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MAY ASIAN & PACIFIC ISLANDER HISTORY MONTH Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month (AAPI Heritage Month) is an annual celebration that recognizes the historical and cultural contributions of individuals and groups of Asian and Pacific Islander descent to the United States. Source: ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month - Origins, Themes & Populations - HISTORY We will get to know these notable Asian and pacific islander leaders in this month's blog series. Patsy Mink Christine Sun Kim Toshiko Takaezu PATSY MINK Born in 1927 in Paia Hawaii Was elected as a member of the House of Representatives in 1964 First Japanese-American woman to practice law in Hawaii Also the first woman of color elected to the U.S. House of Representatives Discover more about Patsy Mink

JUNE PRIDE HISTORY MONTH Pride Month is celebrated every June as a tribute to those who were involved in the Stonewall Riots. We’re getting ready to dust off our rainbow flags, douse ourselves in glitter, and go join in the fun. With parades, festivals, and concerts going on across the globe, there’s always some way for you to get involved — as well as learn some important social history along the way. Source: ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​PRIDE MONTH 2023 - June | National Today We will get to know these notable Pride leaders in this month's blog series. Sylvia Riviera Frida Kahlo Bayard Rustin SYLVIA RIVERA Born in 1951 to Venezuelan and Puerto Rican parents Participated in the Stonewall Inn riots in 1969 Started the Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries (STAR) House with Marsha P Johnson in 1971 Discover more about Sylvia Rivera

Discover and connect with these Asian leaders who helped make our country strive to be a fair and equal place! Patsy Mink Born in 1927 in Paia Hawaii Was elected as a member of the House of Representatives in 1964 First Japanese-American woman to practice law in Hawaii Also the first woman of color elected to the U.S. House of Representatives Discover more about Patsy Mink Christine Sun Kim Born deaf in 1980 in Orange County, CA Christine had a passion for creating art and is now a sound artist Despite Christine being deaf, she experiments with sounds and vibrations, and conducts her own "silent choirs" Toshiko Takaezu Born in 1922 to Japanese parents in Pepeeko, Hawaii Trailblazing female ceramicist Viewed creating ceramics to be a fine art, rather than to serve a functional purpose Combined abstract expressionism with the spiritually infused traditions of East Asia

Vanessa Jimenez, our UW Chicano Studies Intern, wrote this blog post. To say she has been a resource is an understatement. She has brought so much gentle planning and has been a force for our organization! This semester, she has been helping Midwest Mujeres get our first cohort lined up with our new collaboration project with Wisconsin Public Radio, Wisconsin Life. We have teamed up to record six stories of transformation. Some of these stories you will see perform on stage at our June event. WPR x MWM In her words: The Wisconsin Public Radio and Midwest Mujeres collab has been one of the most influential opportunities I’ve had so far as a UW student. I read about empowered individuals and how they got to where they are today and learned about where they plan to go next. The range of experience among these individuals gave me perspectives from every section possible, ranging from businesswomen to activists, medical professionals, mothers, and storytellers. After various emails and phone calls in preparation, I finally met everyone virtually on February 20th, when we held our first meeting and talked about the process of this project. This meeting also served as a workshop where everyone could further verbalize their stories and work on what they wanted to share on air. In these moments, I could connect deeper with everyone’s experience and learn about the personalities that fostered them. I resonated with one of our members who was grieving the loss of a friend but continued to power through life in honor of their friend. It is inspiring to see the complexity of life and how much one can do no matter what cards they are dealt with. I was also inspired by this person’s ability to be vulnerable and share memories of her friend. The inspiration definitely did not stop there. I could sit in with the Mujeres and listen to their recordings live. There was not a moment in time when I was bored with what was being shared. I got to sit in and listen to Yazmin (in the picture center), who owns a cleaning business and advocates for immigration and children's rights. Yazmine shows so much passion for everything she cares about and can recognize the limits of wanting to succeed. One thing that stuck with me from her story was, “One cannot do everything,” which to me means that asking for help and letting go of control can help you in the long run. Another member, Tamara (the Black woman standing in the middle), she spoke with such elegance and authenticity about her journey to become a Dula. She spoke about how it was never something she actively pursued but more something that suddenly called her name after surrounding herself with individuals who had worked in the field. She spoke a lot about advocacy for oneself and mothers in our community. The vulnerability that could be brought to the table while remaining a strong, influential woman inspired me in more ways than one. So many of the women I heard were able to cope with traumatizing experiences and power through with the same, if not more, passion for their jobs as when they first began. It’s important to note that you are in charge of how you use each experience and opportunity brought into your life. I admire the women who participated with us and can only describe them all as powerful and beautiful. This opportunity is something that I am so grateful for, and I hope to continue to get the knowledge and become inspired by the Midwest Mujeres community. (Written by Vanessa Jimenez)

