Like you, I was hoping to wake up on November 9 with the first woman President -Elect ever. It was not to be. Instead, the unimaginable happened: our nation elected someone whose vision of America runs counter to ours in every respect. The presidential campaign has also exposed that racism, sexism, and misogyny are still alive and well in America.
But this does not represent who we are and must not overshadow our enormous accomplishments. Almost all the candidates we endorsed in the November 2016 election have been elected. These are women and men who support our feminist values and will stand up for them in Congress, the State Capitol, the Board of Supervisors, the City Councils, and the District Boards. Congratulations to all of them and thank you to all of you who worked tirelessly to make their election possible.
I had the privilege, like many of you, to volunteer for Hillary from canvassing in Las Vegas to phone banking. Sb4Hillary did an amazing job energizing us and bringing us together. While we did not prevail (although HRC won Nevada!), it demonstrated the power of community. Now, more than ever, we need to continue to be stronger together. We need to join forces with likeminded individuals and organizations to say no to the politics of fear and hatred, to say no to racism, to say no to sexism and misogyny and to say yes to a society inclusive of all.
Our vision of a society based upon the feminist values of social, political and economic gender equality and our values, from immigration to women’s rights to the environment are going to be challenged. It is up us to continue to make our voices heard and keep speaking truth to power.
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Once again, congratulations to the SBWPC candidates elected in November 2016
Kamala Harris, U.S. Senate
Salud Carbajal, U.S. House of Representatives
Hannah-Beth Jackson, California State Senate
Monique Limon, California State Assembly
Joan Hartmann, Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors
Fred Shaw, Carpinteria City Council
Stuart Kasdin, Goleta City Council
Kyle Richards, Goleta City Council
Polly Holcombe, Carpinteria Water District
Lauren Hanson, Goleta Water District
Bill Rosen, Goleta Water District
Rick Merrifield, Goleta Water District
Sharon Rose, Goleta Sanitary District
John Fox, Goleta Sanitary District
Maureen Foley Claffey, Carpinteria School Board
Pegeen Soutar, Isla Vista Recreation and Parks District
Jay Freeman, Isla Vista Community Services
Spencer Brandt, Isla Vista Community Services
Ethan Bertrand, Isla Vista Community Services District 5407
And congratulations to SBWPC members who were unopposed
Susan Epstein, Goleta School District
Sholeh Jahangir, Goleta School District
Wendy Sims-Moten, Santa Barbara School District
Jackie Reid, Santa Barbara School District
Laura Capps, Santa Barbara School District
Suzy Cawthon, Carpinteria-Summerland Fire District
David Bearman, Goleta West Sanitary Board