Marianne Deborah Williamson (born July 8, 1952) is an American author, spiritual leader, and political activist. She has written 14 books, including four ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'' number one bestsellers in the "Advice, How To, and Miscellaneous" category. The founder of

Project Angel Food Project Angel Food is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization in Los Angeles County which provides free meals for people too sick to shop and cook for themselves. Project Angel Food serves the majority of Los Angeles County with South Los Angeles and M ...

, a volunteer food delivery program that serves home-bound people with

HIV/AIDS Human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is a spectrum of conditions caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a retrovirus. Following initial infection an individual ...

and life-threatening illnesses. She is also the co-founder of the

Peace Alliance The Peace Alliance is a nonprofit organization based in the United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located ...

, a nonprofit education and advocacy organization supporting peacebuilding projects. She has frequently appeared on ''

The Oprah Winfrey Show ''The Oprah Winfrey Show'', often referred to as ''The Oprah Show'' or simply ''Oprah'', is an American daytime broadcast syndication, syndicated talk show that aired nationally for 25 seasons from September 8, 1986, to May 25, 2011, in Chicag ...

.'' In 2014, Williamson unsuccessfully ran as an

independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independ ...

representing

California's 33rd congressional district California's 33rd congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of California. Based in Los Angeles County, the district is currently represented by . In 2014, after 40 years in Congress, previous Democratic Representative ...

in the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the Lower house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...

. On January 9, 2019, she announced her campaign for the Democratic nomination in the

2020 United States presidential election The 2020 United States presidential election was the 59th quadrennial presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 3, 2020. The Democratic ticket of former vice president Joe Biden and the junior U.S. senator from California Kamala Ha ...

and suspended her campaign on January 10, 2020. She later endorsed

Bernie Sanders Bernard Sanders (born September8, 1941) is an American politician who has served as the junior United States senator from Vermont since 2007. He was the U.S. representative for the state's at-large congressional district from 1991 to 2007 ...

at a rally in

Austin, Texas Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the county seat, seat and largest city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and Williamson County, Texas, Williamson co ...

, on February 23, 2020. She was hired as a columnist for ''

Newsweek ''Newsweek'' is an American weekly online news magazine co-owned 50 percent each by Dev Pragad, its president and CEO, and Johnathan Davis (businessman), Johnathan Davis, who has no operational role at ''Newsweek''. Founded as a weekly print m ...

'' shortly after the conclusion of the campaign. She currently has formed an exploratory campaign for running in the 2024 democratic presidential primaries.

Early life and education

Williamson was born in

Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...

, Texas, in 1952. She was the youngest of three children of Samuel "Sam" Williamson, a

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

veteran and immigration lawyer, and Sophie Ann Kaplan, a homemaker and community volunteer. Williamson was raised upper-middle-class in

conservative Judaism Conservative Judaism, known as Masorti Judaism outside North America, is a Jewish religious movement which regards the authority of ''halakha'' (Jewish law) and traditions as coming primarily from its people and community through the generatio ...

. Her family attended Congregation Beth Yeshurun. She learned about world religions and

social justice Social justice is justice in terms of the distribution of wealth, opportunities, and privileges within a society. In Western and Asian cultures, the concept of social justice has often referred to the process of ensuring that individuals fu ...

at home, but first became interested in speaking from the pulpit on social matters when she saw her rabbi speak against the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...

. Her family also traveled internationally during the summers when she was a child. She has said that it was through travel that she "had an experience, at a young age, that people are the same everywhere." Williamson attended

Houston ISD The Houston Independent School District (HISD) is the largest public school system in Texas, and the eighth-largest in the United States. Houston ISD serves as a community school district for most of the city of Houston and several nearby and ...

's Bellaire High School. After graduating, she spent two years studying theater and philosophy at

Pomona College Pomona College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Claremont, California. It was established in 1887 by a group of Congregationalists who wanted to recreate a "college of the New England type" in Southern California. In 1925, it became ...

in Claremont, California, where she was a roommate of eventual film producer

Lynda Obst Lynda Rosen Obst (born April 14, 1950)Lynda Obst
In 1973, Williamsonan active antiwar protesterdropped out of college and lived "a nomadic existence" during what she calls "her wasted decade." She moved to

New Mexico ) , population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano) , seat = Santa Fe , LargestCity = Albuquerque , LargestMetro = Tiguex , OfficialLang = None , Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ker ...

, where she took classes at the

University of New Mexico The University of New Mexico (UNM; es, Universidad de Nuevo México) is a public research university in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Founded in 1889, it is the state's flagship academic institution and the largest by enrollment, with over 25,400 ...

and lived in a

geodesic dome A geodesic dome is a hemispherical thin-shell structure (lattice-shell) based on a geodesic polyhedron. The triangular elements of the dome are structurally rigid and distribute the structural stress throughout the structure, making geodesic dom ...

with her

boyfriend A boyfriend is a male friend or acquaintance, often specifying a regular male companion with whom a person is romantically or sexually involved. A boyfriend can also be called an admirer, beau, suitor and sweetheart. The analogous female ...

. The couple broke up a year later. Marianne then moved to

, where she took classes at the

University of Texas The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,075 ...

. After leaving Texas, she went to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, intending to pursue a career as a

cabaret Cabaret is a form of theatrical entertainment featuring music, song, dance, recitation, or drama. The performance venue might be a pub, a casino, a hotel, a restaurant, or a nightclub with a stage for performances. The audience, often dining or d ...

singer, but got distracted by "bad boys and good dope." ''Vanity Fair'' wrote that Williamson "spent her twenties in a growing state of

existential despair In psychology and psychotherapy, existential crises are inner conflicts characterized by the impression that life lacks meaning. Some authors also emphasize confusion about one's personal identity in their definition. Existential crises are acco ...

". In New York, Williamson suffered from deep depression following the end of a relationship. She has said that this experience gave rise to a desire to spend the rest of her life helping people.

''A Course in Miracles''

In 1976, Williamson (who was experiencing confusion about God and wondering why He allows so much pain in the world) was at a party in New York and picked up a copy of

Helen Schucman Helen Cohn Schucman (born Helen Dora Cohn, July 14, 1909 – February 9, 1981) was an American clinical psychologist and research psychologist. She was a professor of medical psychology at Columbia University in New York from 1958 until her re ...

's book

A Course in Miracles ''A Course in Miracles'' (also referred to as ''ACIM'' or the ''Course'') is a 1976 book by Helen Schucman. The underlying premise is that the greatest "miracle" is the act of simply gaining a full "awareness of love's presence" in a person's ...

from a coffee table. She dismissed the book because, being Jewish, she was put off by its

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

terminology. Williamson then moved to

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

. While there, she developed an interest in spirituality,

metaphysics Metaphysics is the branch of philosophy that studies the fundamental nature of reality, the first principles of being, identity and change, space and time, causality, necessity, and possibility. It includes questions about the nature of conscio ...

, and

meditation Meditation is a practice in which an individual uses a technique – such as mindfulness, or focusing the mind on a particular object, thought, or activity – to train attention and awareness, and achieve a mentally clear and emotionally cal ...

. She began reading the ''Course'' "passionately" and doing its 365 daily exercises. She also reconciled it with her

Jewishness Jewish peoplehood (Hebrew: עמיות יהודית, ''Amiut Yehudit'') is the conception of the awareness of the underlying unity that makes an individual a part of the Jewish people. The concept of peoplehood has a double meaning. The first is d ...

; in her view, "A conversion to

Christ Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, names and titles), was ...

is not a conversion to Christianity. It is a conversion to a conviction of the heart.

