The Gender, Women’s Suffrage, and Political Power: Past, Present, and Future (GWSPP) conference is a multi-day virtual meeting that brings together academics and activists to explore the critical history of women’s suffrage and political power, and the future possibilities for expanding gender equity in political participation and representation in the United States and across the globe. This conference intends to have a particular focus on womxn of color and will conceptualize suffrage broadly as encompassing civic participation and political power within and outside of electoral politics, and will include a critical perspective on the role of white supremacy in the suffrage movement. There will also be a portion of the conference dedicated to women’s power in higher education, with a view to drawing links between the exclusion of diverse women’s voices in the academy, and women’s broader political power.

Registration is free and open to the public.

Schedule At-A-Glance
Wednesday, November 18, 2020
12:00PM - 1:00PM Keynote with President Elizabeth Bradley of Vassar College
4:30PM - 5:00PM Keynote with Erin Vilardi, Founder and CEO of Vote Run Lead
5:00PM - 6:00PM Featured Workshop: Vote Run Lead’s 90-Day Challenge

Thursday, November 19, 2020
9:00AM - 10:30AM Panel: The Politics of Women’s Power
10:45AM - 12:15PM Discussion: Sexuality & Reproductive Rights
1:00PM - 2:30PM Panel: Transnational Feminisms, Women, & Conflict
3:00PM - 4:15PM Book Talk: Jewish Women and Power
4:30PM - 6:00PM Panel: Women’s Suffrage & Political Participation: Historical Examinations
6:15PM - 6:30PM Keynote with Governor Gretchen Whitmer of the State of Michigan

Friday, November 20, 2020
9:00AM - 10:30AM Discussion: Women Empowering Women
10:45AM - 12:15PM Panel: Sexual Politics
1:00PM - 2:30PM Panel: Jewish Women, Citizenship, Suffrage, and Sexuality
2:45PM - 4:15PM Panel: Asian Immigrant, Asian American Women, and the TransPacific Afterlives of World War II
4:30PM - 6:00PM Roundtable: Ways to Lead a Political Life
6:15PM - 7:30PM Cocktails & Networking Discussions

Saturday, November 21, 2020
9:00AM - 10:30AM Panel: Political Organizing & Activism
10:45AM - 12:15PM Panel: Future Directions of Work & Radicalism
1:00PM - 2:30PM Discussion: Womxn of Color Identity: Implications for Solidarity

All times are in Eastern Standard Time (EST).

Hosted by:
Michigan State University's Center for Gender in Global Context (GenCen)
Michigan State University's Department of History
University of Michigan's Institute for Research on Women and Gender (IRWG)

Sponsors:
The Michael and Elaine Serling Institute for Jewish Studies and Modern Israel James Madison College at Michigan State University
Michigan State University College of Law
Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy at the University of Michigan University of Michigan's History Department
Michigan State University Asian Studies Center
Michigan State University African Studies Center
Michigan State University Muslim Studies Center
Michigan State University College of Agriculture & Natural Resources Michigan Women's Commission
Vote Run Lead
Michigan Women Forward