2012 Candidate Declarations

Please learn all about our candidates for the 2012 leadership team for NOW-NYC!  

Our annual membership election will take place on Thursday, January 19, 2012.  
Voting will be open from 5:30pm - 9:15pm at the NOW-NYC office (150 W. 28th St. Suite #304).  

All current NOW-NYC members joining on or before December 21, 2011 are eligible to vote.  A photo I.D. is required.  (If joining on or after December 1, 2011, please bring a receipt or credit card statement as proof of membership).

Any questions?  Please call 212-627-9895. 

President

Sonia Ossorio
I am honored to be running for president of our NOW chapter, which has given me a home to become a feminist activist. My goal as president is to build on the phenomenal work done by our current president Jane Manning and the team of activists who have built our chapter into a powerful force for women. Over the last two years, under Jane's leadership, the chapter has scored major victories in the area of violence against women in New York, from making choking a crime to ensuring handguns are kept out of the hands of convicted batterers. Incredibly, until June 2010, the agonizing, terrifying, and life-threatening act of cutting off someone's air supply was not a crime unless physical injury was evident. But choking very often leaves few or no visible signs and for that reason choking is a common method of terror, violence and control in domestic violence and sex crime cases. 

The chapter has been at the forefront in many areas of feminist activism-mobilizing women and men across New York City to take a stand against rape culture and to hold our criminal justice system accountable for prioritizing sexual assault complaints, as part of our Take Rape Seriously Campaign. Our goal moving forward is to expand this campaign by lobbying for more effective legislation to ensure that raping disabled and helpless victims isn't a way to escape conviction. If elected this team will launch the first-ever Take Rape Seriously Student Summit, to build leadership on local campus colleges.

Bringing our many members and activists together, we've been protesting and speaking out against workplace discrimination, Catholics bishops who want to eliminate birth control and anti-women elected representatives who must be challenged on their out-of-touch, arrogant and irresponsible votes in Congress. We fought back against shocking attacks on birth control and life-saving abortions and we won't let up. Attacks on women's health care have been breathtaking in scope, and they will only continue. The "Let Women Die" bill, deceptively named the "Protect Life" Act (H.R. 358), allows a hospital to deny life-saving care to pregnant women on "religious or moral" grounds. Two NYC elected leaders - Michael Grimm and Bob Turner-voted for this law, helping it pass in the House. If we have the privilege to continue to lead this chapter, we'll be right there taking action against every step they make.

The chapter is in excellent financial order, highly visible in the media, on good terms with other feminist organizations, and powerfully relevant in the 21st Century. I am proud to say that Jane is supporting my candidacy and will work hand-in-hand with me if I have the privilege of serving as her successor. If elected, I will seek to build upon the chapter's successful legislative track record. I will mobilize chapter activists to demand of our legislators that women's access to reproductive care be expanded, not attacked, in the context of health care reform. I will organize action to demand that programs aimed at economic recovery target women's economic progress.

Legislative Vice President

Jane Manning
Jane Manning has been a member of NOW-NYC since 1992 and served as chapter president in 2010 and 2011. An attorney specializing in criminal law and violence against women, she helped lead NOW-NYC's successful campaigns to repeal New York's statute of limitations on rape cases and to enact strong penalties for strangulation attacks. She advocated for more effective enforcement of sexual assault statutes through the chapter's Take Rape Seriously campaign. While working for the international women's rights organization Equality Now, she was an architect of New York State's law against human trafficking.

She began her career as a prosecutor of domestic violence, child abuse, and sex crimes. In private practice, she represented a coalition of battered women's organizations advocating for reversal of a New York State court decision making it easier for men who murder wives or girlfriends to invoke extreme emotional disturbance as a defense; the state's highest court ruled unanimously in her clients' favor. In 1992, she was a lead organizer of the Coalition to End Violence Against women, which led a rally of 5,000 demonstrators to the steps of the Democratic National Convention, urging passage of the Violence Against Women Act.

