Celebrating International Women’s Day-Angelina Leatherbarrow a warrior.

Prospective Labour candidate Angelina Leatherbarrow is a warrior who never stops fighting for her beliefs. She manages the difficult world of politics alongside raising two amazing girls.

Today, Angelina shares with us at the Havering Daily her thoughts on this day.

International Women’s Day matters to me because it gives us a chance to shout out about the amazing women we admire and who have done incredible things. I aspire to be someone who other women want to stand with to challenge the systems and establishments that have held women back for too long. I am involved in local politics because I want to make the world I live in more equal, fairer and kinder; starting with where I live. Not that radical really.I am driven by the issues of poverty and equality,  both of which have a significantly higher impact on women than on men. Intersectional feminism is something that really interests me too,  being a woman of colour, or a woman living with a disability or in poverty or identify as LGBTQ+  adds even more layers of barriers and discrimination to a woman’s lived experience. That cant be right, and guess what, if you think its wrong, your a feminist too! 
I have been told that I shouldn’t do politics till my children are grown, that women “cant be active in local politics because they have homes and kids to deal with”  yes really! Needless to say I think that’s rubbish.  My children need women like me in politics now, because its their world that we need to impact now! Women MUST get involved in local issues because when women work together and support each other amazing things happenI have been so proud of some of my accomplishments in Romford. I have tackled poverty issues for families with no platform or voice, supported our food banks  (which I wish didn’t need to exist). Led the community response to the Grenfell fire and was involved in the amazing response to the pandemic when we turned our Labour HQ over to donation organisation with Queens Hospital Charity.   One of my favourites was getting the LGBTQ+ flag raised at the town hall for LGBTQ History month for the first time. What started as a demand that was flatly refused by the Council, has turned in to an annual event. Every time I see the flag go up I give myself a little pat on the back I’ve taken the things that make me burn with anger and turned them in to energy to try and do something meaningful. I guess only time will tell if I am managing that. I know my two daughters think I’m pretty awesome so I will take that in the mean time.
Some women I admire.Angela RaynerJacinda ArdernSkinDiane Abbott Carol CadwalladrAlexandria Ocasio-Cortez.