Cassandra Overton Welchlin is the Executive Director and co-convener of MS Black Women’s Roundtable (MSBWR), an inter-generational statewide network dedicated to increasing civic engagement and voter participation among black women while at the forefront of championing just and equitable public policy on behalf of Black women and girls. MSBWR is an affiliate of the National Coalition for Black Civic Participation/Black Women’s Roundtable. Prior to joining MS BWR, she co-founded and launched the ambitious and progressive MS Women’s Economic Security Initiative (MWESI) founded initially as a project of MS Law Income Child Care Initiative. MWESI is rooted at the intersection of race, gender, and economic justice. It was the first Women’s Agenda launched in the South with seeded support from the Ms. Foundation that prioritizes women’s rights and economic security. It created an intentional and explicit racial and gender framework, and engaged women, particularly low-income women of color, with deep connections to grassroots organizing to create a leadership infrastructure setting the stage for long-term movement building. Cassandra continues to provide leadership and vision to the MS Women’s Economic Security Initiative as a project of the Mississippi Black Women Roundtable.
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