Midwest Mujeres (MWM) is announcing the third annual iYo Quiero Dinero! Telling Our Stories on Friday, June 16th, 2023, at the MyArts building (1055 E. Mifflin St.) at 7 PM. The event is about empowerment through stories of financial success and financial failures. The community is invited to celebrate local women of color on a journey to be public speakers and storytellers in this red-carpeted extravaganza. WE are so excited to announce that we have secured an outstanding local and national influencer to headline this event!!! We will share later! Gracias! The highlight of the evening will be the eight storytellers who have completed the Chingona Leadership program and will receive premium awards for their work. Visit: https://www.eventsmidwestmujeres.com/ “These are our stories, not just one single story of success and failure.” Shares Midwest Mujeres founder, Araceli Esparza. “Telling Our Stories will highlight stories from local women of color, all orbiting work Midwest Mujeres has been involved in. Yes, we want economic independence, but we also want to be valued. We always want to make money!” Tickets to the event are $25 and can be purchased on Eventbrite Reserve your seat! (https://bit.ly/YoQuieroDinero2023).

Save the date! Friday June 16th, 2023 We are excited to announce our annual event, iYo Quiero Dinero!, is set to happen on Friday, June 16th, 2023, at the MyArts building. You are invited to witness the powerful stories of our Midwest Mujeres cohort. Participants will go through a month-long training to become public speakers and storytellers. Check out our events page where you can find out about our event and join in on the fun! https://eventsmidwestmujeres.com/ This storytelling forum will be a bang-out red-carpet event open to the public. As our reach continues to grow, Midwest Mujeres is known to host authentic and quality events. We will celebrate all these women's hard work and those who have participated in the program. Friday (June 16th) night, we will present our “Telling our Stories” This event is open to the public to come and enjoy a night on the town. This exclusive storytelling Friday evening event will have Hors d’oeuvres and encouraged space for networking and photo opportunities.

We had over 10 organizations involved in this project! We are thankful to all the women and individuals who spoke! We pulled all the stops for this event. Two of our content creators were involved. We only work with Brown or Black content creators. Guia Flores did pre-event practicing, Britney Sinclair did all of the social media, and Yael and Laura (speakers) assisted us with interviews and consulting. We are grateful to the support from Social Media Breakfast Club for their grant support. Shout out to Park Bank and Centro Hispano for supporting the speakers. We had so many people order the T-Shirt, and a couple of people ordered the "bring a Friend" tickets. For some of our speakers, it was the first time they had been paid to speak. For some, it was their first time using social media to promote their work. Working with Vanessa Castillo was very special! Thank you to the speakers and the community that sustain them to do what they do. Mujeres rarely are ever working alone. We have people supporting us, family, and supporting ourselves is work too. Cheers! Speak Up! Speakers: Curandera Marcela Kyngesburye, Transformational Coach, Healer, Zen Leader Araceli Esparza, Founder, Latina Speaker, Online Community Organizer, Storytelling Expert Vanessa Castillo, Women’s Empowerment Coach, Founder, and Talkshow Host Circle 1: Karen Garcia, Career Advisor, Motivator, Chamber Ambassador Luz Gonzalez, Diversity and Inclusion Consultant, Content Creator, Emotional Intelligence Facilitator Felisa Forte MBA, Financial Professional, Money, and Savings Expert Isamaresy Reyes, ESL Career Readiness Coordinator, Empathetic, Maximizer, and Activator in Higher Education. Mindfulness Story and Tapping session Rebecca Arrichielo, Business Operations, Campion of Inclusion and Belonging Circle 2: Celina Lee, Global Tedx Speaker, Career and Executive Coach Yael Rosenstock Gonzalez, Identity, Relationships, Embodiment, Sex Coach, and Founder of Sex Positive You. Araceli Esparza, Founder, Latina Speaker, Online Community Organizer, Storytelling Expert Circle 3: Yvette Duranzo, Founder of Unitive Consulting, Expert Conflict Management, and Author Dr. Laura Minero, Licensed Psychologist, Anti-racist, Equity, and LGBTQ+ Affirming Community Consultant and Healer nora rahimian, Anti-Capitalist Business coach, and #CultureFix CEO Here is a video that we did leading up to the event: https://youtu.be/vmA5LeBhL4g We also did an Instagram Live in preparation: https://www.instagram.com/midwestmujeres/reels/ Madison365 article and podcast!!!! https://madison365.com/lets-speak-up-virtual-summit/ LOVE OUR LOCAL Media! AND THANK YOU FOR COMING!*****************************

