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February 12, 2019 | Deeds Digest No. 134
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Hello #Changemakers!
When I was a young girl, I lived in the city of El Paso TX. What I remember about it was the beauty of the mountains that I could see from my front yard, the handsome young military enlistee that lived next door and the beginning of my public school education in a first grade classroom there. I also remember that it was where I lived when my brother, Joey, and I decided to run away from home. He was 7 and I was 6. And we were upset with our mom about something and had decided to run away.
We packed a loaf of bread, a jar of peanut butter and a blanket inside a pillow case and set off to make our journey in the big wide world. We only got as far as our elementary school, where we had stopped to eat a sandwich on the curb, when my dad drove up, opened the car door and silently waited as we climbed inside the car and headed back to the sanctity of our home.
Every time I think of El Paso and the migrant children who were separated from their parents there, I think about that one, very brief voluntary separation I had from my own parents and the privilege I possessed in knowing that they were just down the street from me all along. I think about the fear of the young children involuntarily taken from families who loved them and wanted nothing more than to bring them to America where they could live safely and with opportunity to realize their dreams. I think about the children who may never be reunited with their families. I think about the grief of those families. And i feel shame that our country has treated them this way.
My family moved away from El Paso many ears ago, but I have returned for many visits, first as a state senator, later during my campaign for Governor and later still, to help establish our Deeds Not Words' chapters there. What I know of the community of El Paso is that it is filled with people of incredible love, generosity and warmth -- people who possess unparalleled and justifiable pride in the place they call home.
Monday night, I was proud to join some of the amazing young women from our Deeds' UTEP and UPCC chapters there as we marched in solidarity with the people of El Paso. Only a stone's throw from the venue where our President was speaking ill of that very community, I could not help but feel blessed to be with the crowd I was with -- people like our UTEP campus organizer, Monet, and her 4-year-old daughter Kaija -- rather than in the coliseum where our President stood.
In juxtaposition to his words of hatred, I beamed with pride as I listened to our Deeds' director of student organizing and engagement, Claudia Yoli Ferla, as she delivered a message of unity, strength and love to the community where she grew up as a dreamer and in the country she has always known as home. I cannot imagine a Texas or an America without the energy and commitment to justice that Claudia possesses. I cannot imagine a Texas or an America without people like Monet and Kaija and the contributions they make to who we are and who we will become. I cannot imagine a Texas or an America, #Changemaker, without you, your love, your talent and your passion for making a difference.
Together, lets create the vision of America we want to see. Meanwhile, #VivaElPaso!
Much love,
-wendy
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Notes From the Field
Inaugural Movement Mujeres fellow, Biviana Hurtado, said, “The launch of Movement Mujeres is riding off a pivotal time in history.” Following the historic gains made by women last year, I couldn’t agree more. Just one week ago, I found myself at The Texas Women’s Foundation, in a room of over 50 women from both sides of the aisle - current and past elected officials, women who’ve bravely made a bid for office and unfortunately come up short, those interested in running but unsure about when or how, and those like myself, simply eager to see more women in various positions of power. These community, nonprofit, philanthropic, and political leaders from across Dallas County were convened by ReflectUS to collectively answer these two questions: “How do we increase women’s interest in civic engagement?” and “What can we do to get more women elected?”
In responses, I heard similar thoughts to that of our inaugural Movement Mujeres' fellow Gabriela Castaneda who says, “[she] knows a lot of strong women that would create a dramatic change in their communities - if they were given the chance to do so,” and inaugural fellow Edith Rahimian who admits “[she has] thought about running for elected office several times. However, [she] constantly finds [herself] second guessing the choice and delaying it.”
 Clearly, there’s already an interest in civic engagement; over 245 women statewide applied for the Movement Mujeres fellowship program. Still, there’s a connector piece missing from the puzzle. Inaugural fellow, Kwentoria Williams, sums it up best when she says, “I have the passion. I just need the tools.” That’s it. It’s the traditional lack of investment in the leadership of women of color (like the 25 unstoppable young women who make up our inaugural class) that is missing from the equation. Our fellows range in age from 21-35 and come from 14 different cities throughout the Lone Star State. You can check them out here.
For me, sitting in that room was a heartwarming reminder of the work that Deeds Not Words and so many other organizations are doing to ensure that all political spaces #ReflectUS.
I’m confident that Movement Mujeres will live up to expectations of fellows like Jasmin Estrada, who says “[she has] three goals with Movement Mujeres: finding [her] direction, increasing [her] confidence, and honing [her] skill set” and fellows like Mercedes D. Fulbright, who believes that “Movement Mujeres can harness the organizing skills [she’s] learned over the last 10 years and turn [her] into an effective people centered policymaker who fights for all Texans - born and Dreamers.”
Later #Changemaker. Stay Lit,
Ke’Yonna (Keda) Hall | Curriculum Development and Training Coordinator
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Hey y’all,
Last week we tuned into Texas’ "State of the State" from Governor Greg Abbott. And unlike prior years where "emergencies" were declared for things like the bathroom bill, this time we were pleased to hear included in the “emergency agenda” for this session a focus on school safety and mental healthcare, which fits perfectly with our FEM-Z agenda: Freedom from sexual assault, Economic opportunity for all women, Menstrual equity and ending Maternal Mortality. Get a list of the bills we’re working to advance HERE.
What can you do to make sure these bills pass? Do the #Deed. Grab your girls and get out to the Capitol to make your voice heard. But before you do, we’re here to show you how to do it effectively at Master the #TXLege with Wendy Davis. It’s on March 7th at UT Austin. We'll be hearing from legislators who've filed bills reflective of our FEM-Z agenda and that need your voices of support in committee hearings.
Your DO of the week is to save your spot for this important informational session right now. You’ll get a Perfect YOUR Testimony lesson from Wendy Davis herself. By the people, for the people, amirite?
Xo,
Sophie Jerwick
UT-Austin
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This Week's #Changemaker:
Stacey Abrams
Stacey Abrams is here to stay. She’s the badass we couldn’t stop talking about in 2018 as the first black female nominee for Governor by a major party. In case that’s not enough, she’s also a small business owner, lawyer, and a writer. So basically… Superwoman. Stacey isn’t afraid to speak her truth and use what makes her human to her advantage.
Last week, the Democrats picked Stacey Abrams to respond to the State of the Union. She’s the first black woman to do that, too. Like us here at Deeds Not Words, Stacey believes in the power of telling your story. In fact, she’s published eight romance novels, cranking out her first one while studying at Yale Law School. She’s the child of Methodist ministers down in Georgia who taught her the importance of “faith, service, education, and responsibility.” She is a deep believer in working together to extend equal opportunity to all Americans.
Even though Stacey lost her race for Governor by a tiny margin, she’s not going away anytime soon (whew!). For now, she'll continue to work passionately to assure that everyone has an opportunity to speak at the ballot box through her work to make elections fair again. We are so grateful for her passion and talent and look forward to her next run for office.
Fun fact: Stacey is a University of Texas alumni and received her degree in Public Affairs at the LBJ School!
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