GGE: Black Girls Influencing Change
By Joanne N. Smith, President and CEO, Girls for Gender Equity
Dear Community,
Advocating for young people and teaching them to advocate for themselves is at the heart of what we do. Our policy and advocacy work gives young people the opportunity to speak truth to power, which has never been more critical than in the COVID-19 pandemic.
GGE youth organizers and staff at Lobby Day in Albany.
The photos were taken prior to the COVID-19 outbreak.
In March, right before the pandemic forced us all to move our work online, GGE staff and program participants attended a Lobby Day at the New York State Capital. Lobby Day is an opportunity for constituents to meet with legislators and discuss their most pressing policy concerns. On top of a day full of meetings, we held a rally on the capitol steps with NY Senators Salizar and Montgomery to remove the word “incorrigible” from legislation. This term, which means “not able to be corrected, rehabilitated, or reformed” has been used for over 100 years to describe and single out Black girls and youth of color in the juvenile justice system for not matching stereotypical feminine behaviors. Removing this word from legislation was a critical step in ensuring that Black girls and girls of color are no longer seen as “unreformable” within the Family Court system.
Program participant Anaiah spoke at our rally…
“As an African American, I have been a victim of the criminalization of my people. We are looked at as less than humans all because of our skin color. [Black girls] are not allowed to have a hard day without being labeled as angry or having an attitude. The word incorrigible is a prime example of this injustice. Incorrigible means’ ‘ the inability to be reformed “ Which should not be used to describe a human. This word has been used by the juvenile justice system for over 100 years and it does not reflect today’s values in justice reform. We’ve had enough!!”
GGE youth organizers and staff at Lobby Day in Albany are pictured with Senator Julia Salazar, Assemblyman Félix Ortiz, and Assemblywoman Aravella Simotas. The photos were taken prior to the COVID-19 outbreak.
Days after our trip to the state capital, COVID-19 changed all of our lives. GGE quickly transitioned to a fully virtual office, including programs with young people. We pivoted to forefront building power online by holding press conferences and collaborating with fellow Brooklyn-based organizations to protect summer youth employment opportunities. We also launched What’s the Scene, SIS? a three-part Instagram Live series for youth organizers to share their protest experiences during the #BlackLivesMatter movement moment in July and continued to engage with New York City Council to elevate the needs of Black girls.
In the Spring, GGE youth organizer Jessica gave testimony at the City Council’s Panel for Education Policy (PEP) Budget hearing to share how young people’s voices are not included in the educational budget decisions that directly affect their lives. GGE knows that the push to build momentum on bringing youth voices into adult spaces is critical to defeating systems that harm young people.
Youth organizer Jessica said…
“Access to opportunity is unequal. There’s an increasing number of students who are giving up on their dreams. It is we as students who bear the consequences of an unequal education system, but it should not solely be our responsibility to fix it. A strong public education system requires work from all adults. The education that youth are advocating for must start now. If not, we will all be left behind. Start giving the ones left behind the education we deserve.”
Onward.