three Rivers Press/Random House 2002).
Since we face an uphill struggle dealing with the anti-humanistic policies we
live under in the U.S. and on the world stage, we must also take the time to
celebrate what is creative and joyous within the human spirit. —Sue from NOW |
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