Feel Good Friday - Chinese Progressive Association

May is Asian American and Pacific Island (AAPI) Heritage Month and we’re celebrating with the Chinese Progressive Association.

Founded in 1972 and headquartered in San Francisco, California, the Chinese Progressive Association (CPA) “educates, organizes and empowers the low income and working class immigrant Chinese community in San Francisco to build collective power with other oppressed communities to demand better living and working conditions and justice for all people.”

San Francisco’s Chinatown is the largest Chinatown outside of Asia as well as the oldest in North America and, according to the latest census data, residents of Chinese ethnicity make up 21% of San Francisco’s population. The work being done by CPA targets the low income and working class immigrant Chinese community in the city and focuses on community education and organizing, leadership development, and alliance and movement building.

The Tenant Worker Center helps organize tenants to improve their housing conditions, and educates workers to improve their working conditions and achieve economic justice. In 2014, CPA and the Asian Law Caucus helped 280 workers at popular dim sum restaurant Yank Sing win over 4 million dollars in back pay. You can watch this 3-minute video to learn more. To date CPA has helped low wage workers recover over $8 million in owed wages.

CPA also runs a leadership development program for high school students called Youth Mojo (Movement of Justice and Organizing). The work these students do on social issues helps them develop their leadership, public speaking, advocacy and organizing skills.

In 2014, CPA launched Seeding Change, a project designed to grow a national Asian American movement to promote a just, sustainable, and democratic society. Their work includes “building a national pipeline for the next generation of AAPI organizers; creating an infrastructure for AAPI grassroots organizing; and experimenting with building power and scale for our movements toward a vibrant social and economic justice movement.”

Finally, CPA plays an active role in local, statewide, and national alliances to increase the civic engagement of working and immigrant families.

If you’d like to support the work being done by CPA, there are many ways to do so. Volunteer your time, donate your money and help raise awareness of the issues on your favorite social media platform. Follow the Chinese Progressive Association on Facebook, on Twitter @CPASF and Instagram @chineseprogressiveassociation.

Feel Good Friday - Mujeres Unidas y Activas

National Hispanic American Heritage Month runs from September 15th to October 15th which makes this a perfect Feel Good Friday to talk about Mujeres Unidas y Activas, United and Active Women.

Mujeres Unidas y Activas (MUA) is “a grassroots organization of Latina immigrant women with a dual mission of promoting personal transformation and building community power for social and economic justice.” 

It began in 1990 as a project of the Northern California Coalition for Immigrant Rights. At that time MUA had a leadership training for women and a theater project that informed the community about AIDS, domestic violence, and immigrant and workers’ rights. Today, they have offices in San Francisco, Oakland and Union City, and offer a wide range of programs, campaigns and resources to support Latina immigrant women.

MUA support group meetings happen virtually each week and cover topics such as peer counseling, healing and wellness workshops, civic and political education workshops and Zumba classes. MUA also provides access to legal services, a support line for survivors of domestic violence, parenting programs, English classes for staff members, domestic workers and sexual assault crisis counselors, and a group specifically for the thousands of Guatemalan immigrants in the Bay Area who speak Mam. 

Details about all their programs can be found at this link and, for people unable to join a live meeting, there is a page on the website with resources for survivors of violence, domestic workers, immigrants and employers. 

In addition to this wide range of services, MUA also invests in campaign work to strengthen their organization, their leaders and their community power. They focus on rights for immigrant women and domestic workers, as well as language access and civic engagement.

What is the impact of MUA’s work? In response to the coronavirus pandemic, MUA shifted all of its programs to operate remotely. They set up food distribution to members who were hungry, and, through the MUA COVID19 Immigrant Families Relief Fund, they distributed over $500,000 cash relief to current and former participants who were out of work and struggling. MUA’s campaign work helped get the California Domestic Workers Bill of Rights signed into law guaranteeing daily and weekly overtime for domestic workers.

