- Massachusetts Commission on the Status of Women
Honoring Women's History Month
From the Desk of the MCSW Treasurer Nina Liang
Dear Colleagues:
As we welcome in blustery March, so too do we welcome the beginning of Women’s History Month, meant to commemorate and encourage the study, observance, and celebration of the vital role of self-identified women in American history.
As the Treasurer and Finance Committee Chair of the MCSW, I’m honored to be able to do just that by serving at this critical moment in our collective history. I was first appointed to the Commission by the Speaker of the House Ronald Mariano in 2021, and currently serve as the first and only Chinese-American City Councilor elected in my hometown of Quincy, having also served as the city’s first minority City Council President.
As City Councilor, the goal behind my work is to open the doors of government to every resident, ensuring that their voices and concerns are heard, no matter what language they speak or how long they’ve called Quincy home. Working alongside community leaders, I co-founded the Quincy Women’s Network, and currently serve as the Executive Director for Emerge, Massachusetts – a nonprofit organization that trains Democratic self-identifying women to run for political office across all levels of government.
Across every facet of my personal and professional lives, there is a common theme that inspires and drives me: equity. This year’s theme for the United Nations’ International Women’s Day is, “DigitALL: Innovation and technology for gender equality,” in perfect alignment with the priority theme for the upcoming 67th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW-67), “Innovation and technological change, and education in the digital age for achieving gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls”.
COVID-19 exposed and amplified systemic inequalities women have, and continue to face in the workforce, an acute crisis that continues to have long-term negative implications for individuals, families, and communities across the Commonwealth. Our own Women in the Workforce Report data found that key barriers to women’s equal participation in the workforce – and especially the technology sector - were centered around access to technology and internet, proper childcare, and adequate public transportation, just to name a few.
Here at the MCSW, we are committed to scaling up to meet the size and scope of problems like these that impact our communities. Not only are we celebrating the return of in-person youth leadership programming with GELI, we’re also celebrating our 25th anniversary this June as an opportunity to highlight important leaders and progress we’ve made together. It’s been an honor to look back at what we’ve accomplished – and this women’s month, I celebrate and look forward to our work together for the next 25 years, and beyond.
With you every step of the way,
Nina Liang
MCSW Treasurer and Finance Committee Chair
Quincy City Councilor at Large