The Messiah In Abrahamic religions, a messiah or messias (; , ; , ; ) is a salvation, saviour or liberator of a group of people. The concepts of ''Messiah in Judaism, mashiach'', Messianism#Judaism, messianism, and of a Messianic Age#Judaism, Messianic Age ...

is not a person but a point of view". Williamson said that the book was her "path out of hell," as she had been "mired in a series of unhappy love affairs, alcohol and drug abuse, a

nervous breakdown A mental disorder, also referred to as a mental illness or psychiatric disorder, is a behavioral or mental pattern that causes significant distress or impairment of personal functioning. Such features may be persistent, relapsing and remitti ...

, and endless sessions with therapists." She was captivated by the book's message on forgiveness, specifically the notion that one cannot find peace in life without forgiving others. Williamson said that made her realize "how many of my problems stemmed from my fear of other people." The Course has often been described as a

religion Religion is usually defined as a social- cultural system of designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relates humanity to supernatural, ...

pseudoreligion Pseudoreligion or pseudotheology is a pejorative for a non-mainstream belief-system or philosophy which is functionally similar to a religious movement, typically having a founder, principal text, liturgy and faith-based beliefs. Belief systems s ...

. Williamson disagrees:

Teaching

In 1979, Williamson returned to Houston, where she ran a

metaphysical Metaphysics is the branch of philosophy that studies the fundamental nature of reality, the first principles of being, identity and change, space and time, causality, necessity, and possibility. It includes questions about the nature of conscio ...

bookstore coffeeshop, sang Gershwin standards in a

nightclub A nightclub (music club, discothèque, disco club, or simply club) is an entertainment venue during nighttime comprising a dance floor, lightshow, and a stage for live music or a disc jockey (DJ) who plays recorded music. Nightclubs gener ...

, got married and

divorce Divorce (also known as dissolution of marriage) is the process of terminating a marriage or marital union. Divorce usually entails the canceling or reorganizing of the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage, thus dissolving the ...

d "almost immediately," and underwent a "spiritual surrender". In 1983, Williamson had what she has called a "flash" to close the coffeeshop and move to

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

. She said she felt the city would be welcoming to her because of its willingness to "start new conversations." She made the move with $1,000 in her pocket. She got an apartment in Hollywood. Her roommate was 17-year-old

Laura Dern Laura Elizabeth Dern (born February 10, 1967) is an American actress. She is the recipient of numerous accolades, including an Academy Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, a BAFTA Award, and five Golden Globe Awards. Born to actor Bruce Dern and ac ...

, who noted that Williamson "held prayer groups in our living room." Williamson got a job at the

Philosophical Research Society The Philosophical Research Society (PRS) is an American nonprofit organization founded in 1934, by Manly Palmer Hall, to promote the study of the world's wisdom literature. Hall believed the accumulated wisdom of mankind is the birthright of every ...

. As part of their lecture series, she started speaking about ''A Course in Miracles'' as "a self-study program of spiritual psychotherapy." Her lectures were grounded in her belief that by consulting the ''Course'', every problem can be solved, and that miracles are possible through a change in perspective. According to Williamson, "All that a miracle is is a shift in perception from fear to love. It’s simply the notion that when your world view changes, your behavior changes". Williamson's teachings stemmed from an inspirational message: "Divine love is the core and essence of every human mind." She saw this message as a remedy to misinterpretations of the Bible that, through an emphasis on

sin In a religious context, sin is a transgression against divine law. Each culture has its own interpretation of what it means to commit a sin. While sins are generally considered actions, any thought, word, or act considered immoral, selfish, s ...

and guilt, could lead to

harm Harm is a moral and legal concept. Bernard Gert construes harm as any of the following: * pain * death * disability *mortality * loss of abil ity or freedom * loss of pleasure. Joel Feinberg gives an account of harm as setbacks to intere ...

(e.g.

slavery Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...

, depression,

self-loathing Self-hatred is personal self-loathing or hatred of oneself, or low self-esteem which may lead to self-harm. In psychology and psychiatry The term "self-hatred" is used infrequently by psychologists and psychiatrists, who would usually describe ...

). Initially, only a few people attended her lectures. But as word spread about "the young woman talking about a God who loves you, no matter what", she had to rent church space to accommodate the demand to see her. Four years later, she began lecturing monthly in New York. Eventually she was invited to speak throughout the U.S. and Europe. Williamson did not charge for her lectures, but had a "suggested donation" of $7 ($15 as of 2014) and a policy of not turning people away for lack of money. Williamson's style was called a "trendy amalgam of Christianity,

Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gra ...

pop psychology Popular psychology (sometimes shortened as pop psychology or pop psych) is the concepts and theories about human mental life and behavior that are purportedly based on psychology and that find credence among and pass muster with the populace. The ...

and 12-step recovery wisdom". The attraction of her teaching was said to have been "its focus on the power of the individual to conquer all without the help of stodgy institutions that are out of touch with modern generations." People were said to have been drawn to her relatability (given her struggles in her own life) and to her oratory. Williamson "filled a void left by the isolationism of established Christianity and

Judaism Judaism ( he, ''Yahăḏūṯ'') is an Abrahamic, monotheistic, and ethnic religion comprising the collective religious, cultural, and legal tradition and civilization of the Jewish people. It has its roots as an organized religion in the ...

, maintained an open-door policy with her teaching, but did not engage in actively evangelizing the ''Course,'' saying that she believed doing so would devalue the spirit of the teaching".

Pastor

At the height of her popularity, in 1998, Williamson sold her $2.7 million home. She decided to stop teaching and join the ministry. She said, "I had a lot going on in my life. I just felt I had to leave. I had a baby." Williamson said that becoming a pastor was a way "to get dirt in her fingers again""to experience the day-to-day lives of hundreds of people"and would be helpful in her work as a spiritual guide. Williamson became the "spiritual leader" for the Church of Today, a

Unity Church Unity, known informally as Unity Church, is an organization founded by Charles and Myrtle Fillmore in 1889. It grew out of Transcendentalism and became part of the New Thought movement. Unity is known for its '' Daily Word'' devotional publi ...

Warren, Michigan Warren is a city in Macomb County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The 2020 Census places the city's population at 139,387, making Warren the largest city in Macomb County, the third largest city in Michigan, and Metro Detroit's largest suburb. T ...

, where she had 2,300 congregants and 50,000 television viewers. She booked high-profile musical guests such as Aerosmith's Steven Tyler, expanded the bookstore, more than tripled declining church membership, increased the congregation's racial and sexual orientation diversity, brought the church out of mounting debt, and grew the church into one of the country's biggest Unity churches. She resigned from the Church Renaissance Unity Interfaith Spiritual Fellowship in 2003.

Author

Williamson has written 13 books. Seven have been on the ''New York Times'' bestseller list, with four reaching number one. More than three million copies have been sold. * ''A Politics of Love: A Handbook for a New American Revolution'' (2019) * ''Tears to Triumph: The Spiritual Journey from Suffering to Enlightenment'' (2016) * ''The Law of Divine Compensation: On Work, Money and Miracles'' (2012) * ''A Year of Miracles: Daily Devotions and Reflections'' (2011) * ''A Course in Weight Loss: 21 Spiritual Lessons for Surrendering Your Weight Forever'' (2010) * ''The Age of Miracles: Embracing the New Midlife'' (2007) :On ''

USA Today ''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virgini ...

''s best-seller list for four weeks, it is about how to approach midlife by not dwelling on lost youth but starting new opportunities. * ''The Gift of Change: Further Reflections on a Course in Miracles'' (2004) * ''Everyday Grace: Having Hope, Finding Forgiveness and Making Miracles'' (2002) * ''Enchanted Love: The Mystical Power of Intimate Relationships'' (1999) :About building a spiritual relationship between partners, the book advocates "a new model of romance with love, righteousness, compassion." * ''Healing the Soul of America: Reclaiming Our Voices as Spiritual Citizens'' (1997) :The book was originally titled ''The Healing of America.'' It is about developing more robust political engagement by laying out plans to "transform the American political consciousness and encourage powerful citizen involvement to heal our society" by turning spiritual activism into sociopolitical activism. * ''A Woman's Worth'' (1993) :A ''New York Times'' bestseller that according to ''

Publishers Weekly ''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of B ...

