Hi! My name is Charmaine Davis. I’m the latest addition to the Atlanta 9to5 office. My first day was Monday June 28th. I’ll be working on the Work-Family, Election Connection and Minimum Wage campaigns as the Lead Organizer. I started my organizing career as a political organizer for Project Vote.

The first campaign I worked on was the Minimum Wage campaign in Ohio. I recruited, trained and managed a staff of over 40 field canvassers who collected over 250,000 petition signatures from registered Ohio voters who supported raising the state minimum wage. We were able to get the initiative on the ballot and mobilize Ohio voters to vote in favor of it. We successfully raised the minimum wage in Ohio from $5.15 to $6.85. This was a huge victory for low-wage workers in Ohio.

In 2007 as a community organizer in Flint, Michigan, I built the membership of Young Urban Voters, a branch of Project Vote, to over 2,500 members. I got the opportunity to work with and develop a lot of young adults and teenagers into active community leaders through one-on-one meetings and mentoring. Later in 2007, I was promoted to national staff with Project Vote, I managed several voter registration drives across the country that registered more than 1 million voters.

In 2009, I interned in the development department of a nonprofit in Chicago. I recently moved to Atlanta and I’m very excited about working with 9to5 and continuing to fight for economic justice!

Working Families Story Bank - Add Your Voice to Support Paid Sick Days!

The Working Families Story Bank is a collection of story portraits of workers and employers across America. Presented by the Family Values at Work Consortium, a national network of 14 regional coalitions, this story bank provides policy makers with a fact checked story resource as they consider regulatory and private sector approaches to issues of concern to working families.

9to5 Chapters in Atlanta, Milwaukee, Denver all contributed stories to the Story Bank - you can just click on your state to listen to the audio portraits of workers telling their story. In Atlanta both of our Community Internship Program participants - Jerrett Johnson and Marilynn Winn - contributed stories for Georgia about what not having paid sick days meant for them, their children, and their parents.

And we are still collecting stories!

Wondering if you might have a story to contribute? Here are some questions to think about:

Have your ever needed paid sick days or family leave but your job didn't offer it?

* How did this affect you?
* Did you lose your job?
* How did it affect your family?
* Did you experience financial difficulty?
* Did your child miss school?
* Did it prevent you from caring for an elderly parent?
* Do you think all employees deserve paid sick days and paid family leave?

If you answered yes to any of these questions -- we want to hear about it! To share you story contact jackie@9to5.org or call 404-222-0037 to set up an appointment.

Atlanta Chapter Meets with U.S. DOL Director of Women's Bureau

Yesterday, Atlanta staff as well as 9to5 member Marilynn Winn had the chance to attend a roundtable discussion with Sara Manzano Diaz, the newly appointed Director of the Women's Bureau at the U.S. Department of Labor. In attendance were the directors and members of dozens of Atlanta and Georgia based organizations all who share the primary focus of promoting the welfare of women and girls in our state. Ms. Manzano Diaz told her personal story of growing up in the Bronx as a child of Puerto Rican immigrants, and the formative experience of gaining the opportunity to move into public housing after living with her entire family in single room occupancy housing.

The discussion revolved around finding concrete ways that Ms. Manzano can move her national agenda of promoting pay equity and work/life balance policies including the Healthy Families Act and the Paycheck Fairness Act, advancing women into higher paying and non-traditional jobs, and supporting the needs of women veterans.

Marilynn Winn reflects on the meeting and what it meant to her to be a part of a group of women working to help other women:

Today I had the opportunity to meet Sara Manzano Diaz, Director of the U.S. Department of Labor Women's Bureau, along with many other powerful leading women who head many different organizations in Atlanta, and across Georgia. These women's goals are to help low-income women and families get out of poverty, and to educate, find resources, and encourage them to speak up and speak out about the problems that keep them bound in a life of poverty.

Being raised in poverty and still living in poverty now has given me the passion, courage, and drive to advocate for families like the family I came from. Every confererence and meeting I attend with these women working for change lets me know that help is out there, and if not it's is being talked about and planned. I have learned no matter where I came from, with the help of others, I can always do better. With each woman that spoke about what her organization offers I learned more about the tools to help myself rise out of poverty.

