"The Network of Enlightened Women." Its name inspires nostalgia for the intellectual age of Mr. Jefferson's founding principles -- the age of Newton, Hume and Mozart. That was a time when thepotential of the human mind reached unprecedented heights -- when philosophy flourished, when the scientific method became the method. Could we yearn for more? Believe it or not, NeW, an organization for conservative women at the University, promises more: this time around, the ladies will lead. Women will include themselves in political discourse, develop into intellectual leaders, and maketheir ideas heard. Sally Hemings, we resurrect you.
Unfortunately, what NeW's name promises, we fail to get. Because its women are already "enlightened," this network welcomes only women who self-identify as conservative. On its Web site, NeW specifically tells us that "the mission of NeW is to foster the education and leadership of conservative university women. NeW is devoted to expanding the intellectual diversity on college campuses." According to Agness, its founder, NeW women bake chocolate chip cookies, take notes in pink binders, and discuss conservative women's issues. In last year's debate against the University Democrats, NeW's foremost objection to the Vagina Monologues was that it took away from the romanticism, flowers, and chocolates of Valentine's Day. In its inaugural year, NeW erected a miniature Berlin Wall on the University's Lawn, then stomped on it.
Well, perhaps we're getting ahead of ourselves. After all, NeW is only a few years old. But it has plenty of time to expand, attract more women to its cause and spread to more colleges and universities. And it will. NeW has grown quickly since its inception in 2004. It has hosted such guest speakers as Christina Hoff Sommers, a well-known "equity feminist." It has debated the University Democrats on the controversial play The Vagina Monologues. This year, it held its first national conference in Washington, D.C.
Local college chapters are cropping up every few months, and consistent press coverage has made NeW an increasingly familiar organization to students. Its growth is due entirely to Karin Agness. Agness insists that she offers a conservative alternative to other college women's organizations. For Agness, the University's NOW, VoX, and F.i.f.e. groups represent the same liberal hegemony, masked under various pseudonyms.
But perhaps we can ask the same question of NeW that it asks of "the feminists": What distinguishes NeW from the other conservative women's organizations? What makes NeW different from the Independent Women's Forum, Concerned Women for America, the Eagle Forum, or the Clare Booth Luce Policy Institute? As an organization devoted to women, what, of late, has NeW actually done?
NeW throws parties for Ronald Reagan. NeW sends Valentines to the soldiers in Iraq. NeW hosts mixers with The Virginia Advocate. Enlightened discourse? Intellectual diversity? Milk, anyone?
Agness passes off the accomplishments of first-and second-wave feminism in a sentence: "We acknowledge and appreciate that we have more opportunities than any other generation of American women." But in more than one of her interviews, she lambasts anything to do with "the feminists," as if her own work in women's issues requires a less "derogatory" term. Agness tells us that her "biggest problem is that every time I say that I want to be a lawyer, people see something hypocritical there." Hypocrisy, maybe; disillusioned time management, yes. Unfortunately, Agness's responsibilities to her burgeoning organization directly conflict with her self-described hopes to be a stay-at-home mother. Maybe she figures that if she champions the women who are actually staying at home, none of them will notice the paradox inherent to her message.
Angess's idea for the group is an interesting one: By all means, conservative women should gather to share ideas, form friendships, and educate themselves. NeW's book club and speakers are the closest it gets to intellectual diversity; yet NeW rarely publicizes such events to the wider University community. There's a difference between a social club and an organization that professes to advance women's issues. NeW has yet to fundraise for women's causes, recognize that violence against women is worth the University's attention, or seriously engage in intellectual debate with anyone. Rather, NeW seems more a sheltered group for conservative women to feel comfortable with themselves.
Republican women aren't victims. Yet Agness continually portrays them as such, even as she damns feminist self-victimization. If NeW fails to take a more enlightened approach to its message, it may render itself the pathetic shadow of a good intention. And NeW's tactics may get our attention, but we have yet to see whether they gain our respect.
Sara Tisdale is a a fourth year in the College.
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