NAPD Celebrates Women’s History Month

It’s Women’s History Month, and we are celebrating the women of NAPD.  Women’s History Month has its origins as a national celebration in 1981 when Congress authorized and requested the President to proclaim the week beginning March 7, 1982, as Women’s History Week. Throughout the next five years, Congress continued to pass similar joint resolutions. In 1987 Congress designated the month of March as Women’s History Month. Since that time presidents have issued a series of annual proclamations continuing the designation. These proclamations celebrate the contributions and achievements women have made to the United States in a variety of fields throughout history.

This year’s national theme is Providing Healing, Promoting Hope. As women of the public defense movement, that is indeed what we do. We walk to the front line of injustice and face down the odds to make things happen – creating change, galvanizing growth, transforming justice. 

Women are changemakers, exhibiting courage that transcends what we see or fear. Called to action, we march forward. In March, it is a time to honor this truth, each other, and our achievements. Aisha McWeay, a member of the NAPD Board of Directors and Executive Director of Still She Rises, an innovative public defender office serving women in Tulsa, OK offered these thoughts: "Women's History Month is about celebrating the work of the countless dynamic and unwavering advocates who have paved the way for us to walk a path towards justice. Having a seat at the table and a voice in the conversation are consequences of the advocacy of the women whose footsteps we walk in. May it never be lost on us or taken for granted how far we have come, while not discounting how much we still have to do."

Together, collectively, we rise from all identities, journeys, and experiences. And it is in our collective voices, in our call and response, that we summon the world to listen and make the impossible possible. We are proud and appreciative of you not just today, but every day.

Please join us in the fall of 2022, we will host our 3rd Annual Women’s Conference (virtually). The Women's Conference is our time to motivate, inspire, and celebrate us! After all, we are the ones, we've been waiting for!