Join the Washington State's National Organization for Women as we host our annual conference virtually!
Featuring keynote speaker Dr. Karen A. Johnson - Director, Washington State Office of Equity
Dr. Karen A. Johnson (she/her pronouns), goes by Dr. J, is the inaugural Director for the newly created Washington State Office of Equity, established by the legislature and signed into law in April 2020. The office will work with agencies to increase access to equitable opportunities in order to bridge opportunity gaps and reduce disparities. The office will also work with communities to develop the state’s five-year equity plan. Dr. J holds a bachelor’s degree in occupational therapy, a master’s in public administration, and doctorate in Urban Services. She is energized by seeking equity and justice for all.
Additional speakers include:
Laurie Betram Roberts - Executive Director, Yellowhammer Fund
Laurie Betram Roberts (pronouns she/her/they/them) is the Executive Director of the Yellowhammer Fund, an abortion fund and reproductive Justice organization focused on the Deep South….
Irene Fruzetti - Tacoma National Organization for Women (NOW)
Irene Fruzzetti, a Kwahadi Comanche, was born in Oakland, CA but was raised mostly by her Grandmother in Oklahoma. Her mother bought into the government promise of housing and employment in the late 1930's and moved to California. Needless to say, she found the promise was a genocidal act to remove Native People from the land they were placed on…
Christopher Leithold
Christopher Leithold is a recent graduate of Avanti High School and will be attending Eastern Washington University in the fall. He is an 18 year old, transgender male. He advocates for mental health, the disabled, and women and LGBTQ+ rights….
Linda Malanchuk-Finnan - Thurston County National Organization for Women (NOW)
Linda Malanchuk-Finnan is a feminist who began her social activism at Stonehill College in Massachusetts with the Women’s Liberation Movement of the late 1960’s and has continued pursuing social justice to this day. She founded Tacoma NOW (National Organization for Women) with others, continued in Olympia as President of Thurston County NOW, was Statewide Coordinator for WA State NOW and has served on the National Board of NOW as Northwest Regional Director…..
Linda Tosti-Lane - Seattle National Organization for Women (NOW)
Linda Tosti-Lane is current member of the Seattle NOW Board and serves as the Legislative Coordinator for the chapter. She has been a member of NOW since 1981 when she joined as a graduate student in Virginia during the ERA Countdown Campaign. She has also served on the WA State NOW board previously as President, Coordinator, Secretary, Legislative Coordinator, and Seattle NOW’s chapter representative to the Board….
Justice Mary I. Yu - Washington Supreme Court
Mary I. Yu was appointed to the Washington Supreme Court by Governor Inslee on May 1, 2014, after serving 14 years as a trial court judge in King County Superior Court. She was elected to a full six-year term on the Supreme Court in 2016. Prior to her appointment, she was the Deputy Chief of Staff to King County Prosecutor Norm Maleng and the Director of the Peace and Social Justice Office for the Archdiocese of Chicago….