An Inspiring and Energetic Opening for Washington Institute 2010
On Sunday at midday, the sound of the shofar signaled the start of NCJW’s 2010 Washington Institute as delegates gathered for an opening plenary packed with energy and inspiration. NCJW President Nancy Ratzan invoked the tenacity of change to rally NCJW members to action, pointing to NCJW’s persistent leadership advocating for progressive change since 1893. President Ratzan recounted her experience as a member of the White House Council for Faith-Based and Community Partnerships, and how an unlikely cast of characters, including a Catholic lawyer, an evangelical megachurch preacher, a civil rights leader who marched with Dr. King, and the head of a liberal Jewish women’s organization together produced a report to President Obama with an agenda for action on social change. At the same time, she restated NCJW’s conviction that the wholly inadequate and for many oppressive status quo cannot be changed without struggle and without conviction.
The convention then welcomed Eve Ensler, author of the play “The Vagina Monologues” and activist extraordinaire against violence against women. Ensler received NCJW’s Woman Who Dared Award from Marge Weiser and got a standing ovation from the audience for her passionate speech describing her global work. She urged all to examine “the need to please” that women are taught from an early age, and exhorted the crowd to rediscover the rebellious girl within. From the whoops and hollers that greeted her words, it is clear that NCJW women are already committed to that process.
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