Discover and connect with these Women leaders who helped make our country strive to be a fair and equal place ELLEN OCHOA Born in 1958 in Los Angeles, CA The first ever Hispanic Woman to go to space in 1993 First Hispanic, and second female, director of the Johnson Space Center in Houston, TX Member of the Discovery STS-96 crew that executed the first docking to the International Space Station (ISS) in 1993 Discover more about Ellen Ochoa Sojourner Truth Born into slavery in 1797 where she was subjected to harsh physical labor and violent punishments Freed and then became an outspoken abolitionist and civil and women’s rights activist Gave numerous speeches about the horrors of slavery and encouraged young men to join the Union’s cause when the Civil War broke out Dolores Huerta Born in 1930 in New Mexico Influential labor activist and co-founder of the United Farm Workers Association Led workers' rights protests, advocated for safer working conditions, and fought for unemployment Recipient of the Eleanor Roosevelt Human Rights Award (1998) and the Presidential Medal of Freedom (2012)

Join us on Sunday, March 26th for our first VIRTUAL SUMMIT! For some people, life is comfortable, but it's not that way for all of us in the workforce. Latinas, Black, and Queer people continue to be discriminated against in the workplace. This a bold space for people in decision-making roles, and people who want to know what it means to be a person from a divested community working in today's market. This virtual event on Sunday, March 26th will center around stories of progress and challenges that our ancestors talked about, but this time we are talking about thriving in the boardroom. At the $50 dollar level, you can also include a Midwest Mujeres T-shirt! LINK to BUY! This exclusive conversation is for inclusive leaders, professionals, non-binary individuals, women/femme-identified folx who desire to engage in honest and vulnerable conversation and glean related expertise from national Leaders, Award-winning Authors and Community Organizers, Sex positive Influencers, Curanderas (Mexican Healers), Scientists., Non-Binary and Queer leaders, Poets, Business Coaches, and regional leaders!! Locally, SIX local leaders will be leading these conversations: Felisa Forte, Bilingual financial leader, Karen Garcia, Chamber ambassador and community bridge builder, Marcela Kyngesburye from the Rape Crisis Center and Zen leader, and former Madisonian Dr. Laura Minero UW Graduate of the Counseling Psychology program and well-recognized for their insight on trauma-informed, intersectional liberation. From Milwaukee, we have Rebecca Arrichielo, Wellness leader, and Isamary Reyes Rosario, Higher Education Leader, Milwaukee Area Technical College. “We want our event to be a place of connection for Latina/Black/Indigenous/Asian/LGBTQ/Immigrant and white women to explore what it means to create community for each other in the workplace, where are differences are valued. People will be able to meet with career coaches and leaders in the work inclusion space, who represent their background and lifestyle and share their ambition to close the wage gap for all women,” says founder Esparza.

