On Saturday, November 8, Executive Director Dawn Blagrove joined advocates, organizers, and community leaders at this year’s North Carolina NOW Conference, themed “Resisting the Rollbacks NOW!”
The full-day event (9:00 AM–4:00 PM) focused on confronting policies that threaten hard-won progress for women, families, and marginalized communities across North Carolina.
The conference opened with a powerful keynote by Dr. Jennifer Green, Cumberland County Public Health Director, and Deputy Director Tamra Morris, titled “Empowering Mothers, Thriving Families, and Strengthening Communities: Advancing Maternal Health in Cumberland County.” Their remarks spotlighted both urgent challenges and inspiring progress in maternal health.
Dawn served as a speaker on the panel “Creative Ways of Making Change Successfully,” where she shared lessons from Emancipate NC’s organizing and advocacy work.
Key takeaways from Dawn’s remarks included:
- Trust is foundational. Building trust within communities and coalitions is essential to any successful movement.
- Outcome-driven organizing matters. “A protest without demands is just a party,” Dawn reminded attendees—underscoring that campaigns must be rooted in clear, actionable goals.
- Intergenerational leadership strengthens movements. True change requires collaboration between generations, uniting wisdom and fresh perspective under a shared purpose.
Emancipate NC is proud to continue contributing to statewide conversations on resistance, resilience, and the strategies that drive real change for North Carolinians.