Charis welcomes Park Cannon in conversation with Michelle Bennett for a discussion of The Universal Guide to Running for Office. Become the leader you were destined to be and learn from state elected official, Park Cannon, in The Universal Guide to Running for Office. This event is co-hosted by Agnes Scott College Fair Fight U and Agnes Scott College Black Power Book Club. ASC Fair Fight U educates fellow Scotties about elections and voting rights, as well as bringing awareness to election reform and voter suppression. ASC Black Power Book Club is a social organization that stands on the belief that knowledge is power. By encouraging innovative thoughts and discussions around Black culture and history invoked through literary and media works, we charge marginalized intellectuals with the mission of reclaiming their right to the power of knowledge.

Written with enthusiasm and integrity, congenial State Representative Park Cannon has been declared the winner of each of her four elections and this was all before she turned 30. In the Universal Guide to Running For Office Park Cannon will guide politicians, future elected officials, and activists through the process of building, networking, and marketing yourself while running as you are.

Featured in Cosmopolitan, Essence, CNN, BET, Blavity, Mother Jones, VICE, MTV, and Ms. Magazine to name a few.

Park Cannon is a tried and true winner across Georgia, and she looks forward to helping you find success through service.

State Representative Park Cannon serves the citizens of Georgia’s House District 58, which encompasses a diverse cross-section of Atlanta, including portions of the following neighborhoods: Virginia Highland, Midtown, Downtown, the Old Fourth Ward, Cabbagetown, Reynoldstown, Oakland City, Grant Park, Capitol View, Capitol View Manor, Summerhill, Mechanicsville, Peoplestown, Pittsburgh, Venetian Hills, Fort McPherson, Adams Park, Betmar-LaVilla, Campbellton Road, Pomona Park, and sections of numerous others.

She currently serves as the Secretary to the Georgia House Democratic Caucus, and is assigned to the Insurance, Small Business Development, Human Relations & Aging, Code Revision and Ethics committees. Her legislative efforts focus on reproductive justice issues such as access to quality health care, housing, and education. Rep. Cannon seeks to stop the erosion of affordability for basic needs, which she believes are the foundations of social stability. She also devotes her legislative work to protecting Georgia’s most vulnerable citizens: women and children, the elderly and the LGBTQ+ community. These communities are often the most at risk for losing their homes and access to quality health care.

During previous legislative sessions, Rep. Cannon centered her efforts legislation that addresses maternal mortality rates and the HIV epidemic in Georgia. Rep. Cannon has partnered with some very brave and upstanding members of the state legislature from all corners of Georgia to ensure access to the HIV-preventive treatment, PrEP, securing funding for HIV health navigators at Grady Hospital, addressing housing affordability and extending protections to victims of family violence and sexual assault.

Rep. Cannon attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts in Hispanic Linguistics and a Bachelor of Arts in Linguistics, and minored in Women’s and Gender Studies. During her time at UNC-Chapel Hill, Rep. Cannon was named a Camões Award Recipient and inducted into the Order of The Old Well. She also participated in the Harvard Kennedy School of Government’s Executive Education State and Local Government program. She was named by the Harvard Kennedy School (HKS) as a Bohnett LGBTQ Leaders Fellow and studied police accountability.

In service to SisterSong, the Georgia Legislative Black Caucus, NOBEL Women, the League of Women Voters, NBCSL, and the NAACP, Rep. Cannon was awarded the “Fresh Legislator” and “Joan Garner Service” awards. Rep. Cannon was named a CALS Fellow and Henry Toll Fellow by the Council of State Governments. She has also participated in the Atlanta Regional Commission’s Regional Leadership Institute.

Michelle Bennett has been involved in education for more than 20 years. Michelle has worked in schools in Washington, DC., and Atlanta. She now currently works as a lobbyist here in Georgia and spends her free time volunteering as block captain for Dekalb Democrats,  as a clinic escort with Feminist Women's Health Center, and as a poll worker for Dekalb County.

This event is free and open to all people, especially to those who have no income or low income right now, but we encourage and appreciate a solidarity donation in support of the work of Charis Circle, our programming non-profit. Charis Circle's mission is to foster sustainable feminist communities, work for social justice, and encourage the expression of diverse and marginalized voices. https://donatenow.networkforgood.org/CharisCircle?code=chariscirclepage

We will be archiving this event and adding closed captioning as soon as possible after airing so that it will be accessible to deaf and HOH people. If you have other accessibility needs or if you are someone who has skills in making digital events more accessible please don't hesitate to reach out to info@chariscircle.org. We are actively learning the best practices for this technology and we welcome your feedback as we begin this new way of connecting across distances.

By attending our virtual event you agree to our Code of Conduct: Our event seeks to provide a harassment-free experience for everyone, regardless of gender, gender identity and expression, age, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, body size, race, ethnicity, religion (or lack thereof), class, or technology choices. We do not tolerate harassment in any form. Sexual language and imagery are not appropriate. Anyone violating these rules will be expelled from this event and all future events at the discretion of the organizers. Please report all harassment to info@chariscircle.org immediately.

The Universal Guide to Running for Office: Park Cannon in conversation with Michelle Bennett