'' gave "sound, empowering advice on relationships, work, love, sex and childrearing."

The Vancouver Sun The ''Vancouver Sun'', also known as the ''Sun'', is a daily broadsheet newspaper based in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The newspaper is currently published by the Pacific Newspaper Group, a division of Postmedia Network. Published si ...

used a passage from the book in summarizing it: * ''Illuminata'' (1993) :On USA Today's best-seller list for 20 weeks, the book is about how prayer is practical in everyday life by looking to God to transcend life's pains. * '' A Return to Love: Reflections on the Principles of A Course in Miracles'' (1992) :On ''The New York Times'' bestseller list for 39 weeks in the "Advice, How To and Miscellaneous" category, the book teaches that practicing love every day will bring more peace and fulfillment to one's life. Williamson wrote her most famous quote in this book, which is often misattributed to

Nelson Mandela Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela (; ; 18 July 1918 – 5 December 2013) was a South African Internal resistance to apartheid, anti-apartheid activist who served as the President of South Africa, first president of South Africa from 1994 to 1 ...

: :

Oprah Winfrey Oprah Gail Winfrey (; born Orpah Gail Winfrey; January 29, 1954), or simply Oprah, is an American talk show host, television producer, actress, author, and philanthropist. She is best known for her talk show, ''The Oprah Winfrey Show'', br ...

said of the book, "I have never been more moved by a book than I am by this one." Winfrey bought 1,000 copies and encouraged her audience to purchase it, telling them that after reading it, she experienced 157 miracles. Williamson was a frequent guest on The Oprah Winfrey Show as well, and became known as Oprah's "spiritual advisor."

Social justice

Marianne Williamson 5 19 2014 -13 (14041888)

Williamson has said that she often wonders why "so many people in the richest country in the world have to constantly transcend material conditions that are so unnecessary." In the 1980s Williamson began founding charities based on the principles in the ''Course''.

Centers for Living

In 1987, during lunch with a close friend struggling with breast cancer, Williamson's friend expressed a need for help: "She said that for years she had been looking for someone to help her heal and now she needed someone to help her die." This request inspired Williamson to create the Center for Living. After

David Geffen David Lawrence Geffen (born February 21, 1943) is an American business magnate, producer and film studio executive. He co-created Asylum Records in 1971 with Elliot Roberts, Geffen Records in 1980, DGC Records in 1990, and DreamWorks SKG in 199 ...

contributed $50,000, Williamson co-founded the organization with Louise Haya minister of the New Thought Church of Religious Science who claimed to have healed herself of canceras a refuge from, and to offer non-medical support for, people with "life-challenging illnesses." Williamson took no salary from the organization. The Center for Living began helping many patients afflicted with

, particularly gay men, whom it welcomed and accepted when other places shunned them. The Center provided services such as house-cleaning, meditation, massage and community/psychological/emotional support throughout Los Angeles. In 1989, with another $50,000 from Geffen, Williamson opened another Center for Living in New York, but it was hampered by conflict between staff and the board over Williamson's management style, which an unnamed former associate described as "very controlling." There was also a rift because, while the Los Angeles Center welcomed Williamson's use of prayer in her teachings and the use of the word "God", the more secular New York Center rebuked it. Williamson grew frustrated with being asked to not pray: A few months later, after two of her board members told ''Vanity Fair'' that she wanted "to be famous", Williamson deemed that she was being treated as "expendable" and purged the board of several members, including film director

Mike Nichols Mike Nichols (born Michael Igor Peschkowsky; November 6, 1931 – November 19, 2014) was an American film and theater director, producer, actor, and comedian. He was noted for his ability to work across a range of genres and for his aptitude fo ...

, and the head of the New York Center. Some people believed Williamson was losing trust in several board members and preemptively fired them before they fired her. She disputed that, claiming that she intended to step down as president and wanted to give her successor a clean slate. The two coastal Centers ended up parting ways, with Nichols going on to create a rival AIDS support organization. Williamson's defenders said that, as the founder and president of the board, she was within her rights to want a staff aligned with her vision, and that it was "unfair to charge her with a mania for control simply because she didn't want her creation usurped by hostile rivals": Williamson stepped down from the Center in the summer of 1992. The New York Center was able to remain open following a donation from Cher. Williamson gave the organization a $50,000 check and "graciously walked away." She remained an advisor to the organization.

Project Angel Food

In 1989, Williamson launched

to support HIV/AIDS patients. The program was operated by The Centers for Living, but became so successful that its name recognition outgrew its parent company. By 1992 it had raised over $1.5 million and was delivering nearly 400 hot meals a day to home-bound AIDS patients in Los Angeles. Williamson deemed the demand for the organization's services to be a positive sign about HIV/AIDS: Williamson resigned from Project Angel Food in March 1992 amid infighting, two months after the board fired executive director and gay activist Steve Schulte, with some speculating that Williamsonwho had been open about her wanting him gonewas responsible for the firing. Schulte, who had been the Center's third executive director in five years, was well-liked among the employees because he lobbied for salary increases, but clashed with Williamson over the operational approach to running the organization. His firing led a majority of the remaining employees to call for Williamson's resignation, his reinstatement, the replacement of the entire board, and unionization if Williamson remained. Stephen Bennett, a consultant hired to assess the situation, determined that there were more paid staff on hand than needed, but with a union vote pending, Bennett refused to lay employees off. It was determined that the best option was for Williamson to resign. Williamson was torn about stepping down and "very opposed to the unionization of volunteer organizations." The organization made no announcement about Williamson's departure, and following her resignation, the employees decided not to unionize. The organization initially struggled in her absence, as she had been its most effective fundraiser. Within six months of her departure, the organization was restructured. Over 35 percent of the staff was laid off and counseling services were ceased to over 200 clients, which staff who had been loyal to her called "karmic payback for pushing Marianne out of the picture." Project Angel Food was able to remain operational after Williamson's departure. By 1998 it had over 1,500 volunteers and nearly 1,000 clients. As of 2018, with expanded food, nutrition and counseling services, it delivered 12,000 meals weekly throughout Los Angeles and had 55 employees, over 3,000 volunteers, nearly 1,500 clients, and revenue of nearly $4 million. In 30 years Project Angel Food has provided and delivered 12 million meals. Williamson remains a trustee of the organization.

AIDS work

Williamson has helped thousands of gay men who "were told that they weren't loved by their family and friends, employers, politicians, hospitals. ..It was more about that feeling of hope that she gave to all these people, and they all died." Calling herself a "midwife to the dying", she officiated at funerals, drove men to their doctors, and paid for patients' AIDS medication. Some who worked with her said that Williamson was "at the center" of the tragedy, assisting patients without regard. During her 2020 presidential campaign, Williamson was accused of telling gay men not to take medication for AIDS, of implying that they were "not positive enough" to counter the disease, of telling them that they "deserved" the disease, and of telling them to "pray the AIDS away". She has repeatedly denied these accusations. Most of the accusations stem from excerpts or paraphrases of her 1992 book ''

A Return to Love ''A Return to Love: Reflections on the Principles of A Course in Miracles'' (1992) is the first book by Marianne Williamson, and concerns the 1976 book ''A Course in Miracles'' by Helen Schucman. ''A Return to Love'' was a ''New York Times'' B ...

