New Mexico women join others across the nation to host discussions and encourage voting

Thousands of women in New Mexico and around the nation plan to gather around kitchen tables, at coffee shops, and in break rooms and bars on Tuesday to talk about important issues and encourage voting on Nov. 7.

Called Stirring the Pot, the event is designed to mobilize women to vote though gatherings with friends, neighbors or coworkers in casual settings to talk about issues. Results of an online survey completed this summer showed that women believe politicians are out of tough with the concerns of women and families throughout the nation, according to a news release about the events.

In New Mexico, events are planned in Las Cruces, Albuquerque and Farmington.

Barbara Kuhns of Las Cruces is inviting women from her book club to her home to talk about the state’s election and other issues.

“I think we will focus our discussion on the local races and on the steps we must take to ensure a living wage in our community,” Kuhns said in the release.

Bernadette Chavez, a resident of Albuquerque, has invited friends and coworkers to have dinner at her home.

“I invited women from all different age groups, ranging from their early 20s into their late 50s. I think this will make for interesting discussion,” she said. “We will probably talk about a wide variety of issues, everything from paying off education loans and finding jobs to retirement and pensions. I am particularly hoping to discuss the working poor and minimum wage in New Mexico. Maybe we will even touch on immigration.”

Events are by invitation only, but the group is asking women to visit the Web site at http://www.stirringthepot.org and sign up to host an event.

The events are a result of the summer survey, conducted by the American Federation of Labor – Congress of Industrial Organizations and Working America. More than 26,000 women participated in the survey, which found that women believe the country is moving in the wrong direction, and that they are concerned about health care accessibility and cost, retirement, a lack of quality jobs with good pay and benefits, and an education system that isn’t equipping children to compete in a global economy.

“Women are getting squeezed between stagnant wages and soaring costs, between the need to be involved in our kids’ lives and inflexible work schedules … and most of us have had just about enough,” said Meagan Jeronimo, a legal secretary in Houston, Texas, and a co-chair of the Stirring the Pot events. “We need to stir the pot. The world cannot change unless we make elected officials and candidates understand that, to our families throughout America, economic security is a vital part of our national security. Policy makers must start prioritizing the needs of our families and communities.”

Women interested in hosting an event can sign up online, download a toolkit for planning events and get additional resources and information.