On October 25th, student activists and leaders from Feminist Majority Leadership Alliances, affiliates, and campuses from across Southern California, attended a 1-day regional training in the FMF Los Angeles area office. Keynote speaker Dolores Huerta, co-founder of the United Farm Workers and long time feminist and labor rights leader, led a call to action, rallying the packed room of student leaders with chants of "Si Se Puede!" (Spanish for "Yes we can!"). Huerta also shared mass mobilization strategies and tips from her decades of experience organizing migrant workers across the country. Other speakers included Katherine Spillar, FMF Executive Vice President, and UCLA Medical Student and 1996 Stop-Prop 209 affirmative action campaign organizer, Nohelia Canales. Ellie Smeal, FMF Founder and President, was also a last minute surprise guest speaker, and spoke of global reproductive rights and the growing pro-choice campus movement in the U.S.

The Institute brought together feminists seeking to bring back feminist pro-choice campaigns information to their campuses, including “Get Out Her Vote 2004,” Prescribe Choice for EC Education and Expanded Access, and the “March for Freedom of Choice.” Many students are taking back the Campus Program and starting their own Feminist Majority Leadership Alliance at their school! FMLAs, affiliates, and feminists hailed from 20 campuses, including: Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, Cal State Fullerton, Cal State Long Beach, Cal State Los Angeles, Cal State Northridge, Cerritos College, Chapman College, Fullerton College, Glendale Community College, LA Valley College, Occidental College, Pasadena City College , Pitzer College, Santa Monica College, UC Berkeley, UC Riverside, UC San Diego, UC Santa Barbara, UCLA, University of Redlands, and USC.

We look forward to working with feminists from these campuses in the next year to mobilize and register voters, fundraise and recruit delegations for the March for Freedom of Choice, and promote Emergency Contraception education and access.

Want to bring pro-choice activism to your campus? Contact a member of the FMF Campus Team, Campusteam@feminist.org.

VASSAR FMLA COLLECTS 500 PETITIONS OF SUPPORT FOR INCREASED ACCESS TO EMERGENCY CONTRACEPTION, WEEKEND HOURS

The Vassar FMLA is currently petitioning for access to EC on the weekends in the campus health center. They are working with a staff member in the health center to get EC added as one of the emergencies people can call in for to the on call health professional. They have set a goal of 1000 signatures and are currently about half way there.

UC BERKELEY FMLA CHALLENGES SO-CALLED “FEMINISTS FOR LIFE”

The newly chartered UC Berkeley FMLA quickly mobilized a pro-choice protest when "Feminists For Life" leader Serrin Foster came to campus. Feminists For Life, is neither feminist nor in support of women’s lives, as they not only opposes abortion but also fights against access to emergency contraception and promotes abstinence-based sex education. The FMLA held a peaceful and silent protest, placing themselves inside the doorway of the lecture hall with signs saying "Keep Abortion Legal" and “Save Choice For Women and the Courts.” The group spread the word about their pro-choice protest against the FFL drawing a large number of people from a wide range of backgrounds, including other organizations such as Berkeley NOW, Take Back the Night, By Any Means Necessary (BAMN), and feminists in sororities.

The FMLA at Northeastern Illinois University has been doing some counter-demonstrations of their own, in this case, an offensive anti-gay group called Heterosexuals Organized for a Moral Environment (HOME). This ultra-conservative group came to their campus on October 27th to spread an anti-lesbian/gay/bisexual/transgender agenda. When the group heard of this intolerant and hateful group’s visit to their campus, they were able to mobilize and organize an impromptu counter-demonstration that included a speak-out and rally against hate speech and tabling in support of LGBT rights. Afterward their visit, HOME announced that they would return and the FMLA worked in coalition with the Socialist Club, the Gay Lesbian Bisexual Alliance, and the Sociology Club to continue to counter this group’s anti-LGBT message.

Feminist Majority Leadership Alliances can mobilize quickly because our groups and members share a set of principles that include support for a variety of causes, including reproductive rights and lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender rights. No longer can Right-Wing groups come to a campus with an FMLA and not hear a positive, strong feminist response to their anti-choice, anti-woman, anti-civil rights, anti-gay, anti-environmental, and discriminatory agenda. We are proud that our groups are growing and mobilizing quickly.
Get involved and learn about what it takes to start a Feminist Majority Leadership Alliance on your campus, http://www.feministcampus.org/fmla/program-materials/launch_process.asp.