''. Detractors accuse Williamson of being a

grifter A grifter may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Grifters (band), a 1990s American indie rock band * ''The Grifters'' (novel), a 1963 American novel by Jim Thompson * ''The Grifters'' (film), a 1990 American adaptation of the novel * Grifter (ch ...

who "deluded dying men to concentrate on their spiritual well-being rather than on activism." Supporters say she is being maligned for a book written nearly 30 years ago, when the understanding of HIV/AIDS was in its infancy, which provided "solace to gay men when they were afflicted with paranoia, loneliness, and grief." She is said to have emphasized the healing power of prayer, believing that God can respond to prayers through medicine and science, and would lead prayers for a medical solution to AIDS. Williamson has said that at that time, when the medical industry had no cure or treatment for the diseasecontracting it "was a death sentence"and there was a "weird silence" from organized religion, gay men came to her because she was "talking about a God who loves you no matter what and miracles." She credits gay men in Los Angeles for her career, saying that they were living through a traumatic experience, dealing with the stress of guilt, shame, dying, and, in many cases, telling unsupportive family, and that they began coming to her lectures because, "I was talking every week about how love worked miracles and how, as long as we loved each other, everything was going to be ok." Her view of healingof prayer and medicinehas been called unscientific, but also regarded as no different than the viewpoint of other religions.

The Peace Alliance

In 1998 Williamson co-founded the non-profit Global Renaissance Alliance (GSA) with ''

Conversations with God ''Conversations with God'' (''CWG'') is a sequence of books written by Neale Donald Walsch. It was written as a dialogue in which Walsch asks questions and God answers. The first book of the ''Conversations with God'' series, ''Conversations ...

'' author

Neale Donald Walsch Neale Donald Walsch (born September 10, 1943) is an American author of the series ''Conversations with God''. He is also an actor, screenwriter, and speaker. Biography Walsch was brought up as a Catholic by a family who encouraged his quest for ...

. The organization established a network of "citizen salons" to pray for national growth, peace and liberal causes. According to Williamson, the GSA sat in small groups, "Peace Circles", of fewer than 12 people every other week and prayed together to articulate a vision for what they want, rather than what others don't want. In 2004 the GSA's name was changed to The Peace Alliance and given a new mandate focused on grassroots education and advocacy organization with the intent of increasing U.S. government support for peace-building approaches to domestic and international conflicts. The Peace Alliance taught peace activists how to lobby their congressional representatives. Williamson said of the need for this work: The Peace Alliance seeks the establishment of a U.S. Department of Peace. In 2005 Williamson traveled to Washington to help Congressman Dennis Kucinich's effort to establish the department. The Alliance has raised over $100 million in funding for international peace-building. It has also helped get provisions of the

Youth PROMISE Act The Youth Prison Reduction through Opportunities, Mentoring, Intervention, Support, and Education Act, or Youth PROMISE ActH.R.1064 was proposed in the 111th Congress on February 13, 2009, by Democratic Rep. Robert C. Scott ( VA-3), referred to th ...

, embedded in the

Every Student Succeeds Act The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) is a US law passed in December 2015 that governs the United States K–12 public education policy. The law replaced its predecessor, the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), and modified but did not eliminate pr ...

, passed into law. The California Democratic Party adopted key Peace Alliance priorities into its platform.

"Sister Giant" conferences

In 2010 Williamson launched "Sister Giant", a series of conferences to "start a new conversation about transformational politics" and encourage more women to run for office: Williamson saw herself as a "cheerleader," supporting women who had never been politically involved, on the campaign level, but who might be considering, 'Why not me?'" In 2012, Yale University's Women’s Campaign Schoolan independent, nonpartisan, issue-neutral political campaign training and leadership program hosted at

Yale Law School Yale Law School (Yale Law or YLS) is the law school of Yale University, a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. It was established in 1824 and has been ranked as the best law school in the United States by ''U ...

partnered with the series, which focused on how to better address many social issues, including child poverty, campaign finance reform, and high incarceration rates.

RESULTS

For several years until 2017, Williamson was a board member of Results Educational Fund (RESULTS), a

501(c)(3) A 501(c)(3) organization is a United States corporation, trust, unincorporated association or other type of organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of Title 26 of the United States Code. It is one of the 29 types of 50 ...

nonprofit charity dedicated to finding long-term solutions to

poverty Poverty is the state of having few material possessions or little income. Poverty can have diverse social, economic, and political causes and effects. When evaluating poverty in ...

by focusing on its root causes, and its sister organization, Results Inc., a 501(c)(4) "social welfare" organization that encourages "grassroots advocates to lobby their elected officials" and works "directly with Congress and other U.S. policymakers to shape and advance" anti-poverty policies. The organization has 100 U.S. local chapters and works in six other countries. Williamson continues to serve on a Council of Advisors, providing informal advice to the organizations.

Love America Tour

In the winter of 2018, Williamson began touring the United States as part of her ''Love America Tour'', two-hour sessions discussing her belief that "a revolution in consciousness paves the way to both personal and national renewal." She used the slogan "Ignite the Change" to propel the tour along with the message: Williamson likened her message to that of

Martin Luther King Jr. Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American Baptist minister and activist, one of the most prominent leaders in the civil rights movement from 1955 until his assassination in 1968 ...

when he said, "Our goal is to create a beloved community and this will require a qualitative change in our souls as well as a quantitative change in our lives."

Political career

2014 U.S. House of Representatives campaign

Alanis Morissette 10 20 2013 -14 (10395383613) (1)

In 2014 Williamson ran as an

Independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independ ...

for

in the

U.S. House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

. She was praised as a "tireless" campaigner but criticized for not articulating specifics in her plans. Her supporters deemed her lack of plans a strength and said she was not a "made-to-order candidate" who gave "lip service." Prominent elected and public officials endorsed her campaign, including Ben Cohen (of

Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream Ben & Jerry's Homemade Holdings Inc., trading and commonly known as Ben & Jerry's, is an American company that manufactures ice cream, frozen yogurt, and sorbet. Founded in 1978 in Burlington, Vermont, the company went from a single ice cream ...

); former governors

Jennifer Granholm Jennifer Mulhern Granholm (born February 5, 1959) is a Canadian-American lawyer, educator, author, political commentator, and politician serving as the 16th United States secretary of energy since 2021. A member of the Democratic Party, she pre ...

and

Jesse Ventura Jesse Ventura (born James George Janos; July 15, 1951) is an American politician, actor, and retired professional wrestler. After achieving fame in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF), he served as the 38th governor of Minnesota from 1999 to 2 ...

; former representatives

Dennis Kucinich Dennis John Kucinich (; born October 8, 1946) is an American politician. A U.S. Representative from Ohio from 1997 to 2013, he was also a candidate for the Democratic nomination for president of the United States in 2004 and 2008. He ran for ...

and

Alan Grayson Alan Mark Grayson (born March 13, 1958) is an American politician who served as the U.S. representative for from 2009 to 2011 and from 2013 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was defeated for reelection in 2010 by Republican Daniel ...

; and

Van Jones Anthony Kapel "Van" Jones (born September 20, 1968) is an American news and political commentator, author, and lawyer. He is the co-founder of several non-profit organizations, a three-time ''New York Times'' bestselling author, a CNN host and c ...

Alanis Morissette Alanis Nadine Morissette ( ; born June 1, 1974) is a Canadian-American singer, songwriter, and actress. Known for her emotive mezzo-soprano voice and confessional songwriting, Morissette began her career in Canada in the early 1990s with tw ...

wrote and performed Williamson's

campaign song Campaign songs are songs used by candidates or political campaigns. Most modern campaign songs are upbeat popular songs or original compositions that articulate a positive message about a campaign or candidate, usually appealing to patriotism, o ...

