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Vermont community members gathered in the Waterman building on March 29 to discuss the issues women face when trying to balance work and family.

One of the panelists was Madeleine Kunin, who served as governor of Vermont from 1985 to 1991 and is releasing a book, “The New Feminist Agenda.” 

Kunin opened the event with fellow panelist Joan Blades, co-founder of the website MoveOn and president of the website MomsRising. Together they discussed their views on feminism in today’s working world. 

The two explained that the balancing act between work and family is not specific to this generation. 

“Work and family – ‘you can do it all’ – has been an issue since the first cavewoman scrubbed the walls,” Kunin said.

Currently, the U.S. is one of three countries that does not support its working class with paid maternity leave, according to Blades.

“When people ask [their bosses] for flexibility in the office, the answer most of the time is ‘you’re fired,'” Blades said.

She explained how employees only a decade ago consistently brought their kids with them to work. 

“It was convenient while also building community,” Blades said. “Now it seems as though this practice has faded and it’s more common for people to bring their dogs to their workplace.”

In an effort to respond to these issues, Blades co-founded MomsRising, which “has been working to bring together millions of people who share a common concern about the need to build a more family friendly America,” as stated on the website. 

MomsRising gives mothers across the U.S. the opportunity to tell their stories, struggles and successes in hopes of creating a cultural and political change at both the local and national scale, according to the website.

“Women need to speak up and tell their stories – that is the only way to get on an even platform,” Blades said. 

Since the startup of MomsRising in 2006, the organization played a major part in creating a more family oriented nation, by working to secure paid family leave in New Jersey and Washington, as well as paid sick days in Milwaukee, Wis., according to the website. 

The portrayal of feminism also came to the forefront of the discussion as Kunin expressed her interest for the new generation to “redefine feminism.” 

“Feminism is still a hot word,” Kunin said. “Can we make feminism less toxic?” 

Junior Jennifer Gustafson, who is involved in multiple social justice organizations, expressed what she has observed around campus in terms of activism. 

“Students sometimes get annoyed with the social justice atmosphere at UVM,” she said.

Other students described feminism as being an uneasy subject in classroom discussions.

“Women and men need to see that this is something worth fighting for,” Blades said. “Not only do we have to move forward, but we have to protect what we have.”