Invest in Women in the Washington DC Metro Area

• "We know in this country that 98% of other occupations are paid more than people who are working with our youngest children. And within that, we know that we have some serious racial inequities and wage gaps. As we think about building back better, for me it really means having those educators who are the linchpin to early care and education quality, thriving and for these to be good jobs so that we have people clamoring to be early educators in this country." - Dr. Lea Austin, director of the Center for the Study of Childcare Employment at UC Berkeley

• "We don't see any accurate, published data around the early care sector. We only have estimates. It's very important for public policy and implementation to have hard data and mixed data. The voices of women themselves need to be taken in account." - Nitza Seguí Albino, Vice Chair of the board of DC's Multicultural Spanish Speaking Provider Association

• Why is it so hard to get more compensation for education workers?  "Because its work performed by women and women of color - we know in this country, work by people of color and women is grossly undervalued."  Dr. Lea Austin, director of the Center for the Study of Childcare Employment at UC Berkeley

Links:

• Our Website
• Watch the webinar now!

This #AskHer webinar features Bré Rivera, a program officer at Groundswell Fund. We discussed issues most impacting the lives of Black and trans people in the nonprofit and philanthropy sectors. This timely conversation was moderated by Director of Communications, Mercy Chikowore.

This timely conversation had so many key points including:

• For every $100 awarded by U.S. foundations only .04 cents supports transgender communities. [Source] 
• The Black Trans Fund -- with a team and Advisory Board of Black trans people -- is a groundbreaking endeavor: the first national fund in the country dedicated to uplifting and resourcing Black trans social justice leaders.
• There is a focus on Black trans communities being victims and not victors, which adds to the spike in violence and discrimination we're seeing against Black trans every year. 
• Bré lifted up how policies that apply to cisgendered communities don't always apply to trans communities, and doesn't account for transphobia: "There is a belief that in order for trans folks to thrive, we have to be as close to cisgendered folks as possible. I don't believe that is true."

Learn more about the Black Trans Fund:

• 5-year plan for BTF
• "About BTF"
• A link to BTF's Spring Donor Briefing featuring some of their grantees
• Links to social media: Instagram and Twitter

This was such a necessary conversation, which highlighted the lack of support and funding where it's needed the most. While we only scratched the surface on a few layers of the conversation, I encourage you to share this recording widely with your networks. 

Ready for our next #AskHer webinar? We're discussing intersectional feminism on October 18th with Dr. Kimberlé Crenshaw, Co-founder and Executive Director of the African American Policy Forum. RSVP today!

If you'd like to stay engaged with The Women's Foundation, please review our anti-racism resources, sign up to learn more about our fight for gender and racial justice, and donate so we can invest in women and girls of color.

#AskHer / #AskThem is an interview series featuring women and gender non-conforming leaders, and The Women’s Foundation’s partners, community members and supporters who work tirelessly for women and girls. We curate in-depth conversations around complex issues affecting our constituents. Issues ranging from racism, racial justice, women, girls, intersectionality and more will be covered.

Watch the webinar here: https://wawf.org/askherblacktransrecap

Links:

• Our website
• Watch the webinar now!