, "Today". Williamson campaigned on progressive issues such as campaign finance reform, women's reproductive rights and LGBTQ equality. She raised $2.4 million, of which she personally contributed 25 percent. Williamson finished fourth out of 18 candidates, with 14,335 votes or 13.2 percent of the vote (Republican Elan Carr finished first in the primary with 21.6 percent of the vote, but then lost the general election to the top vote-getting Democrat from the primary,

Ted Lieu Ted W. Lieu (; born March 29, 1969) is an American politician and Air Force Reserve Command colonel who has represented California's 33rd congressional district in the U.S. House of Representatives since 2015. The district includes much of wes ...

). Williamson said of the process and its outcome:

2020 presidential campaign

Marianne 5E847875-5A97-4BB6-A83B-8B9021A9B4C1

On November 15, 2018, Williamson announced the formation of a presidential exploratory committee in a video in which she said that there was a "miracle in this country in 1776 and we need another one hat would requirea co-creative effort, an effort of love and a gift of love, to our country and hopefully to our world." On January 19, 2019, while visiting New Hampshire, Williamson said that she had "received enough positive energy to make me feel I should take the next step," and subsequently hired

Brent Roske Brent Roske is an American film and television producer, writer and director, directing the upcoming feature film 'Diana In Love' starring Shanti Fiennes (niece of two-time Academy Award nominee Ralph Fiennes) as Princess Diana. Roske is the form ...

to lead her operation in Iowa. Williamson, who has stated her disbelief in "traditional politics" and thinks that "they must be overridden," expressed her view that inspiration is underrepresented in political conversation and her thought that the foundations of American democracy were under threat, necessitating a "whole-person politics that speaks to emotions and psychology." On January 28, 2019, Williamson officially launched her presidential campaign, in front of 2,000 people in

, and appointed Maurice Danielwho served alongside

Donna Brazile Donna Lease Brazile (; born December 15, 1959) is an American political strategist, campaign manager and political analyst who served twice as acting Chair of the Democratic National Committee (DNC). She is currently an ABC News contributor, ...

Dick Gephardt Richard Andrew Gephardt (; born January 31, 1941) is an American attorney, lobbyist, and politician who served as a United States House of Representatives, United States Representative from Missouri from 1977 to 2005. A member of the Democratic ...

's campaign for the Democratic nomination in 1988as her national campaign manager, with her campaign committee, "Marianne Williamson for President", officially filed on February 4. On February 16, Williamson's campaign announced the appointment of former Congressman

Paul Hodes Paul William Hodes (born March 21, 1951) is an American lawyer, musician, and former U.S. Representative for , serving from 2007 to 2011. He is a member of the Democratic Party, and was New Hampshire's first Jewish representative. Hodes was an u ...

, who represented

New Hampshire's 2nd congressional district New Hampshire's 2nd congressional district covers the western, northern, and some southern parts of New Hampshire. It includes the state's second-largest city, Nashua, as well as the state capital, Concord. It is currently represented in the Un ...

from 2007 to 2011, as New Hampshire state director and senior campaign advisor. As of May 1, Williamson had a campaign staff of 20 and, a week later, announced that she had received enough contributions from unique donors to enter the official primary debates. Her campaign had raised $1.5 million in the first quarter of 2019, during which it received donations from 46,663 unique individuals. Williamson subsequently met the polling criteria, with three unique polls at 1% from qualifying pollsters, on May 23. In June, Williamson confirmed that she moved to

Des Moines, Iowa Des Moines () is the capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is also the county seat of Polk County. A small part of the city extends into Warren County. It was incorporated on September 22, 1851, as Fort Des Moines, ...

in advance of the 2020 caucuses. And in response to the

Iowa Democratic Party The Iowa Democratic Party (IDP) is the affiliate of the Democratic Party in the U.S. state of Iowa. While existing when Iowa was granted statehood in 1846, it did not gain broad electoral success until the mid-1950s, when demographic changes ...

's proposed creation of "virtual caucuses" in the 2020 race, Williamson's campaign announced that it would appoint 99 "Virtual Iowa Caucus Captains" (each assigned to a single county) to turn out supporters in both the virtual and in-person caucuses. Later that month, Williamson participated in the first primary debate. She spoke for four minutes and 58 seconds, placing her 17th in speaking time of the 20 candidates. The ''LA Times'' wrote that Democratic voters were "confused" and "transfixed" by Williamson, who declared that her first act as president would be to call New Zealand Prime Minister

Jacinda Ardern Jacinda Kate Laurell Ardern ( ; born 26 July 1980) is a New Zealand politician who has been serving as the 40th prime minister of New Zealand and leader of the Labour Party since 2017. A member of the Labour Party, she has been the member of ...

and say, "Girlfriend, you are so on", a reference to Ardern's emphasis on building a country that treats its children well. On July 30, Williamson participated in the second primary debate. She spoke for eight minutes and 52 seconds. Despite placing 19th in speaking time, she was the most Googled candidate in 49 of 50 states and received the fourth-most attention on Twitter. The spike in searches was prompted by her reference to the Flint water crisis (which she described as a "part of the dark underbelly of American society") and her assertion that President Trump was harnessing a "dark psychic force of the collectivized hatred" which she later described as

racism Racism is the belief that groups of humans possess different behavioral traits corresponding to inherited attributes and can be divided based on the superiority of one race over another. It may also mean prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism ...

bigotry Discrimination is the act of making unjustified distinctions between people based on the groups, classes, or other categories to which they belong or are perceived to belong. People may be discriminated on the basis of race, gender, age, rel ...

antisemitism Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism. Antis ...

homophobia Homophobia encompasses a range of negative attitude (psychology), attitudes and feelings toward homosexuality or people who are identified or perceived as being lesbian, gay or bisexual. It has been defined as contempt, prejudice, aversion, h ...

Islamophobia Islamophobia is the fear of, hatred of, or prejudice against the religion of Islam or Muslims in general, especially when seen as a geopolitical force or a source of terrorism. The scope and precise definition of the term ''Islamophobia'' ...

, and

xenophobia Xenophobia () is the fear or dislike of anything which is perceived as being foreign or strange. It is an expression of perceived conflict between an in-group and out-group and may manifest in suspicion by the one of the other's activities, a ...

propelled by social media. Her campaign complained that her name was often excluded from surveys. She also expressed frustration with the media establishment for not granting her the same level of respect

Ben Carson Benjamin Solomon Carson Sr. (born September 18, 1951) is an American retired neurosurgeon and politician who served as the 17th United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development from 2017 to 2021. A pioneer in the field of neurosurgery, he ...

Herman Cain Herman Cain (December 13, 1945July 30, 2020) was an American businessman and Tea Party movement activist within the Republican Party. Born in Memphis, Tennessee, Cain grew up in Georgia and graduated from Morehouse College with a bachelor's d ...

was afforded in previous elections, and for mocking and dismissing her candidacy: On the day of the third DNC debate, for which she did not qualify, Williamson did an interview with

Eric Bolling Eric Thomas Bolling (; born March 2, 1963) is an American television personality, conservative political commentator, author, and financial commentator. He has occupied numerous roles as a commentator on financial issues for television, most no ...

and expressed further frustration with the media when she thought she was not being recorded. Among her unscripted comments was "what does it say that Fox News is nicer to me than the lefties are?" On October 18, 2019, Hillary Clinton suggested Russians were "grooming"

Tulsi Gabbard Tulsi Gabbard (; born April 12, 1981) is an American politician, United States Army Reserve officer and political commentator who served as the U.S. representative for Hawaii's 2nd congressional district from 2013 to 2021. Gabbard was the firs ...

to be a

third-party Third party may refer to: Business * Third-party source, a supplier company not owned by the buyer or seller * Third-party beneficiary, a person who could sue on a contract, despite not being an active party * Third-party insurance, such as a Ve ...

candidate who would help Trump win reelection through the

spoiler effect Vote splitting is an electoral effect in which the distribution of votes among multiple similar candidates reduces the chance of winning for any of the similar candidates, and increases the chance of winning for a dissimilar candidate. Vote spl ...

