WoLF’s Successful 2nd trip to DC to advocate for women
By Margot Heffernan, Board Vice President of WoLF
The WoLF Team at the Capital
A Mission to be Heard
On May 17th, our team of eighteen women arrived in DC to spend the next four days meeting with thirty legislators and/or their aides from California to Massachusetts. Our mission: To educate and inform legislators about the danger and real harm of gender ideology.
Our group was determined, focused and well-prepared. In addition to WoLF’s founder, Lierre Keith, Board Vice President Margot Heffernan, Board Treasurer Sherrie Taha, and WoLF sisters in Action, our team included representatives from LGB Alliance USA, ROAR NY, Women are real California, and Women’s Declaration International USA.
In addition, this year’s group was marked by a wonderful diversity of life experiences, from college students, construction professionals, and Ph.D.’s. We were a multi-generational team too; women in their twenties to mid-seventies gathered, each with the shared mission to be heard. Each here to convey a very real mandate: Womanhood is not negotiable.
Preparation for the Trip
Our group was resolute. Tenacious. And we knew that the nonsensical construct of gender ideology had been tearing women down since the start of the trans scam. It was a slow and insidious build up. And nothing short of persistence would get us out. There was virtually no aspect of our lives left untouched.
So we prepared. And prepared. We had research and data. We consulted with other women who were fighting in the trenches – women of ICONS and the LGB Courage Coalition and so many more.
We gathered data and information on the irreversible harm of “gender affirming care” (especially to girls and women) from organizations like Do No Harm.
We found evidence that in states that have outlawed “gender affirming care,” medical practitioners find ways around it by coding “top surgery” as mastectomies and billing Medicaid. That equals fraud. Perhaps, we suggested, such wrongdoing could be brought to light by congressional hearing
And all those places where women and girls are afflicted by the scourge of gender ideology – prisons, sports, education, the list goes on and on – well, we left no stone unturned.
That was just the beginning, though.
Next, we researched the legislators. Just where did each representative stand on these hot button issues? And which states were plagued by this scam?
Now, the strategizing could begin. A WoLF sister from Michigan who was all too familiar with her state’s record on males in female sports presented the egregious history to her legislators, highlighting the numbers of girls and women who had been displaced by males in their own sports. She presented cases of girls who had been injured, many times permanently, by a male contender. Then, she explained that the problem has no end because thousands of boys from states that continue to “transition” are coming down the pike. Most legislators, let alone “regular” citizens have not processed this reality.
Here, in that legislator’s office is the window of opportunity. Hit these facts home. That’s what we had to do.
Our Michigan sister had the mettle, the persistence, and the information to present at the right time. She pointed to several bills as models. And she was armed with the expertise from the ICONS board. Let’s follow their lead, she said, by paving the way for SRY testing (xx, xy) just as the Olympics Committee has done?
These were the strategies we used over and over again.
The months of preparation for this trip paid off because we followed these steps.
Thank the legislator for any action he or she carried out in the interest of women and girls.
Explain the deeply embedded problem. Convey personal narratives when appropriate.
Propose a model policy or piece of model legislation.
Ask what can be done now, in order to address the problem.
And finally, remind the legislator that WoLF is not just here to inform or advocate: Women’s Liberation Front is an organization that provides expertise, legal knowledge, and education. We are here to go to bat for women!
Arrival in Washington DC
We settled in on Sunday the 17th. In the heart of the city we were not far from Capital Hill. Lierre was the master chef, and prepared delicious meals for us each day. We needed fuel to hit the halls of Congress, and that is just what we did first thing Monday morning.
Representative Lisa McLean’s office, R-MI, Mike Spero, Legislative Assistant on the right, above.
One of our first meetings was with Representative Lisa McLean’s aid, Mike Spero. As a Republican, she is on board with many of our stands. Mike Spero listened intently and took copious notes. He also was actively engaged in the conversation. Something that we learned from this very positive type of interaction is that we have an ally, a legislator that we must stay in close touch with over time…which brings us to an important point:
We learned to use these points of contact judiciously. Keep in touch, especially with the chief of staff or the legislative aide, that was the key contact. Remind that person that we are here to provide expertise.
