NOW Foundation, Inc.| OUR PURPOSE | The NOW Foundation advances women's rights and promotes the goal of
equality in the United States and around the world through education, litigation,
advocacy, networking, conferences, publications, training and leadership
development.
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| REPRODUCTIVE FREEDOM - "STOP THE RESCUE RACKET" | NOW Foundation established the "Stop
the Rescue Racket" project to address anti-abortion terrorism and clinic
violence, a project vital to protecting the health of women. We gather
information about the activities of anti-abortion groups and individuals
and have been active (and ultimately successful) in urging the creation
of a Justice Department task force.
Information on clinic violence is being tracked, and the relevant information
is entered into a specialized computer database which is constantly updated
as we receive materials from clinics and activists across the country.
The NOW Foundation is dedicated to a long-term litigation strategy to stop clinic violence. Our primary project in this area is the NOW v. Scheidler lawsuit, with its potential to de-fund the network of anti-abortion terrorists which has already spread from the U.S. to countries around the world. The lawsuit was certified as a class action in 1997, with two named clinics and the National Organization for Women as class representatives (respectively) of all clinics in the United States and all women who might seek to use their services. On April 20, 1998, a federal jury found that Joseph Scheidler, Operation Rescue, and other anti-abortion groups and zealots are the organizers of a nationwide network coordinating violent attacks against providers. Although neither NOW nor NOW Foundation will benefit financially, the
triple damages available under the Racketeering
statute will help to compensate financially-strapped clinics for the
damage they have suffered, provide a strong deterrent to those considering
violence, and capture substantial resources funding the violent anti-abortion
movement. We won in the Supreme Court in 1994 the right to bring this case,
and the defendants are expected appeal again -- but a successful outcome
in the Scheidler lawsuit will have a dramatic impact on the funding,
and in many cases the very existence, of anti-abortion violence.
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| VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN | The Foundation is committed
to public education and policy advocacy directed toward eliminating violence
against women, and held the 1995
Young Feminist Summit on Violence to train young activists on the issue
and inspire them to continue this work in their communities (see below).
We are actively engaged in involving young women and men around the issue
of violence against women, bringing them together across the traditional
dividing lines of gender, race, class, religion, physical ability, or sexual
orientation.
In addition, staff and interns have compiled information on state-by-state
stalking laws and remedies, sexual harassment
claims and the processes involved in pursuing such claims, state-by-state
laws on domestic violence evidence in child custody cases, the impact of
gender-based hate crimes, and the
global problem of female genital
mutilation. NOW Foundation is participated in the drafting of the new
Violence Against Women
Act (VAWA II), which will expand the protections we won in the
1994 Act.
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| YOUNG FEMINIST OUTREACH | The NOW Foundation has sponsored and organized two Young Feminist conferences.
The first, the Young Feminist Summit
on Violence in 1995 drew over 1,200 participants -- young women and
men from thirty-four states and the District of Columbia. Dozens of workshops
addressed the various forms of violence affecting young women in our society,
including topics such as: sexual harassment in schools; violence in music,
language and the media; the violence of poverty; lesbian and gay bashing;
eating disorders; raising non-violent, non-sexist children; women of color
and violence; surviving violence; date and acquaintance rape; terrorism
at abortion clinics; and global perspectives on violence against women.In
addition, attendees participated in working groups and formed grassroots
action plans for taking local action.
In 1997, the Young Feminist Skill-Building
Conference brought together nearly 1500 young feminists from across
the country. There were over 40 workshops, in addition to small and large
group discussions and plenary sessions, with such topics as: the art of
advocacy; diversity as a tool for the future; organizing in your community;
campus organizing; building inter-generational bridges; and redefining
liberation: women's health project. One well-attended session addressed
The "F" Word: Calling Yourself a Feminist and Acting On It. The participants
also created regional action plans and committed to working together upon
their return home.
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| LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT AND TRAINING | Action Team trainings, which emphasize techniques for organizing around
an issue in local communities, have been effectively used to educate community
activists on issues of affirmative action, lesbian rights, reproductive
rights, violence against women, welfare rights, and health
care issues, while teaching valuable communication skills. Many of
the workshops and skill-building sessions at the two young feminist conferences
(see above) emphasized local
advocacy and change-oriented organizing, in addition to coalition-building
and conflict resolution.
