When Dolly Parton sang “9 to 5,” she was doing more than just shining a light on the fate of American working women. Parton was singing the true story of a movement that started with 9to5, a group of Boston secretaries in the early 1970s. Their goals were simple—better pay, more advancement opportunities, and an end to sexual harassment—but their unconventional approach attracted the press and shamed their bosses into change. Featuring interviews with 9to5’s founders, as well as actor and activist Jane Fonda, “9to5: The Story of a Movement” is the previously untold story of the fight that inspired a hit and changed the American workplace.

The movie was codirected by the recently deceased Julia Reichert, whose "American Factory" won an Oscar for best documentary-feature in 2019, and who also codirected such other documentary classics as "Union Maids" and "Growing Up Female." "9to5: the Story of a Movement" was nominated for a Peabody Award in 2021, and was aired on PBS in 2021.

Watch the documentary prior to the meeting (we will send you a link) and then join us for a very special event cosponsored by Democrats Abroad Barcelona/Spain and the Global and Spain Women’s Caucuses.

On April 11 at 2pm CT / 8pm CET, we will meet with book author and founder of 9 to 5 Ellen Cassedy; and Kim Cook, an organizer and activist for worker’s rights. Both women appear in the film.

Ellen Cassedy was a founder of the 9 to 5 organization of women office workers that began in Boston fifty years ago. She is the author of a new book, “Working 9 to 5: A women’s movement, a labor union, and the iconic movie,” with a foreword by Jane Fonda. Liz Shuler, the president of the AFL-CIO, calls the book “a must-read for any activist or reader in search of inspiration.” Historian Lane Windham calls it “exactly the right book at the right time.” Ellen is a former columnist for the Philadelphia Daily News. She was a speechwriter in the Clinton administration and is the award-winning author of several books. She lives in New York City.

Kim Cook is the past President of SEIU Local 925, a local of 26,000 child care and public sector workers in Washington State. She began her work as a member activist of 9to5, a pre-union clerical workers association, was hired as an SEIU organizer in 1984 and organized workers around the country; she was elected President of SEIU Local 925 in 2001. Kim served on the SEIU International Executive Board and as an International Vice-President. In 2010 she was hired to build and lead a new department at SEIU - Member Leaders in Action. She is also one of the co-founders of Flash Mobs for Social Justice. She retired as an Associate at the Cornell Worker Institute in New York City.

When you RSVP to this event, you will be sent a link to watch the documentary (90 minutes) at your own convenience. Then come on April 11 to hear from the people behind the movement, the film and the book and ask them your questions. 

Calling All DPCA Officers... to Vote On 2024 Delegate Selection Plan

Connection details will be emailed to all Democrats Abroad member RSVP's closer to the meeting date.

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Every four years, the Democratic Party begins designing the Delegate Selection Rules and a resulting nominating process for the next presidential election.

While the Rules drafting process begins anew after each Presidential election, many norms and traditions carry over, including a rule that lets some states hold their nominating contest early, which in 2024 will be South Carolina, Nevada & New Hampshire, Michigan, and Georgia.

Democrats Abroad has worked hard at crafting our Delegate Selection Plan, which is the guiding document as we play our part in nominating our Party's 2024 nominees for President and Vice President of the United States.

You can review a copy of our draft 2024 Delegate Selction Plan which was posted for public comment on our website on March 6, 2023, and submit your by writing to [email protected] through April 5, 2023.

(Please include the page and line number your feedback refers to in your email. Thank you!)

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NOTICE: This meeting will be recorded, including audio, video, and any materials exchanged or viewed during the session.

Attending a women's college, which only 2% of American women do, was both empowering and deeply sobering. As part of a community in which women were unapologetically centered, I learned how far from the center we normally reside. There is a reason why 20% of women who serve in Congress, along with 30% of women business leaders, graduated from all-female institutions of higher education. If we want progress, we have to create the legal foundation for its emergence. I have two sons, and I believe that not only their rights, but their potential to experience their full humanity continues to be constricted in a world that both overtly and subtly enshrines men as the standard-bearers of power and authority. I want the ERA for them as much as I do for my beloved goddaughters and nieces. We must demand our rights. No one is going to give them to us unless we insist and persist. I am in this fight with everyone who wants to live in a world where equality is not simply a "norm" half-heartedly enforced, but enshrined in the Constitution of the United States. It's past time. Teresa Ritterhoff, residing in Germany, voting in Illinois

Have you ever made a successful change in your life? Perhaps you wanted to exercise more, eat less, or change jobs? Think about the time and attention you dedicated to the process. A lot, right? Change is hard. Creating effective social justice habits, particularly those dealing with issues of power, privilege, supremacy, and leadership is like any lifestyle change. Setting our intentions and adjusting what we spend our time doing is essential. It’s all about building new habits. Sometimes the hardest part is just getting started. The good news is, there’s an abundance of resources just waiting to empower you to be a more effective player in the quest for equity and justice.

About the 21-Day Racial Equity Habit Building Challenge 

• For 21 days, do one action to further your understanding of power, privilege, supremacy, oppression, and equity 
• This plan includes suggestions for readings, podcasts, videos, observations, and ways to form and deepen community connections. Suggestions are in the following categories:

• Choose one activity per day to further your understanding of power, privilege, supremacy, oppression, and equity.
• Diversify your habits by doing some of each.
• Use the tracking chart provided here to stay on course. You can download the editable spreadsheet or a PDF for printing.
• We think understanding white privilege and white supremacy is a powerful lens into the complexities of doing social justice work, so we’ve focused our resources on that specific issue.

Click below to receive periodic updates from the GOTV and Voting Rights teams regarding our voting rights work.  We will message you when there are important updates and developments to report.