(though Clinton claimed she was referring to Republicans, not Russians, she called Gabbard "the favorite of the Russians"). Williamson defended Gabbard, saying, "The Democratic establishment has got to stop smearing women it finds inconvenient! The character assassination of women who don’t toe the party line will backfire." On January 2, 2020, after missing several fundraising targets, Williamson announced that she would have to continue her run without campaign staff. On January 10, Williamson announced the end of her campaign and pledged to support the Democratic nominee. Many pundits treated Williamson's brief campaign as comic relief, such as

Peter Wehner Peter Hermann Wehner (born February 10, 1961) is an American writer and former speechwriter for the administrations of three U.S. presidents. He is a vice president and senior fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center (EPPC), a conservative th ...

of ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' calling her "an amusing presence," or

Alexandra Petri Alexandra Attkisson Petri (, born March 15, 1988) is an American humorist and newspaper columnist. In 2010, she became the youngest person to have a column in ''The Washington Post''. Petri runs the ComPost blog on the paper's website, on which ...

of ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...

'' writing, "We are all dreams in the mind of Marianne Williamson. If she stops believing in us even for a second, we will all vanish." However, some came to acknowledge that her message was ultimately persuasive and influential. After the July 30, 2019 Democratic debate, ''

'' columnist

Jamelle Bouie Jamelle Antoine Bouie (born April 12, 1987) is an American columnist for ''The New York Times''. He was formerly chief political correspondent for ''Slate''. David Uberti, writing in the Columbia Journalism Review in 2019, called Bouie "one of ...

wrote, "It feels insane to say this, but Williamson out-debated virtually everyone else on the stage. She gave a compelling answer on reparations and returned again and again to the most important issue for Democratic voters, beating Trump." The following year, after Joe Biden accepted the Democratic nomination, Tom Scocca wrote an essay in ''

Slate Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. It is the finest grained foliated metamorphic rock. ...

'' titled, "Marianne Williamson Won the Democratic Primary." Scocca compared Williamson's challenge to Trump ("I’m going to harness love for political purposes. I will meet you on that field, and sir, love will win.") with Biden's acceptance speech ("For love is more powerful than hate. Hope is more powerful than fear. Light is more powerful than dark."), and concluded that "Marianne Williamson’s message is what the Democrats are carrying into November." Political positions Williamson said she developed her liberal views from her father, Sam, whom she called "an armchair revolutionary" and a cross between "William Kunstler and Zorba the Greek." When she was 13, she told her father that a teacher told her that the U.S. had to fight the Vietnam War in Vietnam to prevent it from coming to the U.S. In response, her father took her entire family to Vietnam "to make sure the military-industrial complex didn't eat her brain and convince her that war was O.K." Williamson said she was also affected by a trip she took with her family to Soviet-controlled Hungary as a child, and witnessing her father surreptitiously slip their tour guide his business card and tell him: "You get out of here. I'll take care of you the rest of the way." Williamson said she was inspired by her father to "grow up and change the world...be the strong one and hold other people who are burdened with serious problems." She describes herself as a "pretty straight-line progressive Democrat" who has "social revolution" at the center of her being, and describes her policies as a "renovation" of a "

sociopathic Psychopathy, sometimes considered synonymous with sociopathy, is characterized by persistent antisocial behavior, impaired empathy and remorse, and bold, disinhibited, and egotistical traits. Different conceptions of psychopathy have been ...

economic system" focused on "short-term profit maximization". She says her interest lies in the creation of an "enlightened society". Williamson is one of 12 Democratic presidential candidates who have submitted answers to the

Council on Foreign Relations The Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) is an American think tank A think tank, or policy institute, is a research institute that performs research and advocacy concerning topics such as social policy, political strategy, economics, mi ...

's "Election 2020 Questions."

Domestic issues

Criminal justice

Williamson supports intervening early with At-risk students, at-risk youth through resources, education, and counseling. She also supports expanding restorative justice programs, introducing Psychological trauma, trauma education in the Juvenile court, juvenile justice system, expanding life-skills programs in prisons, and advancing hunger prevention, which she says is the "root cause of violence."

Disabled community

She supports the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act along with initiatives to guarantee voting rights and accessible polling to those with disabilities. She pledged to appoint disabled citizens to her cabinet. She also supported the Disability Integration Act requiring healthcare insurers to cover home healthcare. She pledged to try to get the Act passed in her first 100 days in office. Williamson supports transition programs that move institutionalized people with disabilities to supported independent living. She also supports reforming Social Security Disability Insurance, Social Security Insurance to ensure that people with disabilities are not excluded from entitlement programs if they earn more than $1,220 a month. In addition, she supports including disability policy, including disabled human rights, in U.S. trade deals. Williamson supports sex education in the disabled community, including sexual abuse reporting initiatives, and sensitivity training for police in regard to interacting with those with disabilities and mental illnesses.

Education

Williamson supports free tuition at public colleges, community colleges and trade schools. She also supports a "radical" reduction in college loan debt and total forgiveness of college loan debt "in some cases." She has expressed her support for treating student loans "like other debt", such that debtors could refinance at lower interest rates and those who declare bankruptcy could have their debt forgiven.

Families

Williamson supports Paid time off, paid leave (family, medical, pregnancy, and vacation), Equal pay for equal work, pay equity, government support for childcare services, Labor unions in the United States, union rights, and a Basic income, universal basic income. Williamson supports Retirement plans in the United States#Portability and valuation, portable retirement plans, the development of initiatives to protect homeowners from predatory lending, an increase in access to home loan modifications, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, SNAP coverage for low-income families, and initiatives to understand and decrease homelessness among veterans. Williamson also supports the creation of a Department of Children and Youtha new cabinet-level agency to create programs to reduce infant mortality, illness, food insecurity, homelessness, and undereducation.

Finance

Williamson supports corporations having a responsibility to Stakeholder (corporate), stakeholders, not just to stockholders. Williamson supports making middle-class tax cuts permanent and repealing the corporate tax cuts in Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, the 2017 Tax Bill. She also supports the restoration and "modernization" of Glass–Steagall Act of 1932, the Glass-Steagall Act, with the intent of separating commercial banks from investment banks in order to prevent banks from making risky investments. Williamson supports preventing corporations from engaging in tax avoidance, including tax avoidance for carried interest and Exchange-traded fund, ETF income. She also supports enforcement of United States antitrust law, antitrust laws and the implementation of a federal fee for financial transactions such as buying stocks or exchanging currency. Williamson also supports independent regulation of the pharmaceutical industry to prevent what she has called "predatory practices":

Guns

Williamson supports gun control, and has described the issue as one personal to her. On November 4, 2018, she gave a passionate keynote address to several hundred Muslim and Jewish women at the Sisterhood of Salaam-Shalom conference in Doylestown, Pennsylvania, eight days after 11 Jews were murdered at Pittsburgh's Pittsburgh synagogue shooting, Tree of Life synagogue: Williamson supports eliminating the sale of assault rifles and Semi-automatic firearm, semi-automatic weapons, banning bump stocks and High-capacity magazine ban, high-capacity magazines, and eliminating the current limits on the Centers for Disease Control's ability to track and record gun ownership numbers. She also supports mandatory universal background checks and waiting periods for all gun dealersincluding at gun shows and sporting retailerschild safety locks on all guns, and restrictions on the ability of the mentally ill to buy guns. Williamson also supports Red flag law, Red Flag Laws and making the process of obtaining gun licenses similar to that of obtaining driver's licenses.