The meeting with Representative Steube’s office was similarly productive. He is the sponsor of several bills that prevent “transwomen” from participating in women’s sports.
Ben Cline, R-VA, is another friendly legislator who co- sponsored the Riley Gaines Act which authorizes female athletes to sue institutions of higher learning and athletic associations that allow me to compete in female-only sports. Representative Cline also sponsored WoLF’s room in the Congressional Hall where we held a very successful reception and meet and greet.
Oh, but the reactions we had!
“But we do want to be inclusive.”
Rep. MCGovern
Representative McGovern, D-Mass, was an affable man, welcoming and friendly. A WoLF sister from Massachusetts, his constituent, arranged our meeting and she was present via cell phone. She also started the conversation with Rep McGovern by conveying her concerns for his firm allegiance to the Transgender Rights Act. Her heartfelt concern was especially poignant as she was a lesbian. The Act, of course, represents all that is wrongheaded about the concept of gender: It eradicates the sex-based rights of women.
Several women in the group meeting with Representative McGovern expressed the concern that “gender” undermines the material reality of sex. If a man can “become” a woman, then what is the point of sex-based rights? To this query, the congressman seemed perplexed, and his facial expression conveyed a look of feigned shock. “Well, this is the first I’ve heard of this,” he said.
He was also fond of saying, “But we do want to be inclusive.”
Over the course of a longer than expected meeting, he continued to insist that “inclusivity” was the name of the game. In the end, he agreed that he and his constituent would meet back home in Massachusetts to further address her concerns.
It was no surprise to experience a lukewarm response from most of the Democratic legislators and their staff. One of our New York sisters expressed this sentiment clearly:
It was great to spend the week with so many amazing women. The camaraderie and sense of community was very inspiring. The meetings with Democrats, though, were not so inspiring. We know how captured they are by gender ideology but it was still shocking how little they seemed to care about how the ideology is harming women, particularly in prison. When told that women were being attacked and even raped by men in women's prisons, one legislative aide (a young woman) simply said "There will be incidents." It was jarring and underscored how much the Democratic party has abandoned women. Regardless of their indifference, I think it is important to keep reminding them that we're here, we see them, and we will keep fighting for women.
Although it was extremely disheartening to encounter these sentiments from Democratic legislators again and again, it is essential to keep their feet to the fire, to remind them that women and girls are the true victims of this nonsensical screed.
The Reception
On our final day in DC, WoLF held a reception for those who wished to learn more about our work. We invited legislators and aides. Lierre gave an eloquent history of WoLF and explained just what we stand for. Her talk was especially poignant as we live through what is, perhaps, one of the most misogynistic eras in modern history. Lierre then introduced Margot who gave a short talk titled, Womanhood is Not Negotiable: Reclaiming our Rights by Recognizing Biological Reality. Margot reiterated the insidious way in which gender ideology has insinuated itself into virtually every aspect of modern society.
A question and answer period followed Margot’s talk. Two investigative journalists were present. Both asked numerous questions and conversed with several members of the WoLF team. The reception provided a powerful forum for like-minded people to meet and discuss the importance of women’s sovereignty in an age when we are losing so much.
Serendipity too, was part of the day. Another women’s group happened by. Women’s Health Advocates spent the week visiting legislators too. We were pleasantly surprised to learn that their views were largely intersected with ours. We exchanged business cards and promised to follow up with them.
Margot Heffernan and Jim Blew
Jim Blew, from The Defense of Freedom Institute for Policy Studies, an independent, nonprofit agency concerned with education, dropped by. He is a friend of WoLF who came to the Title IX Tour two years ago.
All in all, our second advocacy trip to DC was a resounding success. And as we move forward, our hope is to build on our hard-earned success, to remember the process that led us here. We can do it, sisters. Womenhood, after all, is not now, not ever, negotiable.
WoLF would like to thank the generous donors who made this trip possible! We can’t do this work without your support!
This historic home has served as headquarters of the National Woman's Party since 1929.
We will keep fighting for the rights of women and girls!
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