If you’d like to support MUA and the people they help, you can do so by making a donation and amplifying their work on social media. Like their Facebook page and follow them on Twitter @mujrsunidas and Instagram @mujeresunidasyactivas.

 

Feel Good Friday - Womankind Worldwide

Women’s History Month is celebrated all around the world, and today’s Feel Good Friday is going to highlight a global organization, Womankind Worldwide.

Founded on International Women’s Day in 1989 and based in London, Womankind Worldwide is “a global women's rights organisation working in partnership with women’s rights movements to transform the lives of women and girls.” Their vision is “a just world where the rights of all women are respected, valued and realised.”
 
Some grim statistics from their website state that 1 in 3 women around the world experience violence; less than 15% of landholders worldwide are women; and women make up just 24% of parliamentarians worldwide.
 
Because of this, the work Womankind Worldwide does with partner organizations in Ethiopia, Kenya, Nepal, Uganda and Zimbabwe, focuses on three areas:

• Ending all forms of violence against women and girls

• Advancing women’s economic rights

• Strengthening women’s influence and decision-making power

Specific projects in these areas include work to eliminate female genital mutilation and intimate partner violence, fighting to protect women’s land rights and advocating for full economic rights, and improving the representation of women in local leadership while working with communities to challenge and change attitudes towards women.

Since they began, Womankind Worldwide has worked with 282 partners across 37 countries to strengthen women’s movements internationally. In 2020 and 2021, projects with partners directly supported 25,125 individuals. You can read the stories of women realizing their own potential and power at this link. 

If you’re ready to help Womankind Worldwide fight for women’s rights there are many ways you can support them. Join a campaign to demand change, make a donation, and amplify their message on social media. Like their Facebook page and follow them on Twitter @woman_kind and Instagram @womankindworldwide.
 

Feel Good Friday - National Asian Pacific American Women's Forum

Happy Feel Good Friday! We’re profiling another great organization during Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month, The National Asian Pacific American Women's Forum. 

Founded in 1996 by 157 women who recognized the need for an organization that would amplify AAPI women’s stories and experiences, The National Asian Pacific American Women's Forum (NAPAWF) is “the only multi-issue, progressive, community organizing and policy advocacy organization for Asian and Pacific Islander women and girls in the U.S.”

The mission of NAPAWF is “to build power with AAPI women and girls” and they do this by focusing on the following core issues: reproductive health and rights, economic justice, immigrant rights and racial justice.

 

Specific examples of work being done by NAPAWF include: fighting against sex-selective abortion bans which use racist stereotypes to put abortion care out of reach for AAPI women; working to break the “model minority” myth and address wage disparities among AAPI women; and advocating for laws to give immigrant families access to affordable healthcare.

 

There are 14 chapters across the United States with members engaging in policy and structural change, organizing and civic engagement, and legal advocacy and judicial strategy. NAPAWF recently launched a virtual speaker series that explores the way race and gender intersect to impact the lives of AAPI people, from activists to authors. The next event focuses on Asian American women in government and takes place on May 21^st.

 

If you’d like to support the work of NAPAWF there are many ways to do so! Become a member, buy and wear a t-shirt, make a donation, like their Facebook page and follow them on Twitter @NAPAWF.

Feel Good Friday - 9to5 National Association for Working Women

It's the Feel Good Friday before Labor Day so we're celebrating an organization that supports women's labor, the 9to5 National Association for Working Women.

As summarized on their Twitter page, 9to5 is “building a movement for economic justice by engaging directly affected women to get their issues on the public agenda.” Founded in 1973 by a group of female office workers in Boston, 9to5 is “one of the largest, most respected national membership organizations of working women in the U.S.”

There are four 9to5 chapters across the country (California, Colorado, Georgia, Wisconsin) and a national network with members in every state. While chapters focus on specific initiatives relevant for working women in their states, programs on the national level fall into one of four areas:

 

Equal opportunity - On average, women earn only 80 cents for every dollar earned by men and those numbers are lower for women of color. 9to5 is fighting for fair pay laws, equal opportunity policies and protection against workplace harassment. 

