Women's Conference Begins Today in Asheville, North Carolina

Hill Street Baptist Church is the site of a three day conference beginning tonight at 7pm and running through Wednesday evening. The theme of the event is "Empowering Women to Prevail" and intends to address some of the major issues confronting women, particularly African-American women, in today's society. It will target not only the problems, but the roots of the problems as well.

The conference will begin with music starting at 6:45 pm followed by a lecture. Rev. Linda Willis is the featured speaker. She is visiting Asheville from Memphis, TN, where she and her husband, Rev. Kevin Willis, serve as pastors. The problems faced by women in today's society and the realized and unrealized potential of women is of major concern to Rev. Linda Willis. She has authored several books on the topic and has spoken at the Hill Street Baptist Church on two previous occasions. She will be addressing the conference all three nights, along with other invited speakers.

One of those speakers will be Rev. Keith Ogden, the church's official pastor. He has long been concerned about the treatment that African American women receive in today's society. His concerns are far ranging from social and economic issues to the lack of respect given to women in today's cultural world. He has often cited the denigrating ways that women are addressed and treated in the lyrics of many of today's rap songs and sees that as indicative of a far greater problem. Other issues of concern include the rising number of African-American women in the prison system, and the growing numbers of young single women giving birth to babies without the financial and emotional support they require.

Other visiting pastors will also address the conference during the three evenings, starting tonight. Tuesday's and Wednesday's lectures begin at 7 pm. In addition to evening events, there is a luncheon scheduled for Wednesday at noon for which there is a $10. charge.

The Hill Street Baptist Church is located at 135 Hill Street in Asheville. Registration for the conference is $20. and includes related materials. Purchasing those materials is not mandatory and organizers say that all are welcome to attend whether or not the materials are purchased. In addition, men are welcome.