Young Women's Initiative Report & Recommendations
The Young Women’s Initiative Report and Recommendations describes a year long process convened by the New York City Council. This participatory strategy culminated in a comprehensive blueprint for investing in the future of young women and girls in New York City over the long-term, particularly those of color.
The initiative addresses the needs of young women and girls ages 12–24, spotlights the issues experienced by women and girls of color, in particular, and embraces an “inclusive framework around gender beyond the binary, ensuring that transgender women and gender-non-conforming young women are also centered in this work.”
The Young Women’s Initiative gained the interest of the public when it launched a communications strategy on social media platforms, #SheWillBe. The campaign was designed to counter the negative messages that young women and girls receive from the media as well as encouraging young women and girls to use their voices to promote change.
Prevention practitioners will be interested in the findings of the five working groups that convened to craft this report: health, economic and workforce development, community support and opportunity, education, and anti-violence and criminal justice.
The overarching recommendations outlined are a must read for anyone interested in improving the health, and the emotional and physical safety, of girls and young women of color at each level of the social ecology and has, at its foundation, a strong social justice framework.
Access the report and additional information about the initiative from Girls for Gender Equity's website.
