Today was a powerful day in Seattle, and I wasn’t quite expecting just how moving it would be to hear the stories of women in the community who have connected with women everywhere to make the WWR conference a reality for five years in a row now.

Although the chairs in the above photo are empty, they were soon to be filled by Star, Jackie, Sharon, Denae, Lola, and Harmony, six local heroines who kicked off the day’s events with a lively panel discussing everything from hip hop to the horrors of human trafficking. Things got real really fast, and it was clear that the issues raised weighed heavily on the hearts of everyone in the room.

The collective yearning for change was palpable as people shifted in their seats, listening intently to the women’s accounts of hope and sorrow. Although each woman seemed to have her own special cause for promoting social justice–from the Black Lives Matter movement to the struggle of indigenous people who still fight to survive on this continent–it was clear that we are all united by a longing for peace and joy in the world, and that common goal surely echoed throughout the day’s events.

– Molly Warinsky, Group 16