Georgia needs to cultivate more female political leaders

By Marie Wilson

When I was a young girl of 11, my best friend’s father took us to the Georgia State House, and employed us as pages for a several days.

At the time, preoccupied by the usual musings of a pre-teenaged Southern girl, I had little understanding of the power wielded from within those great walls or the terrible exclusions it fostered.

It was decades before the women’s and civil rights movements would challenge the status quo, but it was perhaps the absence of diverse faces and voices in that grand structure that made such an impression on me, and birthed a nascent seed of revolt in my young mind.

Over a half-century has passed since I first stood on the House steps, and much has changed in the capitol and across Georgia since then.

Schools have been desegregated, women and African-Americans have represented Georgians in Congress, and Atlanta has grown into the metropolitan star of the South.

Yet in all the ways we have seen change, so much remains the same.

In an election year that mobilized our country to embrace diversity as never before, Georgia fell from 31st to 37th in the nation for women’s political representation.

Despite the leadership of several prominent women — including Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin and Atlanta City Council President Lisa Borders — women’s representation is shamefully low in the Peach State. Georgia is a land of intelligent, dedicated, and remarkable women – and yet none have ever been elected to the U.S. Senate.

Nor does a single woman currently represent the state in Congress, while only seven of Georgia’s 56 state senators are women.

What does this mean for Georgia? Beyond the principle of equal representation — a core tenet of democracy — diversity in our leadership brings tangible benefits to society.

Scholars at the University of Michigan and Loyola University have found that diverse groups tend to outperform their homogeneous counterparts despite equal abilities.

And research coming out of Cranfield University is showing that mixed management teams make better business decisions while bringing more innovation to the table.

These studies suggest that diversity in our leaders not only promotes fairness, but delivers a strong financial advantage, and with the economy looming large over Georgia’s families, businesses, and institutions, adding women to our political leadership makes sense for the bottom line.

So how do we elevate Georgia’s standing in the nation, and bring the voices and vision of our women to the halls of power?

At the White House Project, we use the “inspire, inform and equip” model to train a critical mass of women to lead a political life — more than 6,000 across the country and more than 2,000 in Georgia since 2004.

These women form an impressive network of alumnae — including Tangela Barrie, Superior Court Judge of Dekalb County; State Rep. Dee Dawkins-Haigler; and current state House candidate Asha Jackson — who are making a positive impact across the state.

This summer, nearly 200 diverse women joined their ranks, when they attended the White House Project’s annual Georgia Go Run political leadership training.

More than 40 of these women announced their intention to run for office in the next election cycle, many at the state level. Having witnessed their collective knowledge, passion and dedication this weekend, I know they are the future faces and voices of leadership in the South.

With so few women in positions of political power, women need a number of things to lead and succeed, including critical skills in fund-raising, campaigning and communications.

While addressing the Go Run trainees last week, Mayor Franklin candidly echoed the unique challenges women face when running for office.

Most importantly, they need a network of support in order to take the leap and run. An invitation to lead — from a colleague, friend, family member or community leader — can authorize a woman to move from citizen to candidate.

As Molly Ward, a 20-year-old student and activist who will attend this year’s training stated, “More often than not, women do not pursue political leadership because they are never asked. I hope to utilize the skills from Georgia Go Run not only to advance my own leadership, but to inspire other women to do the same.”

From Martin Luther King Jr. to Jimmy Carter, Georgia has a long legacy of leaders who have inspired both individuals and movements for greater inclusion and equality.

It’s time that we look to their words and deeds to deliver permanent and profound change for women in Georgia.

We all know at least one woman whose intelligence, courage and commitment would bring a wealth of leadership to our political institutions.

Like Molly, we should strive to tell them so — not only because we believe in them — but because Georgia needs them.

When I approached the State House steps in the 1950s, the bronzed face which met my youthful gaze was former Georgia Senator, and Klan supporter, Thomas Watson.

Though he still greets all who climb the House steps, I take particular pleasure in knowing that his appointed replacement was a woman.

Though her position lasted a mere day, Rebecca Felton was a passionate suffragist, and to this day, Georgia’s only female senator.

She exclaimed on that one day of service in 1922, “The trail has been blazed! The road is apparently rough — maybe rocky —but the trail has been located.”

Close to a century later, it’s time we turn that trail into a well-beaten path for Georgia’s women to lead.

Marie Wilson, a Georgia native, is founder and president of the White House Project. George Will is on vacation.