Vice President of Programs

Vice President of Development

Kim Gertsman
As Director of Membership for NOW-NYC over the past two years, I have gained invaluable experience as a board member and have diligently overseen NOW-NYC's programs and strengthened the organization's resource base. I have almost 25 years expertise in fundraising with progressive organizations. I led a nationwide major gifts program at the American Civil Liberties Union during a critical growth period for the organization which doubled in size during my tenure from 2003 to 2009. Prior to that, I oversaw an annual revenue increase of 500%--from $300,000 to $1.8 million-during my nine years at NARAL Pro-Choice New York. I have been working as the Associate Director of Development at the Population Council for almost three years and in the last fiscal year helped them increase their unrestricted income from individuals and family foundations by 92%. I look forward to dedicating myself to another term on the board of NOW-NYC as one of the Vice Presidents.

Vice President of Action

Rebecca Rafelson
Rebecca first joined NOW-NYC as an intern in 2007. She has been intimately involved in the planning and execution of the Women of Power and Influence Awards, the Susan B. Anthony Awards, and the annual Gift Drive, among other programs. She has headed tabling efforts, Love Your Body Day and has participated in numerous protests and rallies, including representing NOW-NYC at the 2010 March for Equality with over 250,000 people in attendance. 

Also prior to joining NOW-NYC, Rebecca spent a year living in South Africa where she worked with renowned human rights activist Ela Gandhi, granddaughter of Mahatma Gandhi, on health education and violence prevention programs in rural regions. While there, she also worked as an intake counselor at a police station in an impoverished neighborhood outside of Durban. In an effort to address inadequate, insensitive and corrupt services for survivors of violence, this independent women's organization took responsibility for recording statements, counseling and referring survivors, and ensuring fair legal representation. 

American by birth, Rebecca spent the majority of her life living in Australia, Switzerland and Israel, where she became passionately involved in peace-building initiatives, empowerment programs, and anti-discrimination campaigns to halt and heal conflict. Rebecca firmly believes that feminizing the political sphere is the key to peace and progress. While attending University in Massachusetts, Rebecca worked as a counselor for the school's Student Sexuality Information Service, an organization that encourages all forms of safer sex by providing counseling, referrals, safer sex products. She organized diversity campaigns to counter stereotypes, and successfully fought for the first gender-neutral bathroom in a public space. She also launched a weekly, unsanctioned, socially conscious publication aimed to empower anyone seeking a voice.

Rebecca Rafelson has served on the Board of NOW-NYC since 2008 and has hands-on experience motivating and mobilizing both new and young activists to join NOW-NYC's ranks. Rebecca served as the Chair of NOW-NYC's Queer Advocacy Project and has led NOW-NYC's Gay Pride March contingent for four years running. As a Board member, Rebecca contributed to the Steering Committee, the Board Development Committee, and has spearheaded the Outreach Committee. Over the last two years, during which she served as Vice President of Action, Rebecca helped to devise and launch NOW-NYC's Activist Nights, strengthening NOW-NYC's commitment to grassroots, membership-based activism. She co-designed a new community outreach training program and launched NOW-NYC's weekly yoga program for survivors of violence.

By profession, Rebecca currently devotes herself to an international medical relief association; a women's non-profit founded on the belief that healthcare transcends all boundaries. Rebecca graduated Cum Laude from Brandeis University, with a Bachelors degree in Sociology," "Peace, Conflict and Coexistence Studies," and "Women and Gender Studies". Her broad chapter knowledge and record as a grassroots organizer will enable her to drive chapter activism.

Board Chair

Judi Polson
Judi has been an active NOW member for 11 years and has served on the Board in various roles since 2003.Judi is has served as Board Member at Large since 2010. She served as Chapter Board Chair from 2007 through 2009, serving on the Employment Rights, Bylaws, and Nominating Board Committees. She joined NOW-NYC in 2000, first participating in the Women in the Workplace and Repro Rights Committees. She joined the Board in 2003 as Director of Membership Processing, and was elected Vice President of Development in 2005, where she brought dormant grant applications to fruition and enabled the Chapter to obtain grants more routinely.

