As Democrats celebrate the formal selection of Kamala Harris as the Democratic presidential nominee in Chicago, three local leaders join Josh Molina to discuss the rise of women in politics locally and nationally.
Paula Lopez, president of the Santa Barbara Women’s Political Committee, Christy Stillwell and Jenny Landers, board members for the Democratic Women of Santa Barbara County, talk about how Harris has energized Democrats, and the ways women can get involved in activism and politics.
The Santa Barbara Talks podcast discusses topics such as women’s reproductive rights, gender affirming care, infertility treatment, contraception and more.
“Since the Dobbs decision, all of these issues have been put on the table to be looked at and attacked,” Lopez says.
Click on the YouTube link below to watch the podcast.
“Almost half our states now women don’t have access to reproductive health care,” Landers said. “They can talk about exceptions all they want; we all know exceptions aren’t really true. The exceptions are a lie, and they are not available to women.”
Stillwell highlights an array of issues of concern to voters in the November election.
“We want to elevate this issue of violence against women and girls,” Stillwell said. “We want to elevate issues around equal pay and access to child care.”
The podcast also discusses Harris and the challenges she will face in terms of sexism and judgment from some Republicans and Trump supporters.
“I really feel for Kamala,” Lopez said, “because she is going to be subjected to some really awful things. She’s a woman. Right from day one, the way she laughs, that’s just not something someone would criticize a man for.”
Landers added: “It’s expected, unfortunately, but she’s smart and she’s ready for it.”
Joshua Molina is journalist who currently writes for Noozhawk. He formerly covered politics and land use for the San Jose Mercury News. Santa Barbara Talks is an independently owned podcast where Molina looks to bring together voices from all perspectives to discuss and provide solutions to the challenges related to housing, education, transportation and other community issues. Subscribe to his podcast here and consider a contribution here.