Legal Momentum is a National Ally for Vision 2020, a national project that seeks to launch an action agenda to move the United States toward gender equality by 2020, the centennial celebration of the 19th Amendment. On October 21-22, 2010, Vision 2020 sponsored "An American Conversation about Women and Leadership" in Philadelphia, featuring panels about increasing women’s leadership in all fields, from Law to Finance to Arts and Culture.
Lorelie Masters of Jenner & Block LLP served as a Vision 2010 Delegate from Washington, DC. She reflected on the conference in a series of blog posts for Legal Momentum. This is her fifth post.
Kathleen Jamison opened with a powerful statement about the pervasive double standard in the media in dealing with women and women candidates. The media needs a wide range of sources on a wide range of issues, and women should not be interviewed simply on "women’s issues." The panel emphasized that women need to train themselves on media and push back on the messages that the media repeat about women. Jehmu Greene reiterated that all of us need to call out the sexist treatment of women in the press, and the sexist treatment and labeling of women candidates. Linda Greenhouse emphasized that we need to find creative ways to help identify women as sources. Jehmu Greene of the Women’s Media Center talked about how women can use the media to advance our cause: "We cannot grow our movement without focusing on the lack of women’s equality in all fields." Do not ignore young women and social media. We need to grow our sisterhood by talking to people who do not belong to our networks.
As with other panels, the media and communications panelists stressed that we need to get more women in all positions in leadership. We also need to recognize that the strongest advocate of women’s issues may not be a woman. If we are in the room, will we stand up for all issues of equality?
We must work to ensure that sexism is as repugnant as racism.
The panel on media and communications presented the following recommendations to the Vision 2020 Delegates:
Jehmu Greene, Past President, Women’s Media Center; and Key Organizer for Rock the Vote :
- Create your own media and take the opportunity through citizen journalism.
- Own your expertise. Women are not as aggressive in advancing our opinions as sources of knowledge and expertise.
- Take advantage of this organizing moment. The disparities we observe and the work to overcome them needs to be shared.
- Look at the generational piece: find a mentor and continuing to find mentors for yourselves and learn lessons. We need to applaud and appreciate the next generation because the divide will prevent us from growing and building this movement.
- To affect the media, tell the advertisers that you hate the messages that they are supporting. "Do it longhand and online." Make it personal--make it your passion whether you are at lunch or dinner. Express your views.
Linda Greenhouse, Knight Distinguished Journalist-in-Residence and Joseph Goldstein Lecturer in Law, Yale University; and former Supreme Court reporter for The New York Times:
- We are in a new media environment today, with internet media and social networking. Take this as an opportunity and work to exploit it, rather than seeing it as a source of fear and anxiety.
- Bring in and grow a generation of young women in your field.
- To find women’s voices in op-ed pages of our major newspaper, women need to submit more op-eds for publication.
Kathleen Hall Jamison, Elizabeth Warren Packard Professor of Communication, Annenberg School of Communication and Walter and Leonore Annenberg Director, Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania:
- Be vigilant about the connection between sexism and ageism. Women are much more likely to be the victims of ageism; there is a ceiling in our society for women as they age. That should change as more successful women age, and we see women as Secretary of State, as women reporters, and other successful leaders.
- Advocate for change in antiquated attitudes that prevent use of talent at all levels and ages.
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