per·sist
pərˈsist/
verb
continue firmly or obstinately in an opinion or a course of action in spite of difficulty, opposition, or failure.
continue to exist; be prolonged.
"if the symptoms persist for more than a few days, contact your doctor"
synonyms: continue, hold, carry on, last, keep on, keep up, remain, linger, stay, endure
Do you remember how it felt to be a feminist in the United States of America one year ago? Our current president was about to learn just how hard of a job he was about to take on. Chaos at airports as travel bans were implemented. And Elizabeth Warren was silenced during a the Senate debate on the nomination of Jeff Sessions.
“She was warned. She was given an explanation. Nevertheless, she persisted.” Republican majority leader Mitch McConnell said.
McConnell had no idea that he had just coined the new catchphrase for the country's feminist movement. A loud and proud national movement which inspired huge crowds at the Women's March on Washington (and every other major city in the country).
The theme of FemFest 2018 is PERSIST. As far as the NOW executive committee knows, FemFest is the first feminist art festival of its kind in Spokane, WA. With this intersectional arts festival, Spokane Area NOW intends to continue persisting into 2018 and beyond. Let's take back the word "feminism" together!