On April 1, 2017 about 300 women and men gathered in Forest Park for a luncheon of the national Women’s Political Caucus (NWPC) to “galvanize gutsy women.” The mission of the NWPC is to recruit, train, and elect progressive women candidates for elected and appointed office. The Eastern Missouri Political Action Committee (EMPAC) supports candidates endorsed by NWPC of Metro St. Louis.
Jeanne Kirkton, Chair of EMPAC welcomed the attendees with Margo McNeil, current President of NWPC for St. Louis. Many women who are current or former officeholders on the local, state & national level, were in attendance, introduced and acknowledged to much applause. Lyda Krewson, the newly-elected first woman mayor of St. Louis, spoke about her campaign. Sen. Claire McCaskill spoke (after a standing ovation by the crowd) about the current climate in Washington and her re-election bid for 2018. Sen. McCaskill was empowered by the Women’s March in St. Louis, noting that t
he estimate was more than 20, 000 people marching that day. She said that although these are frightening times in our national government, some unreported actions are being accomplished in Washington. She is encouraged by the surge in attendance of Democrats at events around the State of Missouri.
The dynamic guest speaker was Ms. Aisha Sultan, syndicated columnist and news reporter for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Ms. Sultan has covered local and national news and is currently the Home and Family editor, writing a popular regular parenting column since 2008. Her work has appeared in more than 50 publications, including The Wall Street Journal and The Washington Post. She is a repeat guest on CNN, MSNBC and HLN, often commenting on U.S. relations with the Muslim world and the Middle East. She is also the co-host of the Aisha and Debbie Dish podcast.
Ms. Sultan discussed her concern as a journalist about the proliferation of fake news & alternative facts. She believes that the level of lying by our government officials is a new phenomenon, at least during her lifetime. During the 2016 election, she noticed more intense responses to her columns than she had ever previously seen. Some of the reaction she believes is due to her being a female Muslim journalist, but the type of comment was very different. She quoted one statistic that showed 83% of Republican women voted for Trump, so there is much work for Democrats to do. She humorously noted that Mike Flynn used to lead chants about locking up Sec. Clinton, yet now he is asking for prosecutorial immunity in exchange for testimony. She thinks VP Pence, who will not meet alone with a women, has more in common with conservative Muslim men than Pres. Obama ever did. Ms. Sultan also noted the irony in Pres. Trump designation of April as National Sexual Harassment Awareness month, given his actions toward women revealed during the campaign. However, she is potimistic that there are many opportunities for women to engag
e in personal action. She urged all women to be the “tellers of truth” because Truth Matters! For more information on Ms. Sultan or to enjoy some of her columns, visit this site.
For more information on the NWPC, click here.
Submitted by Jennifer Hoffman, WCD Member
A great overview of a meeting that sounds like it was entertaining, informative and motivating. Thanks!