The Council's mission is to increase women's participation in local public policy discussions and to affect positive changes in local policies that are related to:
- Women's Health and Health Care
- Educational Equity and Reform
- Economic Self Sufficiency
Why Our Work is Important
Statistics show that without healthy, economically secure, well educated women who live free from the fear of violence in their own families, a community cannot thrive. There is much work to be done to make this the reality in the Memphis area. Consider these facts:
- A woman in Memphis is more likely than a man to be poor.
- She is more likely to care for children and other family members on her own.
- She is more likely to be in a low-paying job that has no benefits and little security.
- Most mothers in Memphis work outside the home, and nearly half have children under 6 years of age who need full-time child care.
- The women with AIDS in Shelby County comprise one-third of all women with AIDS in Tennessee.
- The Memphis area has one of the highest domestic violence rates in the country.
- Teen birth rates in Shelby County are nearly four times higher than in any other metro area in the state.
