- Ms. Foundation for Women
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The Ms. Foundation for Women, a non-profit organization, was founded in 1973 by Gloria Steinem, Patricia Carbine, Letty Cottin Pogrebin and Marlo Thomas. Established at the height of the feminist movement, the Ms. Foundation was created to deliver funding and other strategic resources to organizations that were elevating women's voices and solutions across race and class in communities nationwide. The founders believed strongly in women's collective power to ignite change, and they also knew that women who faced discrimination and inequity in their own lives had the wisdom and expertise to advance social change that would benefit everyone. They began an organization that would seed and strengthen women's grassroots organizing around the country and strive to create a vibrant, inclusive feminist movement in which everyone's voice was visible, valued and heard.[1]
The Ms. Foundation for Women was created as a separate but related entity to Ms. magazine. The founders originally intended the Ms. Foundation to be a vehicle through which Ms. Magazine's profits were redistributed to the national women's movement. However, it quickly became apparent that for Ms. Magazine to survive, it had to sustain itself. If the Ms. Foundation was also to grow, it had to raise funds and provide direction for itself. The Ms. Foundation and Ms. Magazine have had no formal connection since 1987; today, Ms. Magazine is published by the Feminist Majority Foundation.[2]
Today the foundation works to identify and support emerging and established groups poised to act when and where change is needed. Its grants — paired with skills-building, networking and other strategic opportunities — enable organizations to advance women's grassroots solutions across race and class and to build social movements within and across four areas: Building Democracy, Economic Justice, Ending Violence and Women's Health.[3]
Some of the foundation's early initiatives include the establishment of Take Our Daughters To Work Day — known since 2003 as "Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day" [4]— and the 1970s multimedia project Free to Be... You and Me.[1]
The foundation has held an annual program called the Gloria Awards (named for Ms. founder Gloria Steinem) for 23 years as of 2011.[5]
In February 2011 Anika Rahman joined the foundation as president and CEO.[6]
Notes
- ^ a b Ms. Foundation for Women: Our History
- ^ Ms. Foundation for Women: Relationship to Ms. Magazine
- ^ Ms. Foundation for Women: Grants
- ^ Ms. Foundation for Women: Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work
- ^ Ms. Foundation for Women: Gloria Awards page
- ^ Ms. Foundation for Women: Press Release - Ms. Foundation for Women Welcomes New CEO, Anika Rahman
External links
- Ms. Foundation for Women official web site
- Anika Rahman biography Ms. Foundation web site
Categories:- Awards and prizes honoring women
- Women's organizations in the United States
- Non-profit organizations based in the United States
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