WINONA STATE FORGE-FMF AFFILIATE ORGANIZES SUCCESSFUL ROCK FOR CHOICE, RAISES HELL AND MONEY FOR MARCH FOR FREEDOM OF CHOICE

Winona State University’s FORGE (Fighting for Our Rights and Gender Equality) group, a Feminist Majority Foundation Affiliate, held their first annual Rock For Choice concert on Saturday, October 18th. The event was held at Blackhorse Bar, a local bar that donated space for the event. Sound equipment was donated from Rascals bar in Winona, and music-sound support was provided by the “amazing Ninja,” Ryan Simonet. Many talented artists and musicians donated their time and support for the cause, including: folk-duo performers, Patchouli; feminist all-boy punk band from Chicago, The Brokedowns; local folky-bluegrassy trio Mot Mot; French Is; and a jam-rock quartet, Moon Dawg. Finally, the event featured keynote speaker was the Executive Director of Minnesota NARAL, Tim Stanley. The event brought in over a thousand dollars, but more importantly more than 150 pro-choice voices! According to Erin Kevin, FMLA Coordinator for FORGE, “Rock For Choice has made the pro-choice community in Winona visible and made a lot more people see how easy and fun it is to be active. People in the community have been approaching us ever since our Rock For Choice event, and more so after the so-called ‘partial birth’ abortion bill passed, and asking how they can become involved. We keep telling them that the best way to be involved is to come to the meetings and come with us to march on April 25th, 2004.” Great work!

The SAGE-FMLA at the University of Delaware, and students at the University of Vermont are also planning Rock for Choice concerts on their campus. Rock for Choice is a trademark concert series of the Feminist Majority, and proceeds benefit the National Clinic Access Project and this year, will benefit the Feminist Majority March For Freedom of Choice efforts. Student groups organizing for delegations for the March may be able to fundraise for their local efforts using Rock for Choice. Please contact the Feminist Majority Foundation’s Campus Team for more information, CampusTeam@feminist.org.

The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee College Feminists-FMLA Affiliate, is teaming up with other progressive groups to hold a fundraiser to benefit a feminist bookstore that is trying to open in town! The event will feature an open mic night, raffle, and fun feminist events. In the Milwaukee area or want to support the new bookstore? Contact a member of the FMF Campus Team, campusteam@feminist.org, to be put in touch with student organizers in Milwaukee.

USC FMLA HOSTS PANEL ON WOMEN IN PRISON

The University of Southern California FMLA hosted a panel entitled "Behind Bars: The Reality of Battered Women in Prison". Speakers included a former inmate and activist, a social worker, a woman who participated in a jail-visiting program, among others. In addition to speaking about the abuse that occurs in prison, the panel made a connection between domestic violence and women in prison. Of the women currently in prison, 80% are victims of domestic abuse and 75% were sexually abused as children. They pointed out that the prison system, like domestic violence, is about power and control and creates cycles of abuse. Women in prison are primarily at risk from guards, who are typically trained in a para-militaristic style and are not trained to deal with female prisoners - in fact, many of the guards assigned to women's prisons are those who are seen as not good enough to "make it" at male prisons. According to Jessie Raeder, FMF Campus Organizer who attended the event at USC, “the event was highly successful, and several people who attended said that they were grateful that it brought to light a situation that they were previously unaware of.”

FMLAS WORK TO END VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN IN COMMUNITY, NATIONALLY, AND GLOBALLY

The George Washington FMLA recently organized a Take Back the Night march and rally event through the streets of Washington, D.C. to promote support for safety and an end to all sexual violence. Dozens of students, nearly 70 campus and community feminists, came together to march and hear survivors and local community organizations, including leaders and staff from the GW Women's Studies Department, Men Can Stop Rape, My Sister's Place and the D.C. Rape Crisis Center and Washington Free Collaboration. The event ended with a march and candlelight vigil in the main quad on campus. The group received press for their event, check out the article on their campus paper, http://www.gwhatchet.com/news/543058.html.

The Fullerton College FMLA is planning on showing support for their local Women’s Shelter this Saturday. The group plans on painting an empowering and inspiring mural on their back wall as part of their efforts to promote the resources available to battered women in their community.

The FMLA at Fullerton College and the CSU Fullerton FMLA came together to organize a multi-campus and community consciousness-raising event on the unsolved murders of the women in Juarez, Mexico. The group screened Lourdes Portillo’s Seniorita Extraviada, a powerful documentary detailing the gruesome murders of over 300 women in the US-Mexico border town of Juarez.

MORE FMLA ACTIVISM