Photo by Jana Birchum courtesy Women's March
Women's Convention 2022
Women's Convention 2022
Heading toward the 2024 election season, Women’s March is hosting the 2023 Women’s Convention in Milwaukee this weekend. The convention will bring together feminist activists and advocates for breakout sessions and conversations, all designed to cultivate community and encourage involvement in the national movement. With Women’s March, there’s a place for everyone in today’s political climate.
The 2023 Women’s Convention will be held at the Baird Center, 400 W. Wisconsin Ave., October 20-22. For more information on sessions and other events, visit thewomensconvention.com.
Women’s March is one of the country’s largest nonprofit movements, dedicated to amplifying women’s voices and making politics accessible. “Women’s March is an organization that started from an uprising. We’re one of the longest running protest movements in the country. We have been continuing to work to build women’s political power. Power in communities, power inside of school systems, to be able to bring forward the future and conditions that we want to see in the world,” says Rachel O’Leary Carmona, Women’s March executive director. “Democracy is not an idea, it’s a practice. We’re really working to be as experimental as possible. The experts are actually the local people. It’s the people closest to the fight. We want to lift up and support the leadership and innovation of the people who are doing the work on the ground.”
Rolling Back Rights
For O’Leary Carmona, Milwaukee holds much significance, both in the movement and a personal perspective. “I was born and raised in Milwaukee. I am a product of the Milwaukee Public School System,” says O’Leary Carmona. “This is where the fight is, and this is where we must be. People’s rights are being rolled back all over the country. The things we want to do is foster relationships with the movement. We’re all aiming for the same target, and at the end of the day, you hit what you’re aiming for.”
Photo by Jana Birchum courtesy Women's March
Women's Convention 2022
Women's Convention 2022
The convention will feature a variety of dialogue to cover topics relevant to the political climate. “There’s 50 breakout sessions. There’s some local things and some national things. There is content so people can get in where they fit in. Movements need to be very flexible. Most people don’t live in politics. Most people live in culture and visit politics from time to time,” says O’Leary Carmona. “What we’re trying to do is give people easy and accessible ways to get involved, make a difference, and find a political home. To take action on issues that are meaningful to them and affect their daily lives.”
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As an organization, strategy is key to keeping people from all over the country united. Network organization is something that O’Leary Carmona specializes in. “There are a lot of different models for how people organize people. We try to equip people with the tools and resources and the communication structures to organize with each other. That way more people can get involved,” says O’Leary Carmona.
The convention will be a welcome place for anyone who believes in a future that benefits women, and by extension, everyone. “Our analysis is simple. You are either with women, or against women. This convention is our effort to make sure women have the tools, connections, community, and support that we need to move forward into the fights to come,” says O’Leary Carmona. “A feminist future is one that serves us all.”