Health care

Williamson supports universal health care under a "Medicare for All type of plan." She has also stated that she supports extending health coverageincluding coverage for home careto currently uninsured Americans. Williamson has expressed that she would like to develop a "health care" system opposed to what she says is a "disease management" system that the U.S. currently has. Inclusive of that, Williamson has expressed support for reimbursement of medical professionals for wellness and preventive care, longer doctor visits, nutrition and lifestyle education and limiting the marketing of hyper-processed and sugary foods. She has also expressed support for ending subsidies to the agricultural production of "unhealthy" food in favor of "healthy" food production. Williamson supports expanding the role of the Environmental Protection Agency, EPA and Food and Drug Administration, FDA to regulate toxin inclusion in the environment and food supplies, to make recommendations of how to lower societal stress, and to help develop healthy habits in local communities. She also supports limiting the profit motive in medicine as much as possible, being inclusive of seeking non-pharmacological ways to treat mental-health issues (where possible), and treating mental-health as important as physical health in order to normalize treatment. Williamson expressed that she also supports treating Addiction, drug addiction as a mental-health issue and de-criminalizing drugs.

Immigration

Williamson supports a full path to citizenship for Illegal immigration, undocumented immigrants with no "serious" criminal background. She also supports reducing the cost of naturalization and increasing resources to help immigrants navigate the process with more ease. Whereas Williamson does not support open borders, she supports a more humane approach to border policy. In June 2019, Williamson ripped then-President Donald Trump on his Immigration policy of Donald Trump, immigration policies after reports of children being separated from their families and being put in a detainment center, calling them "state-sponsored crimes". After Trump's announcement that Immigration and Customs Enforcement, ICE would begin mass-deportations, she said it is "no different" than what Jewish people faced in Nazi Germany. Williamson supports investing in "smart" border security, which she states, calls for better monitoring of airplanes, ships, trucks crossing the border, and submarines. She also supports overturning the three-year and ten-year U.S. Re-entry Permit, re-entry bars. Williamson also supports Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) and expanding protections and naturalization to undocumented immigrants who were brought here as children, regardless of their current age.

LGBTQ community

Williamson supports Equality Act (United States), The Equality Act. She also supports equality in health care, housing, employment, and services. She has also expressed support in protecting the LGBTQ community from LGBT demographics of the United States, marginalization due to Census questionnaire.

Minimum wage

Williamson supports an increase of the Minimum wage in the United States, federal minimum wage to $15 per hour. She also supports increasing the minimum wage for localities based on an amount determined to be a living wage for a given geographical area, and then adjusting that wage for inflation as needed.

National security

Williamson supports "redesigning" the partnership between the United States Department of Defense, Defense Department and the United States Department of State, State Department that would elevate the need for peace, putting it on equal footing with the need for military preparedness. Williamson supports the creation of a Department of Peace, United States Department of Peace to aid in her proposed redesign, which also includes a plan to establish a Peace Academy modeled after military academies. In her 2014 Congressional campaign, Williamson supported dismantling the National Security Agency, National Security Agency (NSA). Williamson supports decreasing the military budget and redirecting those funds toward peacebuilding and peace maintenance efforts e.g. mediation, diplomacy, United States Agency for International Development, humanitarian aid, post-conflict transitional justice, and "on-the-ground programs." She also supports maintaining a budget that would not impede military preparedness, while investing in a "sustainable society" inclusive of the development of clean energy and green manufacturing, retrofitting buildings and bridges, economically empowering women, and educating children. Williamson supports military engagement when a NATO ally is threatened, when the United States is under threat of attack, or "when the humanitarian order of the world is at risk."

National service

Williamson supports the creation of a program through which every citizen, between 18 and 26, can perform one year of voluntary national servicehelping schools, hospitals, infrastructure, sustainability, regenerative agricultural projects, the military, the Peace Corpsthat can be remunerated for housing, "basic costs", or financial support for higher education.

Native American reconciliation

Williamson supports returning dominant control of the Black Hills to the Great Sioux Nation, Sioux Nation, halting construction of the Keystone Pipeline, recognizing tribal sovereignty over their territory. She also supports increasing funding to Native lands’ justice systems, protecting tribal sovereignty and governance, and protecting Native religious freedom. Williamson has expressed support for "rethinking treaties" and continuing annual tribal nations' summits in Washington D.C.

Black American reparations

Williamson supports the distribution of $200-$500 billion in reparations for slavery debate in the United States, reparations for slavery, spread across 20 years for "economic and education projects," to be disbursed based on the recommendation of a selected group of black leaders. In taking this position, Williamson became the only candidate to ever submit a detailed plan for reparations for black Americans. Williamson, who first expressed her support of reparations in her 1993 book, ''Illuminata''advocating that the U.S. will not reconcile its racial and economic divide without them has said of the policy proposalstates that her policy on reparations is not part of "a black agenda,"

Abortion rights

Williamson supports abortion access, services and choice. She has spoken out against the Supreme Court's decision to overturn ''Roe v. Wade''.

International and foreign issues

Climate change

Williamson deems climate change to be "the greatest moral challenge of our generation." She claimed support for the Green New Deal, immediate re-entry into the Paris Agreement, Paris Climate Accords, and has stated that she would be willing to support the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, Trans-Pacific Partnership if it included greater protections for workers and the environment. Williamson also support the U.S. directing subsidies from fossil fuels, including coal, and re-investing them in the development of renewable energy, both in the U.S. and abroad, particularly in developing countries.

Diplomacy

Williamson has called for the establishment of a Department of Peace to expand global diplomacy, mediation, and educational and economic development. She supported the creation of such a department in 2005, backing efforts by Congressman Dennis Kucinich, to try to establish it.

Afghanistan

Williamson supported safe Withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan, withdrawal of all U.S. troops from Afghanistan as soon as possible and would consider the use of a peace-keeping force, such as the United Nations peacekeeping, United Nations, to assist with the transition.

Africa

Williamson, recognizing Africa as the continent with the fastest-growing population, supports engagement with the continent in order to thwart the growth of Boko Haram, terrorist groups and Ebola virus disease, health epidemics, which she believes threaten U.S. security, while capitalizing on opportunities in areas where corruption is being reversed, free elections are being held, and economies are growing.

China

Williamson has said she supports the U.S. vigorously using its position, i.e., through Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, CFIUS, to prevent China from buying strategically important companies, which she believes will help defend U.S. economic interests and human rights, as in the cases of the Uyghurs, Uighurs and 2019–20 Hong Kong protests, residents of Hong Kong.

Iran

Williamson supports rejoining the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). She said that "US propaganda ... falsely claims the deal lets Iran get nuclear weapons within 10 years." Williamson also backs increased diplomacy, a change of relations to address human rights in Iran, Sanctions against Iran, sanctions relief and the purchasing of Air Bus, Air Bus airplanes to support travel, entrepreneurship and normalization. According to Williamson, "Iran is a potential ally against Islamic extremism, Sunni extremism with many common interests to build upon". Williamson criticized the Trump administration for Iran–United States relations#2019 escalation in tensions, elevating tensions with Iran.

Israeli-Palestinian conflict

Williamson supports a two-state solution to the Israeli–Palestinian conflict which secures both the legitimate security of Israel and the human rights, dignity and economic opportunities of the Palestinian people. She expressed support for using the power of the President of the United States, Presidency to exert pressure on Israel to restart talks on this solution. Williamson supports rescinding Donald Trump, President Trump's recognition of the United States recognition of the Golan Heights as part of Israel, Golan Heights as part of Israel. She has also stated her belief that Israeli settlement#West Bank, settlements on the West Bank are illegal and does not support the Blockade of the Gaza Strip. However, Williamson does support the occupation of the Golan Heights "only until there is a stable government in Syria with whom one can negotiate".

