International Mothers Network
WHAT: Launch of International Mothers Network – The First Ever Global Consortium Of Motherhood Organizations
WHEN: Sunday, March 8th International Women’s Day
WHERE: A virtual launch is online, in blog-spheres, youtube, within
collective maternal activist communities and websites and in academia across the world with participation by thousands. Walk, Write, Talk, Share, Watch, Blog, Attend an International Women’s Day Gathering near you and spread the word – Mother’s Day Is Coming. Watch video here:
www.internationalmothersnetwork.org
Write your story here: www.museumofmotherhood.org
WHO: Association For Research On Mothering, The Motherhood Foundation, MAMAPALOOZA!, Welfare Mothers, Mamazine, Momsrising, Mother Centers International Network for Empowerment, Motherhood Movement Online, Mothers Acting Up, Mothers and More, Mothers Out to Have Equal Rights, National
Advocates for Pregnant Women, National Association of Mothers’ Centers, NOW, Sistersong, CODE PINK, Brainchild Magazine, Mother The Job and more.
WHY:
– to link maternal activist organizations and galvanize a signal-to-noise phase that goes directly to the grassroots level
– be beneficial to mothers seeking community;
– expand the growing Mom Rock Movement – a “Third Wave” vehicle for
empowerment.
International Mothers Network
The International Mothers Network (IMN), the first ever, global consortium of motherhood organizations, officially launches on International Woman’s Day (March 8, 2009) in cities around the world.
IMN’s focus, in particular, is on, progressive mothers groups – mothers from the global south, mothers in poverty, mothers who are activists, mothers with disabilities, welfare mothers, grandmother caregivers and others, who are vested in feminist perspectives on maternal well-being, health; including but not limited to, safety, freedom of expression, equal rights, benefits for families and caregivers and support for organizations that encourage a platform for continued pragmatic change work.
Initial round table discussions, which came as part of the Toronto Conference titled, ‘Motherhood- You Say You Want A Revolution, committed to working together in equitable, sharing and participative ways that reflect maternal and matriarchal values in dealing with power and decision-making. Founding members agreed that the network must include a sense of community building, and must encourage ongoing discussion and dissemination of information to help bring the motherhood movement to a new, practical reality, galvanizing the work that has already begun.
IMN is committed to a more mother-centered world and dedicated to bringing diverse mother groups together to work toward influencing public discussion as well as exploring alternate economic and societal structures. The IMN will provide a sense of community and promote public awareness and affect change.
A film about this first ever summit, tentatively titled ‘The Motherhood Movement’ ~ You Say You Want A Revolution, is currently in production. Initial projects of the IMN include: a quarterly newsletter and a calendar of events, Mother’s Day Action for Month of May and a triennial conference.
Dr. Andrea O’Reilly,
Associate Professor,
School of Women’s Studies,
Founder-Director: Association for Research on Mothering, Journal of the Association for Research on Mothering, Demeter Press, Co-Founder, Museum of Motherhood, Co-Founder, International Mothers Network, Editor, Encyclopedia of Motherhood, Sage Press, 2010.
York University,
Toronto, Ont.,
M3J 1P3
416 736 2100;60366
aoreilly@yorku.ca
www.yorku.ca/arm