VANCOUVER, Wash. -- Close to 200 people over the course of two days walked into Clark College’s Gaiser Hall to take part in an annual festival with a historic backdrop.
“These are exciting times, frustrating times,” said Vancouver Mayor Anne McEnerny-Ogle.
McEnerny-Ogle, the city’s first female mayor, was one of several speakers Saturday at the International Women’s Festival Pacific Northwest.
She and others were quick to point out the context.
The festival, in its third year, comes amid watershed movements like #MeToo, Time’s Up and other campaigns meant to empower women, and identify and condemn violence and harassment.
“That all put a lot out there for women to feel safe to come out, talk about their stories, talk about their hashtags,” said Michelle Bart, president of Vancouver-based National Women’s Coalition Against Violence and Exploitation (NWCAVE), which put on the festival.
They were movements that were especially top of mind Thursday, International Women’s Day, and they were fuel for keynote speakers and attendees this weekend.
The festival featured vendors like Girls Who Roar and the Girl Scouts of America, leaving speakers free to address issues that affect women young and old.
Topics ranged from overcoming violence and sexual exploitation, to careers, to family.
McEnerny-Ogle said the conversations, as open and honest as they were, stemmed from movements that are long overdue.
“I thought at this time in our lives and in our culture, we'd be done with some of these issues. We're not, and so now we need to lend an arm, a voice to our sisters who are younger to help keep them moving along,” she said.