MARCH WOMEN'S HISTORY MONTH Women’s History Month is a celebration of women’s contributions to history, culture and society and has been observed annually in the month of March in the United States since 1987 Source: ​​​​​​​​Women’s History Month 2023 - HISTORY We will get to know these notable Women's leaders in this month's blog series. Ellen Ochoa Sojourner Truth Dolores Huerta ELLEN OCHOA Born in 1958 in Los Angeles, CA The first ever Hispanic Woman to go to space in 1993 First Hispanic, and second female, director of the Johnson Space Center in Houston, TX Member of the Discovery STS-96 crew that executed the first docking to the International Space Station (ISS) in 1999 Discover more about Ellen Ochoa

We were so happy to receive this grant from the Madison Social Media Breakfast to host this virtual event showcasing national speakers from various backgrounds and communities. Join this virtual summit on Sunday, March 26th, for Midwest Mujeres SPEAK UP: Elevating, Belonging, & Centering our Stories. This program will elevate your professional journey (and your team's) and allow you to have deep relatable conversations with experienced leaders in banking, academia, marketing, nonprofit, liberation, and public health industries. “I'm going to tell my story. And it's going to be different than what they expected.” -Karen Garcia, Latina Legal Leader, Summit Speaker. Midwest Mujeres is becoming a nationally recognized storytelling platform. They support and teach women and non-binary people to tell their stories boldly. Takeaways: This unique event will help you discuss accommodations for workplace culture and community. You will be empowered to strategize for long-term implementations for diversity and how to get self-care and resiliency while being a changemaker. We want to impart our knowledge and experiences so that others in our community don't have to endure challenges and difficulties. We want you to feel empowered to change the narrative from a culture that works in silos to one that works in the community. Learn, listen, and leave feeling reflected and engaged with national leaders. This virtual event will center around stories of progress and challenges that our ancestors talked about, but this time we are talking about thriving in the boardroom. Who is this for? Inclusive leaders, professionals, women/femme-identified folx who desire to engage in honest and vulnerable conversation and glean related expertise from national Leaders, Award-winning Authors and Community Organizers, Sex positive Influencers, Curanderas (Mexican Healers), Scientists., Non-Binary and Queer leaders, Poets, Business Coaches, and regional leaders! What will you get? Leave feeling empowered! We want you to feel encouraged to the narrative from a culture that works in silos to one that works in the community. You will learn how to regulate your emotions when confronting microaggressions. Listen to real-life testimonies, tips, and advice for incorporating your story into your career goals. Come one, come all! Let's SPEAK UP! Yvette Duranzo, Founder of Unitive Consulting, Expert Conflict Management, and Author Karen Garcia, Career Advisor, Motivator, Chamber Ambassador Celina Lee, Global Tedx Speaker, Career and Executive Coach Felisa Forte MBA, Financial Professional, Money, and Savings Expert Curandera Marcela Kyngesburye, Transformational Coach, Healer, Zen Leader Araceli Esparza, Founder, Latina Speaker, Online Community Organizer, Storytelling Expert Isamaresy Reyes, ESL Career Readiness Coordinator, Empathetic, Maximizer, and Activator in Higher Education. Rebecca Arrichielo, Business Operations, Campion of Inclusion and Belonging Luz Gonzalez, Diversity and Inclusion Consultant, Content Creator, Emotional Intelligence Facilitator Dr. Laura Minero, Licensed Psychologist, Anti-racist, Equity, and LGBTQ+ Affirming Community Consultant and Healer nora rahimian, Anti-Captialist Business coach, and #CultureFix CEO Yael Rosenstock Gonzalez, Identity, Relationships, Embodiment, Sex Coach, and Founder of Sex Positive You. Vanessa Castillo, Women’s Empowerment Coach, Founder, and Talkshow Host

Discover and connect with these Black leaders who helped make our country strive to be a fair and equal place. ELLEN GARRISON CLARK Born in 1823 in Concord, Mass. She suffered beatings, harassment, and stoned on the street. Victim of the violation of civil rights due to her skin color Discover more about Ellen Garrison Clark SARAH LEE BROWN FLEMING Born in 1876 in Charleston, South Carolina Leading civil rights activist who guided African American women across Connecticut. She and her family became prominent figures in elite Black groups. A. PHILIP RANDOLPH Born in 1889 in Florida Created the first successful Black trade union Inspired presidents such as Roosevelt and Truman with his foundations and promises