AMHERT, MA- the October 25th screening of the Motherhood Manifesto was a huge success with 40 mothers and Smith College students (and one Smith College student's boyfriend!) packed into the Media Education Foundation community screening room in Northampton. This screening was organized by MomsRising of the Pioneer Valley, the political arm of MotherWoman, Inc. dedicated to impacting policies and legislation to make America more genuinely family friendly.

Linda Ziegenbein, a member of the MomsRisingPV steering committee led the event, speaking about the history of MomsRisingPV and its new and blossoming relationship with MotherWoman. She specifically talked about how MomsRisingPV started when a group of local mothers got together to watch The Motherhood Manifesto. They were outraged, moved to action, and started MomsRisingPV. While these mothers were watching The Motherhood Manifesto, MotherWoman was organizing a 100 person community screening of the same film at the Political Economy Research Institute in Amherst. The two groups and organizations came together with the knowledge that we would have more power and impact if we worked together.

"WOW! what a night! It was especially amazing and very important to have so many young women students there at this event, stated Executive Director Melanie DeSilva. "We need to engage young women NOW before they have children to learn about and become outraged by and invested in the MomsRising agenda."

Several local mothers stayed afterwards for a MomsRisingPV organizing meeting, with each mother having her own personal experience with many of the issues discussed in the film- Maternity/paternity leave, Open, flexible work, TV we choose and quality afterschool programs, Healthcare for all children, Excellent Childcare, Reliable, just wages, Sick leave- paid.

MomsRisingPV, the political arm of MotherWoman will screen The Motherhood Manifesto twice a year for eternity or until mothers get what we deserve- whichever comes first. For more information call MotherWoman at 413-253-8990 or email momsrisingpv@yahoogroups.com.