Judi's contributions to the Chapter extend beyond administration. She led a cadre of demonstrators to the 2004 March for Women's Lives in Washington, and in New York City, participated in the 2004 March for Women's Lives, NOW-NYC's 2005 Alito and 2007 Viacom actions, and the 2008 Martin Luther King Day march.

Raised on a family farm, Judi has lobbied state and federal representatives from her native Midwest as well as from New York. She holds a B.A. from the University of Kansas and an Executive M.B.A. from Duke University. She led technology projects for IBM from 1981-1992, and joined Merrill Lynch in1993, rising to Vice-President and leading institutional markets technology compliance until 2008; she currently is a project manager for a European bank. Also, she appeared as Liam Neeson's sister in the Oscar-nominated Kinsey; her appearance in The Onion's 2008 online dating video segment reached "most-viewed" and "most-dugg" status.

Board Secretary

Arthur Lundquist

In that time my life has been immeasurably enriched by the opportunity to bring the skills with which I have made a living all of my adult life to serve the cause of gender equality, choice, and task of bringing a supportive voice to victims of violence and indifference. As Board Secretary I have been especially proud to help arrange meetings, to take minutes for both the Board and the Service Fund Board, to solicit corrections, comments and additions from other Board members, and to have maintained them in the chapter archives. I have also completed two web pages for our web site entitled "Are You the Victim of Workplace Sexual Harassment?" and "Are You the Victim of Workplace Gender Discrimination?" 

At the last NOW-NYC election I made a promise that no time would be wasted at Board meetings making edits and corrections to the minutes, all work of that sort would get done outside of Board meeting time, leaving the time and energy of our amazing Board free to the task of changing laws and hearts, one phone call at a time. I believe I have kept that promise and hope to have the chance to continue for another two years to do my bit to further the cause of personal empowerment for all women.

Treasurer

Phyllis Dent
I am running for position of Treasurer for the 2012-2014 election cycle of the board of directors for NOW-NYC. Although I am several weeks short of having a six-month membership to run for this position, I have been doing the position of treasurer as a volunteer for a year. I immediately signed up to become a member when the executive director asked, at the request of the board of directors, if I would consider being part of the leadership team. I am a licensed CPA and CFE in the state of New York. I earned a bachelor's degree in accounting and am currently pursuing an MBA in Finance from Hofstra University. I have also held various financial and analytical positions in corporate finance at several large global companies.

Ms. Dent falls short of meeting the bylaws requirements for candidacy by 3 weeks however, the elections committee voted unanimously to put forward for a vote by the general membership due to the fact that she has already worked in this capacity for one year. Also the role of treasurer is a critical function to the board.

Director of Volunteers

Maureen Shaw
Maureen is a long-time NOW-NYC activist and board member. For nearly five years, she has substantively contributed to the work of the organization in various capacities, whether by drafting press releases, participating in rallies, contributing articles for the quarterly newsletter, leading volunteer groups, or lobbying New York representatives on NOW-NYC's behalf. As Chair of the Reproductive Rights Committee, she spearheaded a comprehensive public awareness campaign promoting New York's Reproductive Health Act, meeting with NYS Assembly members, collecting signatures at tabling events, creating an online activist toolkit, and marshaling volunteers for phone banking. Most recently, as Legislative Vice President, Maureen has played an integral role in executing NOW-NYC's Take Rape Seriously Campaign and is leading the charge against anti-choice extremism. Under her leadership, the Chapter has substantially grown its online presence, both in popular social media outlets and the blogosphere. 

When she's not advocating for the women and girls of New York City, you can find her blogging at FeministsForChoice.com and sherights.com. Maureen holds a Master's degree in Human Rights with a focus on Women's and Gender Rights.