Voices of MWEG
These articles, letters, and essays represent the unique and varied voices of the women who make up Mormon Women for Ethical Government.
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Official Statement from Mormon Women for Ethical Government Calling for the Peaceful and Lawful Removal of President Trump from Office
Our relationship to our government and to each other is one of civic covenant. That covenant is fragile, but it is the moral heart of our nation. At the core of that covenant is our sworn allegiance to the Constitution, the sacred right to vote, and a determination to uphold the rule of law. This structure of accountability has allowed our nation to maintain a continuing democracy for over 200 years. As an organization, we have repeatedly spoken out in defense of our civic covenant; given the recent events in Washington, we once again feel called to speak out against those leaders who would betray it for personal gain. We…
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Official Statement from Mormon Women for Ethical Government on Unity in a Time of Suffering
In the midst of a Civil War, Abraham Lincoln consecrated the nation’s suffering by renewing our commitment to a government “by the people and for the people.” Now, in a time of national division and pain, the women of Mormon Women for Ethical Government reaffirm our belief in Lincoln’s promise. Like Lincoln, we know a better future is possible if we recommit to a democratically elected government in the service of all citizens — a government by the people and for them. We will continue to speak out when leaders violate the norms and patterns that protect our right to vote in safe, free, and fair elections, where every vote…
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Intersections
We’ve become unaccustomed to dialing down the intake of information in anything but rapid fire succession and bite-sized chunks. In an attempt to slow down and reflect about what I am taking in, I dissected this piece about racism with a group of friends this week. The goal was to reflect before reacting. To listen with no intention of immediately responding. We spent a day on each subsection (there are breaks in the text) and considered slowly. For instance, reading these two paragraphs multiple times allowed me to really hear what the author was saying: “This emotional disconnect is the conclusion of living a life oblivious to the fact that their…
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Making Connections
Show of hands from everyone reading this: How many of you identify as being an introvert? For those of you who half-heartedly raised your hands (but only because you’re alone in the privacy of your own home — there’s no way you’d randomly raise your hand out in public and draw unwanted attention to yourself), I get it. I was the kid who would bring a book to church dances. The best way to strike fear into my otherwise confident adolescent heart was a forced get-to-know-you session at girls’ camp. Not much has changed with adulthood. The last thing I want to do when I’m out in public is make small…
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Protect Our Care :: From a Woman with Cystic Fibrosis
I was born with a life-shortening genetic disease called cystic fibrosis. When I was diagnosed in 1988, my parents were told I wouldn’t live to turn 20. This year, I’ll turn 29. I’m grateful for the medical miracles that have enabled me to have a long, full life, complete with marriage and parenthood. But those miracles have come at great cost. Each year, my prescriptions alone total at least $460,000. Adding in specialist visits and inpatient hospital stays, that number gets exponentially higher. Without the medications, specialist visits, and treatments that price tag buys, I will die in short order. Without one medication, my cells will lose the degree of…
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Protect Our Care :: From a Mother of a Child With Cancer
As a mother of a child with cancer, I am deeply grateful for the options and protections the ACA affords my son and other children like him. I am also deeply concerned about possible replacements or changes to the ACA that could affect my son. While I realize the ACA has flaws that should be addressed, and I acknowledge that healthcare reform is a complicated and multifaceted issue, all I can do is speak from our family’s experience. When abstract political ideas become law, these laws affect the lives of real people. This is the story of how the ACA has benefitted our family, and how possible changes to the…
