2022 Racial & Social Justice Committee Recap

Another year has come and gone!

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2022 was full of new beginnings and restarts after hitting pause the last couple of years. Our Racial & Social Justice Committee worked very hard to continue promoting diversity and inclusivity, and highlighting the social justice issues important to our community. This committee is made up of agency leaders, programmatic staff, board members, and community partners committed to the work and mission of YWCA Spokane. Learn more about the committee here.

This year’s Stand Against Racism event returned to an in-person setting with a virtual option. Held at the Woman’s Club of Spokane, it was an expert-led conversation focused on housing and income equality in Spokane.

We continued that and more conversations surrounding race, equity, and social justice in April with this year’s 21-Day Equity Challenge. Over the course of the challenge, 129 participants registered to take this challenge; many of whom took the challenge back to their organizations to help deepen their collective RSJ knowledge.

With this virtual educational series, we provided: 149 articles; 33 videos; 31 interactive tools; 21 infographics; and 11 podcast series on issues including critical race theory, wage gaps, colorism, period poverty, and reproductive justice.

We continued our Pathways Forward virtual series with a Pride-focused event in June and highlighted the impacts of the legal system in October during Domestic Violence Action Month. Partnering with Mujeres in Action and Lutheran Community Services, we provided a legal candidate forum at Spokane Public Library’s Central branch during mid-term elections.

We were also grateful to see Transformations Camp return this past August to the Spokane community in partnership with Jaime Stacy and SWAG. This week-long empowerment camp centers the experiences of 11-16 year olds who identify as young women of color.

Every month, we sat down with a community member or organization to highlight their work and impact in Spokane through our RSJ Spotlight Series. The series is a platform to share stories, lived experiences, and the work that’s being done to create real and lasting change for a more equitable Spokane. You can read December’s spotlight on local fashion line, dom+bomb, here. If you or someone you know should have their advocacy work highlighted through our RSJ Spotlight series, please email our equity coordinator, larae@ywcaspokane.org.

Collectively, the RSJ Committee contributed 1,240 volunteer hours and connected with 75 organizations through various advocacy efforts, such as Get Out The Vote!

The YWCA Spokane Racial and Social Justice Committee is grateful for its dedicated members and the opportunities we’ve had this year to lift up and collaborate more deeply with our community partners.

Want to learn more? You can read our 2022 Committee Charter here. Open enrollment happens every June. Learn more here.

Click or tap the image above to read the full report in either digital version or print version!