Kim Villanueva: “You know, we are always trying to fight back against patriarchy and the fact that people are trying to confine women and girls into one role. And we want women and girls to have the full expression that they are able to have. And that
“5 percent of women have experienced harassment enabled by technology, including AI-generated deepfake pornography, according to a 2025 survey from the National Organization for Women (NOW) and Icogni.”
Interview with Kim Villanueva, President of NOW
Kim Villanueva joins Community Voices to discuss her long history of feminist activism with the National Organization for Women. She also speaks about the ways that her experiences in Springfield helped prepare her to lead a national organization. Kim
Newly-installed president Kim Villanueva—the former president of NOW’s Illinois chapter, cofounder of the Asian American and Pacific Islander Caucus and chair of the National Election Committee—and vice president Rose Brunache, former president of the D.C. chapter, spoke to Ms. reporter Eleanor J. Bader one month after taking office. Although they were still settling into their new roles, they spoke about their desire to expand NOW’s membership and increase the organization’s visibility as a feminist counterpoint to cutbacks, voter suppression, and increased racial and gender animus.