Submission Video
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Mission & VIsion Statement
W.E. are a group of young women of color and allies who strive toward creating a community in which low-income students and families have equitable access to health and hygiene products . W.E. envision a world without sexual assault, where men treat women with respect and dignity through healthy relationships. Therefore, we aim to improve the physical, social-emotional, and mental health of young women in South Central Los Angeles through our projects, which are comprised of a series of campaigns throughout the 2019-2020 school year. Our campaigns will include various actions, such as a colloquium of student panel discussions, workshops and film screenings, donation drives, a voter registration drive, and we applied to be the third group of students from our school to attend the Commission on the Status of Women at the United Nations in March 2020. As a GirlsBuild LA team and chapter of Girls Learn International, we will create both local and global change to improve the lives of women.
Project Need
1. Equitable access to health and hygiene products
Based on our school survey, 86% of female students have experienced a lack of feminine hygiene products in the last 12 months. Also, 13% of female students indicated that they have stayed home from school or left school early as a result of their lack of feminine hygiene products. Last year, our club leaders addressed this issue with school leaders to ensure students were no longer charged a fee for pads in the nurse office. However, the need continues beyond the hours of the school day. Homeless women in our community are in the greatest need of access to feminine hygiene products. The homeless population surrounding our school is large, as many reside in parked RV's throughout our community.
For more information about our school and our community, check out our ABOUT US page.
2. Raise awareness about human trafficking and sexual violence
Based on our school survey, 92% of students (male and female) responded that their sex education experience did not include lessons about consent and/or healthy relationships. According to Peace Over Violence, around the world, 1 in 3 women will be raped or beaten in her lifetime and 1 in 6 men experience abusive sexual experiences before the age of 18. These statistics demonstrate the need and importance of sex education that includes topics such as sexual violence and consent. Furthermore, 77% of students were unaware of the issue of human trafficking in Los Angeles. Even teachers expressed a lack of knowledge about these topics. However, according to the Coalition to Abolish Slavery & Trafficking (CAST), Los Angeles is a top point of entry into the U.S. for victims of slavery and trafficking.
3. Civic Engagement: Increase voter turnout for young, Black and Hispanic voters
Based on the U.S. Census Bureau statistics, voter turnout among young voters, Black voters, and Hispanic voters have historically been low due to voter suppression. In 2016, only 59.6% of eligible Black voters and 47.6% of eligible Hispanic voters participated in the election process. Similarly, 46.1% of eligible 18-29 year old voters voted in the 2016 election. Power California explains that these statistics reveal that young voters of color and their families are disengaged from the election process because their voices are missing from government and policies that are not inclusive or equitable.
Based on our school survey, 86% of female students have experienced a lack of feminine hygiene products in the last 12 months. Also, 13% of female students indicated that they have stayed home from school or left school early as a result of their lack of feminine hygiene products. Last year, our club leaders addressed this issue with school leaders to ensure students were no longer charged a fee for pads in the nurse office. However, the need continues beyond the hours of the school day. Homeless women in our community are in the greatest need of access to feminine hygiene products. The homeless population surrounding our school is large, as many reside in parked RV's throughout our community.
For more information about our school and our community, check out our ABOUT US page.
2. Raise awareness about human trafficking and sexual violence
Based on our school survey, 92% of students (male and female) responded that their sex education experience did not include lessons about consent and/or healthy relationships. According to Peace Over Violence, around the world, 1 in 3 women will be raped or beaten in her lifetime and 1 in 6 men experience abusive sexual experiences before the age of 18. These statistics demonstrate the need and importance of sex education that includes topics such as sexual violence and consent. Furthermore, 77% of students were unaware of the issue of human trafficking in Los Angeles. Even teachers expressed a lack of knowledge about these topics. However, according to the Coalition to Abolish Slavery & Trafficking (CAST), Los Angeles is a top point of entry into the U.S. for victims of slavery and trafficking.
