Conferences compete for feminist audience

One weekend will have to be big enough for two student-run women's activism groups.

The Organization of Women Leaders and the National Council of Negro Women are hosting separate conferences on March 29. But the fledgling NCNW — in residence on campus for about a decade but sporadically suffering from inactive membership — was left feeling slighted and discouraged before its very first event, entitled "Empowering Black Women for the 21st Century."

Hoping for the support of all the women's groups on campus to get their event off the ground, Kristen Williams '04, NCNW president and conference organizer, explained that OWL and NCNW were originally going to work together on their events. But because of a lapse in communication, officers of both clubs fear they will now be competing for an audience.

"We asked them for help with our conference at one of the first meetings of the year and told them our date. No one mentioned the date of their conference," Williams said.

NCNW booked the Frist Multi-Purpose room early last summer. Williams found out about the conflict the first week of March. By then, it was too late to change their date as guest speakers had already been confirmed.

Jessica Brondo '04, president of OWL and coordinator of their third annual conference, "Women in the Media," acknowledged the mistake, but still could not pinpoint how the scheduling conflict came about. OWL reserved their date last March.

"We told them that we wanted to support them with all their events this year," Brondo said. "We have been sending out emails about the events they have sponsored. When the two officers [from OWL and NCNW] were collaborating about the conference [in November], I'm not sure whose fault it was, whether it was NCNW who didn't say the date or it was OWL not asking."

Williams said she does not blame OWL for the mistake, but said she didn't think OWL did its part to keep in contact with NCNW.

"It's not Frist's job to tell us when there are two similar activities planned for the same day," Williams said.

"There won't be too much interaction between the two events, which is sad," she said.

NCNW member Elan Nieves '06 thought the two separate events polarized a communuty of women on campus that should be united.

"OWL and NCNW were working together, we thought," Nieves said.

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With the events just days away, Brondo said the two events would draw their own enthusiastic audiences and have adequate turnout.

"Because we have pretty different topics, each conference will attract different groups," Brondo said.

"We had intended to help them and we really wanted their conference to be a success," Brondo said. When they found out that our conference was on the same day they were a little hurt. No way was it done personally. We booked it last Marc."

The OWL event, "Women in the Media," begins with a screening of "Bellyfruit." Other noted speakers include Rosie Amadio and Laura Silverman of Maxim Magazine, Patricia Cohen of The New York Times and "Dirty Dancing" director Barbara Kopple.

NCNW will host Cynthia Cuffie-Jackson, an executive physician for a pharmaceutical company, film actress Cynda Williams and University English professor Daphne Brooks.

"Whatever publicity they have we'd gladly put on our registration table and make people aware that there is another conference going on," Brondo said.