The art of persuasion
Lobbying is one way for women to take action on issues affecting community health
If you’ve paid attention to social media or the news at all this year, chances are you’ve heard someone refer to 2018 as the “Year of the Woman” (a recycling of the phrase that was popularized in 1992, the first single election year in which four women were elected to the Senate). In 2018, the phrase is a reference to many things—the Women’s Marches, the #MeToo movement and, of course, the tremendous number of women running for office up and down the ballots in states across the country.
And these women are making headway. According to the Center for Women and Politics at Rutgers University, a record number of women—185 as of last month—have been successful in primary races, winning nominations to run for the U.S. House in November. Fifty-six women have run in gubernatorial races this year. And whereas in 1970 there was just one female senate candidate, this year there have been more than four dozen.
If record numbers of women secure the seats for which they’re running, perhaps it will be 2019 that rightly earns the title of the “Year of the Woman"—a chance for new female legislators to take a role in shaping regulations and policies affecting their gender and the families for which they so often care.
But even if women don’t end up sweeping local, state and national offices, there will still be many, many of them at work in city halls and state capitols across the country—and in the nation’s capital, too. And this is nothing new. Women have played a significant role in shaping politics through lobbying for well over a century now.
An 1888 edition of Frank Leslie’s Illustrated Newspapers described female lobbyists in Washington D.C. as “for the most part accomplished, versatile and fair to look upon” and mentioned that “the raw and inexperienced Senator falls an easy prey to their blandishments.”
Today, some women lobby as citizens by testifying in front of legislative bodies on behalf of the issues that affect them. Others do it as registered professionals on behalf of industries and causes.
Marlene Lockard is one of the latter. She’s been involved in state politics for decades. In fact, she was Nevada’s first female chief of staff under then Governor and former U.S. Senator Richard Bryan.
These days, Lockard’s the professional lobbyist for, among other clients, the Nevada Women’s Lobby—a non-partisan coalition concerned with women’s issues in the state. It celebrated its 30th anniversary this year.
When the state legislature convenes in February, she’ll be in the capitol full-time, lobbying on behalf the NWL. For now, she’s keeping her eye on bill draft requests—ideas for bills, basically—as they’re being submitted by legislators, committees and government agencies. At this point, Lockard said, the NWL has already identified a few priorities for the upcoming legislative session, including affordable housing, pay equity and paid leave issues. But she knows there will be many others.
“As the lobbyist, I often say, when I represent the Nevada Women’s Lobby, almost every bill, almost every BDR impacts women and families,” Lockard said. “Water policy, growth, affordable housing all have major impacts.”
Over the years, the NWL has lobbied for things like the repeal of Nevada’s sodomy laws, paid leave for victims of domestic violence, and the state’s ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment, which finally happened in 2017. For Lockard, this was a particularly poignant moment.
“I remember back in the early ‘70s, when the discussion first started and when it was defeated in Nevada,” she said.
To be there when it passed, she said, was momentous. And to those who’ve pointed to the tardiness of the ERA’s passage in Nevada saying after all these decades the point was moot, Lockard said, “No.”
“It matters, she said. “Women by name should be in the U.S. Constitution—period. We are not.”
March 22, 2017—the day the Nevada Legislature ratified the ERA, 45 years to the day after Congress had done so—was also special for Lockard, she said, because of the number of people there with her to witness it as a part of an event the NWL hosts each session.
“We had our Grassroots Lobby Days around that vote, so there were over 200 young women and men from across the state who witnessed that vote,” Lockard said.
According to Lockard, the NWL’s Grassroots Lobby Days event is “an opportunity for men and women alike to come from across the state and participate” in the legislative process.
“We put on workshops, from Lobbying 101 to a higher level of lobbying, if you’ve done it before,” she said. “We have issue workshops, so if someone has a particular interest, we try to cover the contemporary issues of what’s occurring in the state.”
This year’s Grassroots Lobby Days will be March 31 and April 1. Lockard said the event is a good opportunity for people to see if they might be interested in becoming members of the NWL. But she was also quick to point out that there’s no reason to wait until then if you’re interested in having a voice in local government.
“Come down to the Legislature,” she said. “If there’s an issue … or a vote is up or a hearing, come down and listen and … if you feel comfortable enough, begin to participate, testify, tell your story if you’ve got a story to tell about how “X” legislation would impact you positively or adversely."Ω
Take action
Looking to get involved in the political process? Here’s a list of some other local lobbying organizations and political action groups:
Nevada Now is a chapter of the National Organization for Women political action committee. The group engages in community organizing, grassroots lobbying and litigation on a variety of issues affecting women’s rights. Learn more here: www.nevadanow.org.
The American Civil Liberties Union is a nonprofit whose stated goal is “to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed to every person in this country by the Constitution and laws of the United States.” You can learn more about the ACLU in Nevada here: www.aclunv.org.
The American Association of University Women (AAUW) is a nationwide network with more than 100,000 members. Its mission is to advance “equity for women and girls through advocacy, education, philanthropy and research.” Learn more about the local chapter here: reno-nv.aauw.net.
The Mt. Rose Republican Women’s Club’s mission is “to promote political awareness among Republican women in the Reno area.” You can learn more here: www.southrenorepublicans.com.
NARAL Pro-Choice America is an organization that engages in political action and advocacy to oppose restrictions on abortion and expand access to abortion. Learn more about the Nevada chapter here: www.prochoiceamerica.org/state/nevada.