Stephenie Foster - Take Action: Fighting for Women & Girls

Copyright 2021 by Stephenie Foster

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, including electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system without permission in writing from the author.

For inquiries, use the CONTACT page on the authors website:

stepheniefoster.com

Publishers Cataloging-In-Publication Data

(Prepared by The Donohue Group, Inc.)

Names: Foster, Stephenie, author. | Mikulski, Barbara, writer of supplementary textual content.

Title: Take action : fighting for women & girls / Stephenie Foster ; [foreword by U.S. Senator Barbara M. Mikulski].

Description: First edition. | [Washington, D.C.] : [Stephenie Foster], [2021]

Identifiers: ISBN 9780578876146 (hardcover)

Subjects: LCSH: Womens rights--Handbooks, manuals, etc. | Human rights advocacy--Handbooks, manuals, etc. | Sex discrimination--Prevention--Handbooks, manuals, etc. | Women political activists--Handbooks, manuals, etc.

Classification: LCC HQ1236 .F67 2021 | DDC 323.3/4--dc23

ISBN: 978-0-578-87614-6

LCCN: 202 190 9689

Book design and production by Richard Whittington whittingtonandco.com

Edited and produced by Colleen Daly derbydog.biz

Printed in the U.S.A. or Canada by X?X?X?X?X?X

First Edition

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

While the author has made every effort to provide accurate internet addresses and other contact information at the time of publication, and while updated information for the Resources sections may be posted on the authors website: StephenieFoster.com, neither the publisher nor the author assumes any responsibility for errors in the book or on the website at time of publication, or for changes that occur after publication.

Acknowledgements

People often say, It takes a village, and indeed it has taken one to get me to this point. I am thankful to the countless women and men across the globe who have inspired me and taught me many lessons throughout my career and travels. You are the reason I am committed to advancing gender equality and elevating womens voices.

It has been quite a journey for me, from being a litigation partner at a law firm to working on Capitol Hill and in the U.S. State Department, and everything in between. I started out with an interest in law and domestic policy issues primarily around womens rights and never envisioned myself working in the foreign policy and international affairs arena. But so many people along the way gave me opportunities, encouraged me, expanded my worldview, and guided me, and I am grateful to each of them.

There are so many people to thank, and in the interest of not excluding anyone, I will keep these acknowledgements short.

First, many thanks to the other co-founder of Smash Strategies, Susan Markham, who is a wonderful friend, business partner and collaborator, and great at challenging my thinking and analysis.

Second, thanks to the three people who have helped this book become a reality: Colleen Daly, an incredible editor; Lauren Supina, an innovative thinker on social media and public engagement; and, Denise Starr, who made sure I got the details right.

About the Author

Stephenie Foster, a recognized voice in womens leadership and empowerment, is a partner and co-founder of Smash Strategies, a consulting firm that helps institutions achieve better results by focusing on womens leadership and gender equality. She has deep and broad expertise in womens economic and political empowerment, and decades of experience on Capitol Hill, in the Executive Branch, the nonprofit sector, and the law.

Foster served at the U.S. Department of State from 2012-2017, including as a

Senior Advisor and Counselor to the Ambassador-at-Large for Global Womens Issues. She has represented the United States in numerous multilateral and bilateral forums, and also served at the U.S. Embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan, where she focused on women and civil society and traveled extensively throughout the country to work with individuals and organizations advancing the role of women in Afghan society.

Prior to joining the State Department, Foster served as Chief of Staff to two United States Senators (Barbara Mikulski (D-MD) and Christopher Dodd (D-CT)), and was appointed by President Clinton as General Counsel of the U. S. General Services Administration from 1999-2001.

A sought-after public speaker on topics including womens leadership, politics, womens role in peace and security, economic empowerment, and international womens rights, she has published multiple articles on womens global engagement in politics, the economy, and society.

Foster began her career as an attorney, and was a litigation partner in San
Francisco, California.

For a more in-depth biography, visit Fosters website: StephenieFoster.com

Contents

It was the spring 1966 when I first heard about a 16-lane interstate expressway slated to run right through the neighborhoods of East Baltimore, including Canton and Fells Point, Westside neighborhoods like Rosemont, Sharp-Leadenhall, and Leakin Park, as well as what we now call Inner Harbor. The plans to connect three interstate highways (95 to the east, 83 from the north, and 70 from the west) would uproot entire neighborhoods, displace many small businesses, and force thousands of families to move elsewhere. As a graduate of the University of Maryland School of Social Work with experience in community organizing, I was asked to attend a meeting to save these neighborhoods.

The first meeting was held in St. Stanislaws Church Hall, where we decided we were ready to fight. We held neighborhood meetings that brought together both Black and White community members from East and West Baltimore to form coalitions based on mutual respect, mutual need, and mutual efforts. We led creative protests throughout the city, from organizing community festivals to show the value of our neighborhoods, to an organized education campaign featuring flyers, press releases, car signs, banners, and even a sound truck.

The night of the first meeting we formed SCAR Southeast Committee Against the Road. And later at a community festival, I was quoted as saying, The British couldnt take Fells Point, the termites couldnt take Fells Point, and the State Roads Commission cant take Fells Point.

Two years later I ran for and was elected to the Baltimore City Council where I continued the fight. Using all of the tools available to me as a Councilwoman, from legislation to zoning, and joining with the continued efforts of long-standing community groups with a shared commitment to our grassroots organizing strategy, we stopped the road and along the way we built a stronger community.

From there, I got more involved in politics, running for the U.S. House, and then the U.S. Senate. While in Congress, I worked on issues for my community and the great state of Maryland. I also fought for womens rights: for the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009; for equal access to health care and prevention services for women, especially in the Affordable Care Act; and for retirement parity for homemakers.

With my deep roots in community activism, I will first say that I wish Stephenies book had been around when I started my neighborhood Battle of the Road. In Take Action: Fighting for Women & Girls , Stephenie develops an advocacy framework and spells out how you, the reader, can implement the strategies and goals of that framework by understanding the objective you seek, mapping who has the power to make that change, asking key questions, and most importantly, organizing and taking action.