In our almost seven short years here at The Womxn Project, we have been almost always strictly volunteer led. It was just one year ago that a unique and short-lived grant allowed us to hire staff members. While we prepared in horror for the Dobbs decision to be announced, The Womxn Project was offered the chance to take on new footing to make the change we need here in RI.
You see, our impact has not been to do advocacy in the “invited” spaces that our government deems proper. Instead, by thinking and acting like artists, we have been strategic in creating “invented” spaces to educate others and lobby for our causes.
I can not deny that I knew accepting the executive director position meant less creativity and more building us into something sustainable. I’m now strategically thinking beyond my time in this position to build an organization that – in addition to traditional channels – provides creative and unusual solutions to effecting policy change. That is what makes The Womxn Project different in Rhode Island.
Today marks our one year anniversary of having two paid staff members; I joined last July and Kait Castillo joined as our Operations Director in September. And we are joined by a new set of leaders and board members in an effort to build our dream future, one where we remain an effective partner to make real and lasting political change through creative advocacy that inspires and ignites more engagement.
Honestly, we have traversed such a challenging landscape of trauma and horrors, but successes, too. Think about post-COVID when there was so much burn-out and despair surrounding abortion rights being obliterated. We kept our attention tight and narrow on the Equality in Abortion Coverage Act, a bill we helped build and advocate for when nobody else wanted to acknowledge it or us. And we passed it in the company of 43 other incredible organizations. We plan on announcing our future plans that stay in line with how we have been working to move the dial forward for many in our state. Join us to hear more on September 30, details below.
If you see the value in creative organizing that focuses on
(1) bodily autonomy and reproductive rights in RI,
(2) voting our values for real and lasting change,
(3) preparing and acting against an onslaught of hate as well as a dangerous future for the majority of Americans, and
(4) finding creative outlets to speak truth to power….
…than consider contributing to our future work to sustain our artivism efforts and political impact.
Your financial contribution and/or your volunteer hours will go far this fall.