Get Ready for Change

"History, despite it's wrenching pain, can not be unlived, but if faced with courage need not be lived again"
-Maya Angelou

9to5 has power and courage to fight for issues that many women face day to day. 9to5 is your chance to make change. I have been an intern for 9to5 for a short time and have already witnessed the impact 9to5 is making. Here at 9to5 you immediately notice the power that is being used to address issues like sexual harassment, work/family balance and equal pay. 9to5 understands these issues and are on the front-line working for change. The dedication is amazing and you can be apart of this too by becoming a member.

Our history hows us that facing issues like paid sick leave and equal pay are challenging but with courage, 9to5 is making change on a local and national level.

If you want change, knowledge and support--then 9to5 is here for you! So many people want and need progress. 9to5 is changing the workplace and changing the world for our past, present and future. Be a part of the change we need and join 9to5 as a member today!

Join 9to5 Today and Save $10!

Missed Women in the Halls? Come next Wed 4/14!

Thanks to all those 9to5 members who came to the Capitol yesterday - what a great turnout! We had such a great time, we're going again!

We were joined by new members Regina Holloway, Rochelle Payton, Carolyn Parker, Florence Roberts, Queen La Rosa Green, Janelle Williams, Alaina Reaves, and Gina Morrison, as well as 9to5 Atlanta board member Gloria Smith. Thank you for your participation and enthusiasm on the issues!

Yesterday the legislature was not in session and so many representatives were not at the Capitol, but they'll be back next week, and so will we! Women in the Halls has invited 9to5 members to join them again next Wednesday, April 14th for a chance to meet with your representatives.

If you couldn't make it yesterday, here's your chance! I'll be meeting up with any 9to5 members who want to participate, so just let me know if you'd like to go.

Information for next Wednesday, April 14th
8:30 -9:00am - arrive for registration, coffee and doughnuts
9:00-10:15am - Training on grassroots lobbying skills and talking points on bills
10:30-11:30am - Head to the Capitol to meet your representatives!

Coverdell Legislative Office Building 306 across from the Capitol building on Mitchell street.

Meet at IBEW building @ 8:15am for free parking and group transportation to the Capitol. 501 Pulliam St., Atlanta 30310 or take MARTA to the GA State stop. Call or e-mail for directions.

Let me know you're coming! E-mail jackie@9to5.org or call 404-222-0037.

Some highlights from our visit to the Capitol yesterday...

* 9to5 organizers Cindia Cameron and Shyria Coleman updated us on the Parent Protection Act and Minimum wage bills.
* Women in the Halls staff gave us tips on how to write to our legislators.
* We wrote letters to our House representatives to drop off at their offices, and even caught Rep. Rashad Taylor at his desk!
* We ended with a tour of the Capitol building and learned how to find our legislators when the House and Senate are in session.

Make it Count in 2010! Have a voice!

by Jocelyn, 9to5 Intern

This year, I am really excited about the census and you should be too. My census came in the mail this week and I could not wait to open it. I have been anxiously waiting for it because I want my voice heard and I want to be counted. Once every ten years, the U.S. counts everyone. Every household is sent a questionnaire so that every American has an opportunity to be counted. Your completed census form determines how over $400 billion dollars will be allocated to communities across the country. Yes, even YOUR community.


Why is this so important? The data from the Census is used in 3 ways:
1. $400 Billion Annual Federal Funds Distribution
2. Congressional Seat Distribution
3. Age Search Information

According to http://www.2010.census.gov, as of March 31, 2010, Georgia’s participation rate is a currently at 45% while national participation is at 50%. It is necessary for us to spread the word and get people to turn in their census forms! Based on population, federal funds will be divided to go towards job training centers, emergency services, neighborhood improvements, education, transportation and so much more.

Make sure your voice is heard! The population of each state determines how many representatives each state will have. If you don’t respond to the census, how will we have a voice in the U.S. House of Representatives?

The Census also uses your age search information for Social Security, retirement benefits and historical information.

100% participation is needed from every one. So much has changed over the past ten years, please send in your census and tell friend too. Be counted!