3. Civic Engagement: Increase voter turnout for young, Black and Hispanic voters
Based on the U.S. Census Bureau statistics, voter turnout among young voters, Black voters, and Hispanic voters have historically been low due to voter suppression. In 2016, only 59.6% of eligible Black voters and 47.6% of eligible Hispanic voters participated in the election process. Similarly, 46.1% of eligible 18-29 year old voters voted in the 2016 election. Power California explains that these statistics reveal that young voters of color and their families are disengaged from the election process because their voices are missing from government and policies that are not inclusive or equitable.
Planning - Club meetings & project planners
Our club meetings were scheduled on Mondays after school twice per month. We also held a club retreat day during school hours once per semester. At club retreats, club members reviewed project planning materials, participated in brainstorming and consensus building activities, then worked collaboratively in groups on assigned committee projects. We created a group on Schoology and a club instagram account to communicate with committee members, collect our research and resources and share project updates. After the March 13 school closure, club meetings resumed through zoom during the month of April and we made decisions using polls and google forms. One challenge was scheduling meetings to accommodate everyone's schedules. Another challenge was a decrease in participation.
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Civic Engagement
Our project included planned civic engagement events that allowed our club members to represent, serve and advocate!
Represent: Our first event this year was a voter registration drive and engagement presentation with Power California.
Service: We supported our community and developed partnerships through our Hygiene kit donation drive with HOPICS.
Advocacy: We became versed in the issues of sexual violence and human sex trafficking and helped get others aware and active with us. We planned a symposium, became active on social media, raised funds for Kasturba Gandhi Girls School, our GLI partner network school in India for girls who are targeted for sex trafficking and led a virtual teach-in. We connected to non-profit organizations like Girls Learn International and advocacy groups such as Peace Over Violence.
Represent: Our first event this year was a voter registration drive and engagement presentation with Power California.
Service: We supported our community and developed partnerships through our Hygiene kit donation drive with HOPICS.
Advocacy: We became versed in the issues of sexual violence and human sex trafficking and helped get others aware and active with us. We planned a symposium, became active on social media, raised funds for Kasturba Gandhi Girls School, our GLI partner network school in India for girls who are targeted for sex trafficking and led a virtual teach-in. We connected to non-profit organizations like Girls Learn International and advocacy groups such as Peace Over Violence.
Outcomes
During the 2019-2020 school year, we were able to affect change in the local and global community through our project. We registered 68 new voters, donated 212 hygiene kits and 20 backpacks to the homeless population, raised $91 to donate to our GLI partner network school, Kasturba Gandhi Girls School in Bahir, India, and distributed 60 cloth face masks during the Coronavirus pandemic. Also, over 200 students attended an event raising awareness about human trafficking in our community, 36 students attended an online presentation about sexual violence, and consent and we helped students cope with the stay at home order! The short term impact is that we were able to provide necessary items, such as hygiene kits and face masks to individuals who needed them. Some long term impacts include the lasting knowledge of our event participants about human trafficking, sexual violence, health and wellness - we hope that our attendees continue spreading awareness to others. Another long term impact is that we motivated a group of young voters to participate in the election process and we hope that they continue a life-long practice of voting, thus increasing the voter turnout among youth and people of color. A third long term global impact is that we contributed toward an opportunity for girls in India to receive an education in a safe environment rather than being trafficked for sex. Finally, another long term impact is that we were able to build community relationships with partners, such as HOPICS, Power California, Girls Learn International, the Feminist Majority Foundation, Peace Over Violence, Youth Over Violence, Change the Talk, and WE Schools. Also, two club members were selected to attend this year's United Nations 64th Commission on the Status of Women, however the event was canceled and we will apply for our voices to be heard again in 2021. Overall, we are creating a feminist movement while improving the spirit, advocacy and activism on our school campus!
Evidence - Go to Impact, Photos & Media page
Reflection
Our project started with a clear focus toward three goals: 1) providing equitable access to health and hygiene products,
2) raising awareness about sexual violence and human sex trafficking, and 3) engaging young voters of color.
