Women's Leadership Forum
In 1993, thirty-six Democratic women met to discuss how they could play a larger role in the decision-making process of the Democratic Party. A major goal of the WLF is to maintain a vital women’s program that is an integral part of the DNC. The WLF wants to ensure that Democratic women feel connected to the Party by engaging them in political and fundraising activities. The WLF will continue to develop outreach networks of women throughout the country in order to get greater participation in the Democratic Party and to assist in Democratic presidential and congressional election activities, including getting out the women’s vote and fundraising.
The WLF has been fortunate to count many of the most respected Democratic women in American politics among its ranks and leadership. Today, the WLF has grown to thousands of women across America. The WLF will continue its efforts to mobilize women to become more engaged in the political process. We will be working with state Democratic Party officials as part of Governor Dean’s 50 State Project to take back the White House and increase our numbers in Congress in 2008. We hope you will join us by becoming an active member of the WLF.
Click here to join the Women's
Leadership Forum.
Latest News
On the 3rd of October 2008, an important film on a very serious and devastating problem will open in selected theaters across the country. The film is titled "Call and Response" (http://www.callandresponse.com) and the subject of the film is modern...
John McCain abandons position on affirmative action: Republican presidential candidate John McCain said Sunday that he favors a proposed referendum in Arizona that would ban affirmative action, reversing a position he took a decade ago. It's the latest example of...
According to statistics provided by the Bureau of Labor, the percentage of working women declined for the first time since the dawn of the women's movement, reported the New York Times. Indeed, for the first time since the women’s movement...
Speaking at a town hall today in Wisconsin, John McCain told a crowd that he is "committed to equal pay for equal work." This is news because, as the McCain record shows, he hasn't been committed to that at all....
Laurin Manning with Obama for America is hosting a discussion with policy advisors to Senator Obama on women's economic security. Head on over and talk economics with Campaign Deputy National Policy Director Danielle Gray, Domestic Policy Director Neera Tanden, and...
John McCain may be reaching out to women voters today, but he and his campaign have spent the entire week showing how out of touch McCain is with the economic challenges facing women and families. After months of McCain saying the problems in our economy are "psychological," his top economic advisor Phil Gramm claimed that the economic downturn is a "mental recession" and called America "a nation of whiners."
The Democratic National Committee issued the following statement from DNC Spokeswoman Karen Finney in response to Senator McCain dodging issues important to women.
DNC Chairman Howard Dean and DNC Women's Caucus Chair Mame Reiley today issued the following statement marking the 36th anniversary of the enactment of Title IX, which outlaws sex discrimination in educational programs. After the passage of Title IX in 1972, today more than 2.7 million girls participate in athletics in high school according to the U.S. Dept. of Education.
The Women's Leadership Forum of the Democratic National Committee hosts the 15th annual National Issues Conference in Washington, D.C. on Thursday, September 18 and Friday, September 19. Save the date!
There are many pieces of legislation that need attention by the public in order to move forward. They are listed below. Please call your Senators and Representatives to let them know about your support for these important bills.
Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean issued the following statement in commemoration of Equal Pay Day today.
Women have been making great strides in the medical realm over the past few years, yet it is taking women a long time to break into all specialities within the medical professional on par with men. The first woman to...
March 1st begins Women's History Month and that is particularly important for Democrats since we have a long, proud history of women's accomplishments to celebrate and honor. Simply going back to 1920, after battling for 72 years, the 19th Amendment...
Beginning with the first primary Caucus in Iowa, to the elections on Super Tuesday, women have demonstrated that they are the heart and soul of the Democratic Party and that they will take our Party to the White House. Exit...
If there ever was an example of why young women needed to vote, it could be found in the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005, passed prior to the Democrats taking back the majority in Congress.
As the gap in wages and benefits grows wider between lower, middle and upper income ranges, minimum wage workers are particularly threatened by the prospect of falling into severe poverty...
On October 18th and 19th, the Women's Leadership Forum held its 14th Annual Issues Conference in Washington D.C., and it was a huge success. Over 300 participants attended the conference and were energized by the speakers throughout the two day event.
Our society has come a long way in how it thinks about domestic violence. At this point in our nation's history, a majority of adults think that domestic violence is a serious social problem facing our nation.
On September 25, 2007, at 10am in the Dirksen Senate Building room G-50, the Senate Finance Committee will hold a hearing to discuss the Community Choice Act of 2007, also known as S.799.
This past weekend, the West Virginia Federation of Democratic Women held its 43rd Annual Meeting in Huntington, West Virginia, and there was a lot of discussion about why it is so important, particularly for women, to elect a Democrat to be the next President of the United States. While the answers may seem obvious, the need for a change is profound.
This Sunday, Americans will celebrate Women's Equality Day to commemorate the passage of the 19th Amendment to the Constitution in 1920. The culmination of a 70-year struggle for women suffragists, the 19th Amendment guaranteed women the right to vote.
The loss of constitutional freedoms by the Bush Administration and Supreme Court continues to activate people all around the country to speak out against the Robert's Court and more specifically its trampling on each person's right to privacy. In particular,...
At the 2007 National NOW Conference held in Detroit earlier this month, a Resolution was passed to form an "ad hoc" committee to study the health issues of women in the military. This committee plans to work with other organizations to find solutions to...
