Youth Organizing
“If They Can Do It, I Can Do It”: Young Women of Color HIV/AIDS Coalition
June 22, 2011
In honor of their graduation, Young Women of Color HIV/AIDS Coalition is sharing video interviews with some of their 2011 program graduates. Here's the first five posted -- four young women who have found community and grown as leaders, working together as peer educators and activists.
Posted in: Community, Healthcare, Youth Organizing, YWCHAC
“No Simple Solutions”: Social Justice and the Sex Trade
May 3, 2011
We know that each of our experiences of the sex trades are unique, and there are no one-size fits all solutions. We are members of families and communities struggling to survive and make the best possible choices given the options available to us. For many of us, the truth about the sex trade is somewhere between a completely empowered experience of the sex trade, which requires only decriminalization to eliminate harms, and a completely harmful experience of the sex trade which negatively presumes all of us to be victims in need of “rescue.”In response to increased media and philanthropic attention on young people in the sex trade, a collective of radical women of color, queer people of color, and Indigenous people who identify as people in the sex trades, affiliated with INCITE! Women of Color Against Violence, are working to center the voices of young people in the sex trades in conversations about policy reform that directly impacts their lives. You can read their statement (excerpted above) in full on the INCITE! blog. Over at Feministing, Jos Truit has a powerful post giving some context and background to how social justice movements can meaningfully include young people in the sex trade. Third Wave has also released a statement (in September 2010) on why we prioritize the expertise of young people in the sex trade.
Posted in: Anti-Violence, Criminalization, Youth Organizing
e-LOLA: Training a new generation of Latina activists nationwide
September 28, 2011
National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health, a Third Wave grant partner, is training even more young activists through its new initiative, e-LOLA:
Our Latinas Organizing for Leadership and Advocacy (LOLA) trainings have been carried out in 11 cities across the country since 2003, and the new e-LOLA has been designed to accommodate the lives of busy young adults by allowing them access to the materials presented at our traditional, rigorous two and a half day LOLA Reproductive Justice Institutes. This webinar training will provide Latina activists with sessions on: the history of the reproductive rights movement, community organizing models and specific skills building tools to prepare participants with the knowledge and resources for launching a campaign. After the training, e-LOLA graduates will continue to be part of NLIRH’s larger network of Latina advocates and become part of the Alumni Network as well as become leaders on reproductive health issues in their communities. The e-LOLA webinar series will occur on October 25th, October 27th, and November 1st at 7pm EST and is free of charge. More information on how to apply is here.NLIRH's previous LOLA trainings were crucial to developing a reproductive justice network of young Latinas, whose work ranges from securing abortion access to reforming immigration policies. As NLIRH activist Diana Salas writes, “Past trainings provided by the Latina Institute have helped me frame the messages around reproductive health and have connected me with other NYC Latinas working on similar issues. These trainings have been instrumental for someone who does not work in the reproductive justice field.” Through e-LOLA, NLIRH is expanding this vital training to young activists nationwide and strengthening this critical activist coalition. To find out more, check out NLIRH's e-LOLA page and application.
Posted in: Leadership, Movement Building, NLIRH, Reproductive Justice, Youth Organizing
Khmer Girls in Action Listening Campaign Launches in Long Beach
April 13, 2011
Khmer Girls in Action (KGA) empowers young women of Cambodian and Southeast Asian descent in Long Beach, California to be leaders within the reproductive justice movement. KGA's members learn the necessary educational tools and organizing skills to create positive change in their communities, including participatory research as a tool for organizing and action. This Spring, KGA is kicking off a listening campaign to share the results of their first Participatory Action Research project on immigrant and refugee rights, reproductive justice, health, and safety. The youth members of KGA designed the study and carried out the research, collecting findings related to how young people in the Khmer community in Long Beach face harassment and discrimination, and how they are taking leadership to change it. Check out their survey and share their video PSA.
Posted in: Community, Criminalization, Khmer Girls in Action, Participatory Research, Youth Organizing
Nominations Open! 2011 Mario Savio Young Activist Award
May 3, 2011
The Mario Savio Young Activist Award is presented each year to a young person (or persons) with a deep commitment to human rights and social justice and a proven ability to transform this commitment into effective action. The recipient/s will receive a $6000 award in recognition of their work. The deadline to submit a nomination is June 30th. Thanks to Dom Brassey at Tides (who is also a proud Third Wave Board member) for her inspiring announcement, complete with videos featuring some powerhouse poets and activists, like this one: If you'd like to nominate a young activist who inspires you, check out the full details (and videos of free speech activist Mario Savio, for which this award is named) over here.
Posted in: Community, Leadership, Philanthropy, Youth Organizing
We’ve Launched our 2010 Annual Report to Kick-Off our 15th Anniversary!
February 28, 2012
We're kicking off the celebration of Third Wave Foundation’s 15th Anniversary Year by sharing our most recent annual report, which documents an incredible year of supporting young leaders in social justice.
Thank You! This report shows the ways everyone in our community came together to make this work possible. Because of your energy, commitment and partnership Third Wave was able to:
● Fund 23 feminist youth-led organizations that are developing leaders and organizing young people to transform their communities.
● Support the collaboration of 20 reproductive justice organizations to identify the issues that are immediate threats to the well-being of their communities, and the strategies to confront those threats.
● Provide trainings in financial planning during tough economic times to 25 organizations and blogging for social justice to five grant partner organizations.
● Give funding for emergency abortions to more than 500 young people in need across the United States and Puerto Rico.
Download the annual report here.
Posted in: Blog, Feminism Was Here, Grant Partners, Leadership, Movement Building, Our History, Reproductive Justice, Youth Organizing
Why Comprehensive Sex Education is Part of Ending Violence in Schools
March 10, 2011
Gender JUST is a grassroots organization that seeks to build power and develop leadership among queer youth of color by organizing for racial, economic, and gender justice. Gender JUST has worked successfully within Chicago Public Schools to implement policy changes to ensure that all young people receive a safe and affirming education. With Third Wave’s support, Gender JUST will apply their successful organizing strategy towards winning comprehensive sexuality education and increased access to health resources for queer youth of color in Chicago. In this video, Sam Finklestein, an organizer with Gender JUST, explains why comprehensive sex education that includes all students is a critical part of ending violence in schools. He also discusses their leadership development model for building young people's power to make this kind of change in their own community.
Posted in: Anti-Violence, Blog, Comprehensive Sex Ed, Gender JUST, Youth Organizing