Although we were able to successfully complete some events, drives and campaigns toward accomplishing these goals, our project took some unexpected turns due to the Coronavirus pandemic. Most notably, a group from our club (Ms. Griffin, Ruby and Angela) were headed to the United Nations to participate in the 64th Commission on the Status of Women, which was cancelled due to early concerns of the spread of COVID-19 in New York. Our 'Her'story conference, health fair, youth summit, and denim day events were also cancelled due to the subsequent school closure.
However, this emergency also allowed us to shift our focus and respond to the immediate need of our community. This was overwhelming at first, but as we began to brainstorm, we developed a plan to address new needs related to health and well being: Food, Water, Money, Protective Masks, and Health Advice. We were surprised to find out that our school did not approve distribution of food and water and our parents were worried about us being in direct contact with the community. So, we focused on what we could provide from home. We posted an open call to our members for video submissions to provide tips and advice for staying healthy at home, offering a $50 prize for videos selected from the contest entries! This was a win-win, as we could support families in need of groceries and other essential items while also creating the content needed to pivot our project to a virtual setting. Next, we ordered protective masks to mail out to our community members in need. For our Her'story online 'virtual assembly' each committee member chose a powerful woman from history, science or literature to feature and collected resources to share with our school community.
We also identified ways to continue raising awareness about sexual violence and hosted an online virtual teach-in!
Club leaders are proud that many club members didn't give up on the project despite our obstacles. If we could do it over again, we would have reconnected and reorganized earlier. One event that we would have pivoted to a virtual setting is our Women's History Month film festival by hosting on Zoom or Netflix Party. We would have also liked to invite a guest speaker to present about women's issues, health and wellness, or sexual violence. As we reflect upon what aspects of our project that we were not able to accomplish, we can begin thinking forward to the 2020-2021 school year and remain committed to accomplishing our goals with the next generation of W.E. Stand Women's Empowerment Club leaders!
2) raising awareness about sexual violence and human sex trafficking, and 3) engaging young voters of color.
Although we were able to successfully complete some events, drives and campaigns toward accomplishing these goals, our project took some unexpected turns due to the Coronavirus pandemic. Most notably, a group from our club (Ms. Griffin, Ruby and Angela) were headed to the United Nations to participate in the 64th Commission on the Status of Women, which was cancelled due to early concerns of the spread of COVID-19 in New York. Our 'Her'story conference, health fair, youth summit, and denim day events were also cancelled due to the subsequent school closure.
However, this emergency also allowed us to shift our focus and respond to the immediate need of our community. This was overwhelming at first, but as we began to brainstorm, we developed a plan to address new needs related to health and well being: Food, Water, Money, Protective Masks, and Health Advice. We were surprised to find out that our school did not approve distribution of food and water and our parents were worried about us being in direct contact with the community. So, we focused on what we could provide from home. We posted an open call to our members for video submissions to provide tips and advice for staying healthy at home, offering a $50 prize for videos selected from the contest entries! This was a win-win, as we could support families in need of groceries and other essential items while also creating the content needed to pivot our project to a virtual setting. Next, we ordered protective masks to mail out to our community members in need. For our Her'story online 'virtual assembly' each committee member chose a powerful woman from history, science or literature to feature and collected resources to share with our school community.
We also identified ways to continue raising awareness about sexual violence and hosted an online virtual teach-in!
Club leaders are proud that many club members didn't give up on the project despite our obstacles. If we could do it over again, we would have reconnected and reorganized earlier. One event that we would have pivoted to a virtual setting is our Women's History Month film festival by hosting on Zoom or Netflix Party. We would have also liked to invite a guest speaker to present about women's issues, health and wellness, or sexual violence. As we reflect upon what aspects of our project that we were not able to accomplish, we can begin thinking forward to the 2020-2021 school year and remain committed to accomplishing our goals with the next generation of W.E. Stand Women's Empowerment Club leaders!
Final Budget
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