Venezuela

Williamson supports creating conditions for effective dialogue between factions representing both Nicolás Maduro and Juan Guaidó that seek a peaceful transition. She has also expressed support for existing efforts to promote dialogue, in particular those being led by the Norwegian government. Williamson said she believes the best policy in Venezuela is to support efforts that allow its citizens to decide their political future, even if the U.S. does not agree with the outcome.

Religion

Williamson is indifferent about religion, having called it a map in which "the route isn't important. It's the destination that matters." Williamson has expressed a deep belief in forgiveness based on the notion that nothing is real, or exists, but love: "If a person behaves unlovingly, then that means that, regardless if their negativityanger or whatevertheir behavior was derived from fear and doesn’t actually exist. They’re hallucinating. You forgive them, then, because there’s nothing to forgive." Williamson believes a peaceful life is attainable by thinking with God, while thinking without God creates pain. She has said, "Asking God for help doesn’t seem very comforting if we think of Him as something outside of ourselves, or capricious, or judgmental. But God is love and He dwells within us. We were created in His image, or mind, which means that we are extensions of His love, or Sons of God." Williamson's beliefs on forgiveness and God influence her belief that

is impossible: "A sin would mean we did something so bad that God is angry with us. But since we cannot do anything that changes our essential nature, God has nothing to be angry at. Only love is real. Nothing else exists. The Son of God cannot sin."

Health and vaccinations

A "both-and" approach (both prayer and medicine) to physical and mental health has been attributed to Williamson. This approachthe efficacy of prayeraccepts medical science as part of God's power to heal. For example, surgery may be seen as God answering prayers to heal. This logic invokes what Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Johns Hopkins Medicine has called the "strong link between 'positivity' and health", in which "positive attitude improves outcomes and life satisfaction across a spectrum of conditions." Williamson, who believes that "the soul, spirit is impervious to illness," confirmed this belief when she said that "people who are prayed for get out of the emergency room faster" and "people who have been diagnosed with a life-challenging illness, who attend spiritual support groups, live, on average, twice as long after diagnosis." She maintains that prayer is complementary to medicine, not a substitute for it. Williamson has stated her support for the necessity and value of vaccinations and Psychoactive drug, antidepressants, but has been criticized for her skepticism about the Pharmaceutical industry, pharmaceutical industry's influence in setting guidelines for how they are administered, citing her belief that their profit motive could result in harm to patients. She has also been scrutinized for criticizing Unnecessary health care, overprescription of antidepressants, questioning whether antidepressants play a role in suicide, saying that the prescriptive definition between sadness and clinical depression is "artificial," and having called Mental disorder#Diagnosis, the process by which clinical depression is diagnosed "a scam." During Williamson's presidential campaign, several excerpts of her past comments have Conflation, conflated her skepticism of the pharmaceutical industry's trustworthiness with an embrace of Vaccine hesitancy, anti-vaccination dogma. As a result, she has been accused of being "anti-medicine" and "anti-science." She denies such accusations, saying they "could not be further from the truth." But critics point to Williamson's January 2012 interview on her radio show, "Living Miraculously," with Gwen Olsen, a 15-year veteran of the pharmaceutical industry who implied that she personally believed antidepressants could be dangerous and linked to autism. Critics also cite a podcast interview with Russell Brand in which Williamson, while speaking about Vaccination policy, vaccine exemptions, "glibly" described the process by which Mandatory vaccination, vaccines are mandated as "Orwellian" and likened the debate about vaccination mandates to the abortion debate. She later apologized, saying she "misspoke," and that the comments erroneously made her "sound as though I question the validity of life-saving vaccines." Williamson has expressed frustration that her skepticism of the pharmaceutical industry has been equated with skepticism of the science of vaccines. She has said, "Skeptical about vaccinations I have not expressed. Skeptical about Big Pharma conspiracy theory, Big Pharma in general I have expressed. And there is a big difference." She has also expressed frustration that this distinction is lost in public discourse:=

Public image

In October 1991, Williamson officiated at the wedding of Elizabeth Taylor and Larry Fortensky. She said that derisive publicity of the wedding harmed her credibility, as she was labeled "Guru to the Glitterati." Williamson is often called terms like "New Age guru." The label has been associated with her for years, but she has long rejected such terms, calling them "outrageous". Religious organizations have also said that she is not "New Age" but teaches an "evolved Christianityblending elements of Eastern mysticism into Christian languageusing terms 'tied to old New Age'". She has said she finds it "creepy" to be called a "spiritual leader", believes it insults her audience's intelligence, and prefers to be called an author. Williamson has often commented on how she is portrayed in the media, and believes that her image as a "seeker" has brought ridicule in the press. During her 2014 Congressional run, Williamson said, "I’m sure they’re going to say I’m a New Age nutcase, dragon lady, lightweight thinker." She has said of her image, "There has been a tendency to create a caricature, and it’s very difficult to battle a caricature." According to ''The New York Times Magazine'', the depiction of her by "many in the press" has been "snide". During her presidential campaign, press outlets have called her "wacko," a "quack," "scary," "a joke," "kooky," "hokey," "dangerous," "bananas," "bonkers," "Secretary of Crystals," and "wackadoodle." She made headlines when she criticized ''Vogue Magazine'' for its "insidious influence" when it did not include her in an Annie Leibovitz photo shoot of the 2020 female presidential candidates. The magazine responded that it only wanted "to highlight the five female lawmakers who bring a collective 40 years of political experience to this race." Williamson subsequently posted a fan-made picture of the ''Vogue'' photo with herself edited in. "I am a serious woman, and I have had a serious career. Why won't people take me seriously?," she has said.

Personal life and family

Williamson's older brother, Peter, became an immigration lawyer, the same profession as the siblings’ father. Her late sister, Elizabeth "Jane", was a teacher. Her father, and maternal grandparents, were History of the Jews in Russia, Russian Jewish immigrants. Her grandfather changed his surname from Vishnevetsky to Williamson after seeing "Alan Williamson Ltd" on a train. Williamson described herself as a "Jewish woman" in a 2022 interview. She was briefly married in 1979 to a Houston businessman. She said the marriage lasted "for a minute and a half." She took in, and cared for, a friend who had terminal cancer. In 1990, she gave birth to a daughter, India Emmaline. India pursued a doctorate in history at Goldsmiths College in London. In 2006, a ''

'' poll named her one of the 50 most influential baby boomers. Two years later, during the Financial crisis of 2007–2008, financial crisis, Williamson lost two of her homes in the Detroit metro area, valued at nearly $3 million, to foreclosure. In 2013, Williamson reported having assets estimated to be valued between $1 million and $5 million (not including personal residences).

Works

* ''

, First Edition 1992'' () * ''Imagine What America Could Be in the 21st Century: Visions of a Better Future from Leading American Thinkers'' () * ''Emma & Mommy Talk to God'' () * ''Healing the Soul of America: Reclaiming Our Voices as Spiritual Citizens'' () * ''A Woman's Worth'' () * ''Enchanted Love: The Mystical Power of Intimate Relationships'' () * ''Everyday Grace: Having Hope, Finding Forgiveness, And Making Miracles'' () * ''Illuminata: A Return to Prayer'' () * ''The Gift of Change'' () * ''The Law of Divine Compensation: On Work, Money and Miracles'' () * ''A Course in Weight Loss: 21 Spiritual Lessons for Surrendering Your Weight Forever'' () * ''Tears to Triumph: The Spiritual Journey from Suffering to Enlightenment'' () * ''A Politics of Love: A Handbook for a New American Revolution'' ()