The women we train are amazing. We take them into our program, put them in a powerful all-woman space, and hone their political reflexes under the tutelage of experienced professionals. Then we send them out into the chaotic world of political campaigns where they’re forced to worry about what they’ll wear, with whom to be seen, when to step into the fray, and how best to appeal to the voting masses.
It’s a lot of work to go from the relative safety of the Emerge Sisterhood onto the bullet-ridden fields of political battle. You often need a shield, thick skin, and some excellent footwear (and a network of badass women behind you). It’s no easy task to step off the parapet and run for office. In fact, it often takes a wonder woman.
So, last month, when our founder, Governor Madeleine Kunin, invited me to see a matinee screening of the new Wonder Woman movie, I jumped at the chance. Governor Kunin, still our state’s only female governor, knows a thing or two about going into political battle, and she’s coached and inspired scores of women to follow in her footsteps.
She told me to bring a friend along to the movie, so I brought our summer intern, Anna, to meet Governor Kunin and see a great movie.
It was an atypically hot, sunny mid-June afternoon and the kids were still in school, making up for the many late-season snow days – a perfect day to sneak off to the movies with my boss.
A handful of Governor Kunin’s friends met us there, so our party of ten had the Monday afternoon screening almost to ourselves. And bonus, it was in 3-D!
The movie was fantastic. Wonder Woman trains hard, takes risks, choses the right clothes (and shield, bullet guards, lasso, and boots), takes charge, and steps out onto the field at the right time to save the day.
Although she wins the battle and brings an end to the war, there is so much more work still to do. It’s clear there are sequels to come. More women to train, more campaigns to launch, more battles to win. The glass is cracked, but it’s not shattered. We know this story well.
After the movie, we stepped into the heat of the parking lot, and I took a call from a reporter asking for names of women who might run for Vermont governor in 2018. Which wonder women might be ready for battle?
It seemed appropriate to be having that conversation after sitting next to Madeleine Kunin (wearing silly glasses) and watching an incredible woman save the world.
Stay tuned for the announcement of the members of the Emerge Vermont Class of 2018. Each of them could be the next Wonder Woman – brilliant mind, wrists of steel, lasso-of-truth, kick-ass boots and all.
P.S. I’m not the first to compare Emerge and Wonder Woman. Check out this blog post about Emerge Wisconsin!
Emerge has one goal: To increase the number of Democratic women in office who are reflective of the incredible diversity of the Democratic party by recruiting, training and providing a powerful network.