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| LESBIAN RIGHTS | The Foundation staff participates in coalitions working on the health
concerns of lesbians, domestic violence in lesbian relationships, and efforts
to end employment discrimination against lesbians. NOW Foundation is also
an educational resource for activists throughout the country on issues
of homophobia, equal
marriage rights, and lesbian family issues. In response to a ballot
measure that would have adversely affected lesbian and gay rights in
Maine, NOW Foundation staff conducted trainings on organizational skills
and national leaders spoke at twelve universities and colleges in Maine,
educating students and the public on the issue of anti-gay violence and
discrimination. We advocate the prosecution of hate
crimes based on sexual orientation and are also expanding our efforts
to educate the public about the misogynistic and homophobic Promise
Keepers organization.
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| RACIAL AND ETHNIC DIVERSITY | The focus of this program is to educate community activists and the
society at large on the concerns of women of color as they affect all issues
addressed by the women's movement. Foundation staff presented prejudice
reduction workshops for college interns,
NOW leaders, young feminist summits, and other organizations such as the
American Association of University Women.
Educational materials were developed on affirmative action and for a Valuing
Diversity Kit. NOW Foundation was also an active sponsor of the 1998
Women of Color and Allies Summit.
We work actively to support affirmative action, and provided educational
materials and participated in coalition efforts to ensure that activists
and the public were better informed about California
efforts to eliminate affirmative action programs, particularly for
women and people of color. NOW Foundation also organized and sponsored
several regional conferences on women of color and reproductive rights.
An ongoing part of our work in this area is to network with other organizations
that address the issue of racism. Our public education and networking outreach
includes an emphasis on how racism is interrelated with issues of sexism,
homophobia, poverty, and violence.
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| FEMINIZATION OF POVERTY | Welfare Rights Project staff provided education and community outreach
on the issue of welfare rights, the challenges faced by women and children
living in poverty, and the need for universal health care. With limited
success (we helped to prevent mandatory "child exclusion" provisions) we
opposed welfare bills that would have a disastrous impact on women and
children, particularly shredding the safety net that is so necessary for
women fleeing domestic violence.
We have focused particular effort on encouraging state policymakers to
adopt and implement the Domestic Violence Option, which permits states
to give temporary waivers to victims of domestic violence, thus exempting
them from otherwise-mandatory provisions that could place them in increased
danger.
We work directly with women who are welfare recipients and have aided
them in their community activism. In 1992, with the National Welfare Rights
Union and similar groups, we co-founded Up and Out of Poverty Now, a coalition
of feminists and welfare rights activists working to ensure that the voices
of low-income women are heard. Foundation staff work closely with welfare
rights groups, homeless organizations, anti-hunger groups and immigration
groups to fight efforts to take away basic health care, education, housing,
and programs to aid children.
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| GLOBAL FEMINISM | The Foundation coordinates efforts to communicate with feminist leaders
around the world and to educate the public in the United States about the
status of women worldwide. As an on-going project, we have been particularly
active on the issue of violence against women around the world, publicizing
the plight of millions of women maimed by the practice of female
genital mutilation. NOW Foundation also held a Global
Feminism Conference in 1992, which brought together hundreds of grassroots
feminist leaders from 45 countries around the world to exchange ideas and
resources; the general assembly session called for a "global communications
network" so women could share information and react quickly to injustices
around the world." Staff and officers also participated in the 1995 United
Nations Fourth World Conference
on Women held in Beijing, China, with NOW Foundation Secretary Karen
Johnson serving on the Executive Committee of the U.S. Network for
the Fourth World Conference on Women and Beyond. Two officers and two staff
members attended the Conference and the Non-Governmental Organizations
(NGO) Forum and presented two workshops: one on organizational development
and one on consciousness-raising -- the link between the personal and the
political. The Foundation advocates policies based on the Platform for
Action and ratification of the Convention
on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women.
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| OTHER ACTIVITIES | The Foundation has organized national and international conferences,
including a Global Feminism Conference, several regional conferences on
women of color and reproductive rights, and Young Feminist Summit on Violence
and a Young Feminist Skill-Building Conference, and has sponsored other
conferences , such as the Women of Color and Allies Summit. Foundation
projects have also included informational resources on economic equity,
affirmative action, racial and ethnic diversity, lesbian rights, violence
against women and sexual harassment. The litigation efforts of the Foundation
are essential to protecting reproductive health options for women (see
above), and we have been expanding our litigation efforts to cover other
areas of concern to women, such as sexual harassment, employment issues,
and pregnancy discrimination. Among many public policy efforts, we have
provided testimony to the FDA regarding
RU-486, assistance to
the Federal Communications Commission
on their affirmative action requirements for broadcasters, and testimony
to the National Association of Securities
Dealers on the impact of mandatory arbitration on women in the workforce.
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