Olga Vives, the national executive vice-president of National Organization for Women (NOW), said she believes Indiana is a purple state.
While the state of Indiana is considered a red, or republican, state, she considers it purple, or mixed, state because people are getting tired of the Republican Party, she said.
Vives was keynote speaker at the annual state NOW conference in Muncie on Saturday.
She expressed her concerns about the United States being controlled by republicans to a group of about 65 men and women.
"The political landscape is slowly being eroded," Vives said. "The three branches of government are under one party, and they are hostile to women's rights."
Vives said that 59 percent of the American people believe the country is going downhill and said she was worried about the impact John Roberts will have if he is appointed to chief justice of the United States.
"People even in Indiana are not satisfied with what's going on," Vives said. "I'm very worried about a lot of things, like if John Roberts is appointed to the Supreme Court. He could be the deciding vote to overturn the abortion amendment."
The conference, which was held at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Muncie, ran from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., included workshops and a keynote speaker, and dealt with state chapter business, such as elections.
"I think it went well; there was a great mix of young and old and a great mix of college students here," NOW State President Melissa Fadeley said. Fadeley said she was particularly impressed by the four students who came from Purdue, which has one of three college-based NOW chapters in Indiana.
Ball State graduate Katie Carlson joined NOW during the conference but has been attending the meetings for the past few years. She said she enjoys being involved in NOW because of the issues it takes on.
"Today was great, I loved it," Carlson said. "I got a good feel for all the issues NOW is involved with. They will stand up for women's issues and don't get intimidated. They will stand up regardless."
Carlson participated in the silent auction that was available throughout the conference, and bought a vintage NOW sweatshirt for $9.
"I needed some gear, and it's just so cool," Carlson said. "I'm not even sure what year it's from."
The oral auction took place after the conference and included framed photographs of NOW events, artwork, jewelry, pottery and gift certificates. The auctions earned over $2,500 and proceeds will be used by the political action committee to provide financial support in next year's elections.
Ball State professor of social work Judi Egbert attended the conference. Egbert has been a member of NOW for decades and said she really enjoys the annual conferences.
"It was a good balance of activism and learning about current policies," Egbert said. "It was not a one-way dialogue. There were lots of opportunities for involving people."
Egbert and Fadley both stressed how important it is for students to become involved in organizations such as NOW.
"These issues are going to affect their future more than they are going to affect ours," Fadley said. "With young people today, the information is just not there."
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