Post on 02-Jan-2016
transcript
Blueprint for Investing in Girls and Young Women
Susan Leicher
Thompson & Columbus, Inc.
September 2015
VOICES FROM THE FIELD: Blueprint for Investing in Girls & Young Women
VOICES FROM THE FIELD SERIES
The second of four Voices from the Field reports:
• Cover roles, strengths, challenges and best ways to support NYC’s low-income women and girls at four major developmental stages of their lives:
− 0 - 8− 9 - 24− 25 - 59− 60+
• Based on literature and the first-hand views of leading experts
VOICES FROM THE FIELD: Blueprint for Investing in Girls & Young Women
DEMOGRAPHICS: Size and Scope
• 800,000 strong: roughly 10% total NYC population
• 75% are young women of color or young women from immigrant families
- 50% immigrants or the daughters of immigrants- 16% live in “linguistically isolated” homes
• Race/Ethnicity :
- 13% Asian- 25% Black - 35% Latina - 25% White
• LBQ Self-Identification:
- Asian: 9%- Black: 21%- Latina: 22%- White: 11%
VOICES FROM THE FIELD: Blueprint for Investing in Girls & Young Women
DEMOGRAPHICS: Economic Situation
• 30% girls, age 9-18, live in households below the Federal Poverty Line
- Asians: 26% - Blacks: 30%- Latinas: 40%- Whites: 18%
• Many more live just above the Federal Poverty Line
• The FPL significantly undercounts actual economic insecurity
VOICES FROM THE FIELD: Blueprint for Investing in Girls & Young Women
DEMOGRAPHICS: Living Situations
• 45%: More than one adult caregiver
• 55%: One adult caregiver (for 25,000 that caregiver is a grandmother)
• As many as 10,000 in highly unstable living situations:
- 2,000 in child welfare system- 4,000 commercially trafficked or enslaved- 5,000 – 10,000 homeless/“on the streets”
VOICES FROM THE FIELD: Blueprint for Investing in Girls & Young Women
THE STARTING LINE: Assets and Strengths
• Vital Family Supporters
- Wage earners- Translators/interpreters/advocates- Caregivers for other family members
• Independent Agents
- School system- Health/mental health system- Reproductive health system
• Natural Leaders
- STEM – with a purpose- Community Change
VOICES FROM THE FIELD: Blueprint for Investing in Girls & Young Women
THE HURDLES
• Pervasively undermining messages
• Dangerous environmental conditions
• Limited, constraining or dangerous family circumstances
• Inadequate focus on their strengths, needs, and situations
VOICES FROM THE FIELD: Blueprint for Investing in Girls & Young Women
Messages
• Behavior: “keep quiet and do what you are told”
• Roles: “serve the needs of others”
• Background: bias against race/ethnicity, immigration status, religion or appearance
VOICES FROM THE FIELD: Blueprint for Investing in Girls & Young Women
Environmental Conditions
• Crumbling housing/industrial waste
• Limited access to good nutrition/recreational facilities
• Pervasive violence
VOICES FROM THE FIELD: Blueprint for Investing in Girls & Young Women
Family Circumstances
• Lack of survival assets
• Overworked parents
• Inappropriate adult demands/role reversals
• Constrained definitions of success
• Overt preferential treatment of boys
• Serious unaddressed family issues
VOICES FROM THE FIELD: Blueprint for Investing in Girls & Young Women
SERVICE INFRASTRUCTURE: Don’t They Care About Us?
• Inadequate focus on strengths, talents, passions and skills
• Inadequate focus on situations, challenges, and needs
VOICES FROM THE FIELD: Blueprint for Investing in Girls & Young Women
OUTCOMES: Losses and Costs
• Education:
- 40% of NYC girls of color do not finish high school- Only 12% are “college ready” upon graduation
• Health:
- 23-26% of black and Latina girls have asthma - 11-12% of black and Latina girls are obese- One in seven NYC Latina girls attempts suicide
• Safety:
- Up to 10,000 are pushed into foster care, into the commercial sex trade or into homelessness
VOICES FROM THE FIELD: Blueprint for Investing in Girls & Young Women
BEST PRACTICE SOLUTIONS
• Incorporate certain consistent across-the-board features:
- Take cues from girls themselves - Provide a safe space in which to acknowledge, discuss and address challenges- Provide opportunities to explore diverse skills and talents (academic, artistic,
athletic, leadership)- Provide opportunities to make a difference – for themselves and for others
• Provide survival resources as appropriate
• Produce extraordinary results
VOICES FROM THE FIELD: Blueprint for Investing in Girls & Young Women
SUMMARY OF TAKE-AWAYS
• Girls in communities of color/immigrant communities fill vital roles
• They face challenges rooted in the intersecting forces of poverty, racial/ethnic prejudice, and gender bias
• Current service system inadequately focuses on their situations and strengths
• Best practices include providing greater safety, a larger voice, and better opportunities
• Investment in best practice produces major short- and long-term results
VOICES FROM THE FIELD: Blueprint for Investing in Girls & Young Women
Panelists:
Dr. Angela Diaz, Director, Mount Sinai Adolescent Health Center
Amanda Kraus, Founder & Executive Director, Row NY
Cidra M. Sebastien, Associate Executive Director, Brotherhood/Sister Sol
Moderator:
Margarita Rosa, Executive Director, National Center for Law and Economic Justice
VOICES FROM THE FIELD: Blueprint for Investing in Girls & Young Women