Khmer Girls in Action

Long Beach, CA

Proposition 73 and 76 defeated! Thanks to organizations like Khmer Girls in Action who worked to mobilize and educate voters on the proposed amendment to California’s Constitution.

Khmer Girls in Action works with young Khmer (Cambodian) women in Long Beach to organize for positive social change and a healthy and powerful Khmer community in Long Beach. KGA empowers young Khmer women to enact systemic change through political education, feminist consciousness raising, leadership development, community-based research, grass-roots organizing, and cultural programming.

In the months leading up to the November 2005 decisions, KGA was one of the few organizations to bring the voices and concerns of young women of color to the table. This voters campaign was a powerful platform to speak out about health and safety concerns, as well as the attack on a fundamental right of young women. KGA members walked precincts, phone banked, organized street actions and raised funds to support this campaign.

KGA’s cultural programming develops models of leadership development, identity exploration, gender analysis, and political consciousness through various forms of cultural expression that resonate with the young women served. Through print publications and performances, the increased visibility of young Khmer women’s voices has helped to transform traditional norms and changed the image of who is a community leader.