Introduction by Kara Dansky
This short volume contains written versions of several of the presentations that were given during the convention. All of the speakers were invited to submit written versions of their talks, though not all ultimately wished to do so.
The idea for an organizing convention for the U.S. chapter of Women’s Declaration International (WDI USA) was born in the spring of 2022. At the time, we were pretty sure that we wanted to do it in Washington D.C., the nation’s capital. We were not sure whether the focus should be on the core focus of the Declaration on Women’s Sex-Based Rights (the Declaration), which is to stop the enshrinement of “gender identity” in the law, or whether we should broaden our focus and talk about women’s liberation more generally.
We eventually settled on the latter. Eliminating the incoherent concept of “gender identity” from law and society is one component of women’s liberation, but the Declaration does not stop there. The Declaration is, instead, a full-throated insistence on of all aspects of women’s liberation, including securing reproductive integrity for women and girls; speech, assembly, and political participation for women and girls; women’s sports, eliminating male violence against women, and protecting children’s rights. We wanted to talk about all of it. And we did just that during our 2022 WDI USA convention as you can see on the agenda here.
We want to acknowledge the fast-growing support of our generous donors who, with a median gift of $50.00, have helped us to reignite the U.S. women’s liberation movement. The convention was a resounding success. Our goal was to reignite the women’s liberation movement, and we think we met that objective.
We also got some constructive feedback that we are taking to heart as we start to think about possible future conventions. For example, some attendees wanted more downtime (it was admittedly a packed agenda). Others wanted to hear from more women in order to get some different perspectives. Some have suggested that future conventions be held in other cities, like Chicago, Dallas, or Atlanta. We are taking all of this and more into consideration and nothing is off the table.
In the end, we are confident that the women’s liberation movement has been reignited. We are grateful to all of the women who worked to make it a success and to all of the women who participate in Women’s Declaration International globally. Together, we are going to make women’s liberation a reality.