 

Work family flexibility - 9to5 believes there should be jobs that allow women the flexibility they need to care for their families. That’s why they’re advocating for paid sick days, more accessible family and medical leave, and equitable pay and benefits for part-time workers.

 

Family supporting jobs - Women need jobs that provide living wages so they financially support their families. 9to5 champions affordable childcare, affordable housing and unemployment insurance policies that protect low-wage workers.

 

Power of participation - 9to5 envisions “full and equal women’s participation and representation in the workforce and local, state and national governing bodies.” They work to educate and empower voters and encourage women’s participation in elections. 

 

All of this organizing and participation has paid off. Some of the major national policies 9to5 has worked for and won include: the 1978 Pregnancy Discrimination Act, the Civil Rights Act of 1991, the Family Medical Leave Act and the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act.

 

9to5 won’t stop until they achieve their vision of full economic equality for women. Ready to join the fight? Make a donation and spread the word on social media by liking the 9to5 Facebook page and following them on Twitter @9to5org.

 

And since it’s been in your head the whole time you were reading this… here. You’re welcome.

Feel Good Friday - Women's International League for Peace and Freedom

Hello my friends! I've returned from my travels in Jordan and Egypt, where everyone we met was warm and welcoming. Unfortunately, conflict in the region is heating up. That's why today's Feel Good Friday is focused on the anti-war Women's International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF).

WILPF is an international NGO founded in 1915, during World War I, by suffragists who saw the connection between their struggle for women's rights and the struggle for peace. The mission of WILPF is "to end and prevent war, ensure that women are represented at all levels in the peace-building process, defend the human rights of women, and promote social, economic and political justice."

There are national sections in 50 countries around the world with an International Secretariat in Geneva and a New York office focused on the work of the United Nations. Programs are divided into four areas:

• Building the movement by "sharing knowledge and articulating agendas for action, securing sustainable funding, expanding our networks, and being responsive to our grassroots."
• Leveraging feminist perspectives on peace by advocating to include women in the peace process and for a feminist UN Security Council.
• Redefining security from military might to an economy that invests in environmental protection, social, and economic rights. Example programs in this area include advocating for peace in Korea and nuclear disarmament around the world.
• Promoting socio-economic justice by connecting grassroots activists to decision-makers in the UN and monitoring developments within the UN and creating publications, articles and newsletters suggesting solutions.

The organization won the Nobel Peace Prize in both 1931 and 1946!

If you'd like to get involved in being an advocate for peace (Nobel prize not guaranteed), you can become a member, sign up for the WILPF newsletter, make a donation and show your support by liking their Facebook page and following them on Twitter @WILPF.

Feel Good Friday - Color of Change

It's Friday again and I'm happy to know people who are involved in projects and groups making a positive difference in the world. I learned about today's Feel Good Friday organization, Color of Change from a friend.

Founded in 2005 by James Rucker and Van Jones, Color of Change "is the nation's largest online racial justice organization." As they state on their website, "we design campaigns powerful enough to end practices that unfairly hold Black people back, and champion solutions that move us all forward. Until justice is real."

You can get a good overview of the organization by watching this 7-minute video, or you can keep on reading. (dramatic pause) Their four main focus areas are economic justice, criminal justice, media justice and power and voice.

Campaign wins in these areas include forcing Glen Beck off the air, convincing FOX to cancel COPS and defending the Jena 6 - a group of students targeted for unfair prosecution in Louisiana. Current campaigns include petitions to demand Simon & Schuster cancel their book deal with white Supremacist Milo Yiannopolous, to call on tech companies not to help Trump build a Muslim register and to tell the Senate to vote NO on Rex Tillerson as Secretary of State.

You can support Color of Change's work by going to the current campaign page and signing some petitions (or starting your own), by making a donation and by staying in the social media loop by liking their Facebook page and following them on Twitter @ColorOfChange.

Until Justice is real.