Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand
A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame
Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name
Mother of Exiles.
From “The New Colossus” by Emma Lazarus
Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law.
This conference proposes to examine how women’s issues present in the larger community, such as sexism, mainstream media, the Glass Ceiling, social inequality and violence against women, play out in the smaller communities encompassed by OTO bodies. Stories of harassment are common in lodge and oasis settings. There is constant murmur of internet voices about sexism in the Gnostic Mass. The lack of formal female Gnostic saints is seen by some as a face of this sexism. We would like to address these issues head on with education, strategy, development, and support.
It is equally important to recall that OTO women are powerful and strong – full of Force and Fire – and continue to do our Wills in the face of ongoing forces of oppression. There are stories amongst us that should be shared.
This gathering of OTO sisters and their brothers will provide a platform for the discussion of such varied topics as mediation in conflicts of a gender-based nature, to the Order of the Eagle, to the role of women in the upper echelons of the OTO (as degree appropriate, of course).
The intent is to create an environment where we can speak unabashedly about what it is to be a female Thelemite, what OTO structures support us, and to discover the stories of our Thelemic mothers and grandmothers. In creating this container, we hope to create a learning and networking opportunity that will help us develop a more coherent, cohesive and deeply friendly community that will sustain both women and men going forward.
Love is the law, love under will.
