Dear Colleagues,
Last night, there was supposed to be a U.S. presidential debate but it was canceled when President Trump refused to participate virtually, as a precaution following his COVID-19 diagnosis. That means that next week’s debate, scheduled on October 22nd, is the last chance to question the candidates side-by-side about the issues most important to women and girls — especially women and girls of color.
As leaders of women’s and girls’ funds and foundations and gender equity funders, we know that if those issues are not on the table during the final debate, voters will not have all the information they deserve. Even more importantly, failing to spotlight gender- and racial- justice during the debates relegates those issues to a second tier.
In an effort to ensure that the last presidential debate thoroughly and thoughtfully probes the intersection of sexism and racism and challenges the candidates to give us their best thinking on how to achieve equality and justice for all women and girls, WFN is preparing to send a letter to the debate’s moderator to demand the candidates be pressed to answer questions on a range of issues.
Elizabeth Barajas-Román, President & CEO, Women’s Funding Network
If you haven’t received the sign-on letter, please contact us and we’ll share it with you. We plan to deliver the letter early next week. Please sign on as soon as possible. Our collective voices can help ensure that women and girls — especially women and girls of color — are included in the political discourse.
As always, thank you for your work and collaboration to further the rights of women and girls.
Yours for equity and justice,
Elizabeth Barajas-Román
Women’s Funding Network
President & CEO