Woman To Woman
A Dialogue With World Leaders Addressing Issues from Economic Security, Health and Wellness, Access to Education And The Eradication of Human Sex Trafficking
By Raoul Dennis and D.A. Phillips
When a woman is in crisis, talk is cheap. When her family is in crisis, talk is dirt cheap.
For the millions women around the world who are facing health challenges, or surviving category 5 storms or sex trafficking or any other of the myriad of life-threatening issues that invade their lives, talk may at best be comforting but it doesn’t solve the problem.
That’s why The International Black Women’s Public Policy Institute exists. Where there is trouble that women face, they gather themselves, pool resources and go to attack the problem.
The health scare that Serena Williams faced was cited as a perfect example of what black women go through in dealing with pain and health issues – and why groups like IBWPPI are so necessary.
“If Serena [Williams] can’t get a doctor to believe her when she tells him, ‘I know my body, I know something is wrong,’ how do you think that scenario will go for a woman who only has a high school education and half a job trying to tell a doctor that something is wrong,” asked one of the women from the panel the IBWPPI held at the 11th Annual Policy Forum September 12. It was held at the CBCF Annual Legislative Conference in Washington, D.C. “We need to look out for ourselves.”
IBWPPI comes to the aid and support of women anywhere around to the world.
At the time of the conference, the organization was providing resources for survivors of the Haiti earthquake and survivors of the Bahamian hurricane. They are putting boots on the ground to aid women obtain real world aid --- which includes everything from food and fresh water to warm blankets and health care.
When asked what inspired the creation of the IBWPPI, President Barbara Perkins shared, “In 2009 Co- Founder, Ka Flewellen and I decided to follow the path once led by our beloved mentor and civil rights icon, Dr. Dorothy Irene Height. We began the restoration of relationship bridges-built decades ago to support and sustain trusted sisterhood between both black women internationally and here in the United States.”
Perkins’ daughter, Kelsey Perkins, a Hyattsville resident, has joined her mother in IBWPPI.
“This global conference means a lot to women to have a safe space and to connect with each other in spaces and times when we normally would not,” she says.
Perkins acknowledged that although the IBWPPI is an action-oriented organization, the conference is more of an opportunity to connect and discuss.
“It’s a focal point for all of us to get together in one space and feed off each other and how we can help each other in our separate areas. It’s more of a networking tool.”
When asked about the dynamic between she and her mother who co-founded IBWPPI, Kelsey says it’s easy to embrace her mother’s legacy while beginning to forge her own.
“I definitely do my own thing from day to day. But I have been a supporter of what my mom does. My mother is a person of service. She has been a staple in the women’s community – not just the black community. She has always put herself out there to help – so I can only aspire to be as helpful as she is,” Kelsey says.
The event included a dialogue with world leaders addressing issues that included economic security, health and wellness, access to education and the eradication of human sex trafficking. Forum co-chairs, hosts and invited speakers included Dr. Arla Bentley; Director Juanita Palacios-Sims; Cortney Walters, Esq.; The Honorable Karen Bass, U.S. Congress, 37th District; IBWPPI President/Co-Founder Barbara A. Perkins; Author Avis Jones-DeWeever, Ph.D.; Honorable Paula A. Cox, Former Premier of Bermuda; Michellene Davis, Exec. VP RWJ Barnabas Health; Gloria Gray, Chairwoman, Metropolitan Water District, Los Angeles; and Mrs. S. Patricia Minnis, Spouse of the Prime Minister of the Commonwealth of the Bahamas.
The IBWPPI Institute is committed to helping enhance lives globally, through acts of kindness and good public policy. Through its Annual Policy Forum during the Congressional Black Caucus Annual Legislative Conference, IBWPPI has provided a platform focusing on four core areas: economic security through equal pay for women, the eradication of human trafficking, health and wellness and access to quality education.
IBWPPI is led by a collective of intergenerational women leaders representing the interests of women in countries throughout the African Diaspora, including North America, the Caribbean, as well as, countries throughout the continent of Africa.
