Join Us for Virginia’s 1st Annual Women’s Equality Legislative Summit
(Tickets Required)

The summit will be hosted by VAratifyERA and the newly formed Virginia chapter of the National Women’s Political Caucus on Tuesday, January 7, 2020, from 9:30 a.m to 12:30 p.m., at or near the Virginia State Capitol (details will be updated as soon as they are finalized). Tickets are available for purchase here.

The goal of the summit is to bring together a variety of organizations to work together as advocates on a full slate of women’s equality issues. The Equal Rights Amendment will be ratified in 2020 but women in Virginia will still need important legislation passed.

During the summit, chief patrons will be provide a fifteen-minute overview for eight pieces of selected legislation related to women and equality. If the legislators are unavailable, the organization(s) submitting the legislation will be invited to present the topic.

The discussion of each bill or resolution will include a brief overview, key talking points, and requested action(s) from summit participants to build public support for and awareness of the issue or legislation.

Bills are currently being submitted for inclusion and we anticipate bills in some/all of the following areas: campus life, domestic/sexual violence, women’s health (pregnancy, breastfeeding, and maternal mortality), pay equity, and women in jails/prisons. Additionally, we anticipate inclusion of a bill for LGBTQ+ equality and another to promote racial equity on the voter redistricting commission.

Participation

We have invited the following organizations to submit proposed legislation:

  • American Association of University Women of Virginia
  • American Civil Liberties Union of Virginia
  • Equality Virginia
  • Feminist Majority
  • Legal Aid Justice Center
  • League of Women Voters-VA
  • NAACP of Virginia
  • National Organization for Women-VA
  • Network Virginia
  • Poor People’s Campaign of Virginia
  • Virginia Sexual and Domestic Violence Action Alliance
  • Virginia Social Action Task Force of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.

To increase awareness of the issues to be covered, members of the media will also be invited.