According to a newly released report by Women's Voices Women Vote, an organization created to actively involve women living on their own in politics and government affairs, it is these very women who will be the driving force creating major political change in 2008.
The 14th annual Women's Leadership Forum National Issues Conference will take place October 18-19 at The Mayflower Hotel in Washington DC.
A good deal of data is being collected about younger and middle aged women living on their own. As such, the matter of aging should be of particular concern to women, especially since older or "wise" women are more likely to be living on their own compared to older men.
President Bush's threatened veto of the Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act of 2007 (S.5), is yet another example of his refusal to accept the will of a majority of the American people and of the Congress on a matter of grave importance.
The Bush Administration has done everything in its power to block the distribution of emergency birth control to women. From delaying over-the-counter sales of the emergency contraception pill known as "Plan B," to overruling the decision [...]
Last month, when the Supreme Court ruled in the case of "Gonzalez v. Carhart" to limit the options that women and their doctors may consider when choosing to abort a pregnancy, it became abundantly clear that women did not enjoy the same equal protection...
April 24th marks Equal Pay Day 2007, which symbolizes the day in the year when women’s wages finally catch up to men’s wages of 2006. Equal Pay Day demonstrates that women must work an additional four months to take home the same income as their male counterparts do in a year.
Though women are breaking through all kinds of ceilings, they still encounter wage disparities, and for women of color the inequities are even more profound.
Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean issued the following statement on the Supreme Court’s 5-4 ruling upholding the federal abortion ban:
For all of the talk by the Bush Administration claiming to want a Supreme Court composed of justices who will not be activists, today's 5 to 4 decision upholding the federal abortion ban, or so-called "Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act," demonstrated...
On Thursday, April 26 at 9:00 AM, on the West Lawn of the U.S. Capitol, the "Komen Community Challenge" will kick off.
The Bush Administration has consistently failed to provide many Americans with the quality of health care required for the maintenance of good physical and emotional well-being, and women are especially at risk of suffering the consequences of [...]
If the Bush Administration wants to seriously address the problems that result from unwanted pregnancies particularly amongst teenagers, then it must redirect the millions of dollars already spent on ineffective single issue programs such as the "abstinence only"...
The state with the most restrictive abortion laws in the country and only one abortion clinic surviving just witnessed its Governor sign into law legislation intended to take the ultimate step by criminalizing almost all abortions in the event ...
Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean issued the following statement in response to the Edwards family announcement
The panel discussion with distinguished guests Dr. Heidi Hartmann, Donna Payne, Sue Swenson, and Olga Vives was an enormous success. The event marked a celebration of Women's History and celebrated the victories for women and for America.
The Women’s Leadership Forum of the Democratic National Committee cordially invites you to attend a panel discussion in celebration of
Women’s History Month.
During this month when we honor heroines of past generations, we must also make a commitment to improve the lives of women living now and in future generations.
North Carolina Democratic Party Chair Jerry Meek made the following statement for Sen. Jeanne Lucas, the first African American woman to serve in the NC state Senate.
With March being Women's History Month, here is some interesting historical information about women in politics.
The facts make it abundantly clear that the Employee Free Choice Act is good for women and should be passed by Congress. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, the Bureau of Labor Statistics has found that caucasian women belonging...
It is a disgrace that our country has the highest number of children living in poverty than in any other industrialized nation, and it is simply unconscionable that Senate Republicans are obstructing the passage of the "Fair Minimum Wage Act...
January 22, 2007, marks the 34th anniversary of the historic Supreme Court decision that confirmed the fundamental right of a woman to have and exercise control over her own reproductive health. Roe v. Wade is of course that landmark decision,...
On Sunday, January 28th, Donna Brazile will be presenting the Keynote Address at the 27th Annual Women's Legislative Briefing, hosted by the Montgomery County Commission For Women. Donna Brazile is a renowned Democratic political strategist as well as the first...
While the trend appeared to be heading in this direction for quite some time now, according to a piece in today's New York Times, more American women are either living alone or living with someone who is not their spouse...
Today's Washington Post had a very important article about the Washington D.C. region's efforts to enact legislation requiring HPV (human papillomavirus) immunization for girls ages 11 or 12, in order to protect them from the disease, which is one of...
Looking for the WLF 14th Annual Issues Conference Schedule? While the 13th Annual Issues Conference is over, the 14th Annual Issues Conference is just around the corner! You can find this year's agenda by clicking here. Below is information about...
Today the Women Democratic Senators unveiled their 'Checklist for Change' agenda. Tonight all nine women Democratic Senators will be featured on CNN's Larry King Live, which will air at 9 ET. At today's launch at the historic Sewall-Belmont House Senator...
Governor Dean spent spoke with members of the DNC's Women's Caucus Members and Federation of Democratic Women during a nation-wide conference call this afternoon. Before opening up the call to questions, Governor Dean spoke about the importance of keeping women...
On Thursday, March 23, over 130 members of the Women's Leadership Forum gathered together at the Democratic Party's National Headquarters in Washington, DC to celebrate National Women's History Month and to visit with their friends and colleagues....
Last September, 400 women gathered for the 12th annual WLF Leadership Forum in Washington, DC. Attendees were treated to a great linup of speakers and opportunities to interact with other Democratic women. Here are just a few photo highlights from the event.