Join 9to5 at the Capitol Wednesday April 7th!

Working Families Day at the Capitol, Wednesday April 7

Join us as we head to the Capitol to support two crucial bills for Georgia's working families, and learn how a bill becomes a law!

We will be asking our legislators to support:

Parent Protection Act - Unpaid time off for school visits for children and medical appointments for elderly parents.

Raise the Minimum Wage - Raise the state minimum wage and increase the tipped worker wage.

Date: Wednesday, April 7th

Time and Schedule:
8:30 -9:00am - Arrive for registration, coffee and doughnuts
9:00-10:15am - Training on grassroots lobbying skills and talking points on bills
10:30-11:30am - Tour the Capitol and contact your legislators!

Location: Coverdell Legislative Office Building, Room 306
18 Capitol Square, Atlanta 30334, located across the street from the Capitol on Mitchell Street

How to get there:

* Meet at IBEW building @ 8:15am for free parking and carpools to the Capitol
501 Pulliam St., Atlanta 30310
*Be sure to let us know if you're joining us for carpooling so we can plan for enough transportation - call or e-mail for directions and to RSVP - 404-222-0037 or jackie@9to5.org
or
* MARTA directions
-exit GA State MARTA stop
-head SW on Piedmont Ave. towards Martin Luther King Jr. Dr. SE
-Turn right at Capitol Square SW
-Turn right to stay on Capitol Square SW/ Mitchell Street
-Coverdell Office Building will be on your left

Let us know you're coming! RSVP to: jackie@9to5.org or call 404-222-0037

This event is sponsored by 9to5 Atlanta Working Women in coordination with the GA/Job Family Collaborative and the GA Minimum Wage Coalition.
For more information on the sponsors of this event visit - http://www.womeninthehalls.org/

Half the Sky broadcast for International Women's Day

My mom gave me the book Half the Sky for Christmas this year, and although I hadn’t heard anything about it before I started reading, by the time I got off the plane from LA to Atlanta I was one hundred percent hooked. Even before I had finished, I was already its biggest fan, telling anyone who would listen that they had to read it (which I will still tell you if you ask).

Co-written by New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof and his wife Sheryl WuDunn, Half the Sky chronicles the most widespread and culturally ingrained practices of violence and neglect that women experience around the globe. It focuses on issues such as sex-trafficking of under-aged girls, the killing of female babies in Asian countries, bride burning in India, the appalling maternal mortality rates due to of a lack of basic healthcare access, and the flat out denial of education to girls in many countries. Kristof and WuDunn’s goal in writing the book was not only to raise awareness about these commonplace tragedies around the globe, but to convince the American public that it is their responsibility to take action, and to get anyone who picks up Half the Sky to begin doing so immediately after finishing the last page.

Although it may be too early to tell if their book can spur the type of mass mobilization that the authors are hoping for, it seems that I was not alone in finding Half the Sky to be more than just a compelling read. Its success within the first few months of the release led Kristof and WuDunn to partner with the organization CARE to organize an event for International Women’s Day and broadcast some of the stories of women told in the book to theaters across America.

So I headed to the movies yesterday with my roommates to attend this one night only event. The set-up was a live concert streamed from the Skirball center at NYU, which included musical performances by artists like India Arie and Diane Birch, as well as several celebrities that took the stage (Marisa Tomei, Maria Bello, Sarah Ferguson) to read excerpts of women’s stories from the book alongside picture images. It also featured a short film portrayal of one of the stories of a girl named Woineshet from Ethiopia. She was the victim of the cultural practice of bride abduction, where a girl is kidnapped and raped by a man who then forces her to marry him afterward to avoid paying a dowry as well as any punishment for the rape. It was the first of several documentaries to be made into a TV series that will tell these women’s stories to an even wider audience.

Like the book, the event tried not only to tell stories but to compel action, even with smallest step – each new speaker asked the audience to text “sky” to 30644 to get involved in Care and support the International Violence Against Women Act. As I sit here and wonder how many people will actually take the event’s message to heart and take real steps to create change, I realize that I, in fact, never got around to sending that text. Which is what I’m about to do right now.