About the The Empower Fellowship
The Youth Activist – Youth Allies (YA-YA) Network provides training and leadership experience to the next generation of activists in the movement for social and economic justice. YA-YA is a youth-driven, citywide, anti-racist, anti-sexist organization and allies with the LGBTQ+ community. We provide free (and often with stipend) core training to young activists.
Looking for similar opportunities, join Opportunity Cell on WhatsApp or Telegram here.
What do we do?
Empower focuses on identity/leadership development, as well as building our knowledge and practice in solidarity work. We acknowledge in the work we do to address and deconstruct our biases, personal narratives, and our understandings of power, privilege, and oppression, that we must learn not only how to make space for ourselves and for our communities, but understand our participation in the systems that oppress those that endure what we do not. We acknowledge the power in advocating for ourselves while also recognizing our individual impact and value within our communities and the importance of our active advocacy and solidarity for those outside our communities. We do this all, understanding that this growth rests beyond our comfort zones.
Who Joins the Empower Fellowship?
- This Empower Fellowship is for those who are interested in beginning their journeys of unlearning internalized messages about themselves and their communities, and it is for those interested in expanding their knowledge, understanding, and advocacy of groups outside their communities and identities.
- It is for those interested in breaking down their barriers and becoming leaders.
- Those that join the Empower Fellowship are open-minded, critical and self-reflective, curious, community-orientated and interested in social justice, excited to use what they learn about themselves and about others to begin organizing, and willing to push themselves into what we call their “learning zones”, even if it means becoming uncomfortable and engaging with concepts you have never engaged with before.
- Ultimately, having a background in social justice and organizing is not the most important thing, your willingness to learn and advocate for others is.
When? Where? How?
- The Empower Fellowship will take place every Wednesday from 5:00-7:00pm from September 22nd until the end of March 9th. Until further notice, Empower will be running online via Zoom.
- A shift to in-person will only occur after careful consideration of present circumstances and CDC guidelines, which will be assessed in November. YA-YA will give ample notice if such a shift is to occur.
- Young folks will engage in a variety of workshops rooted in popular education, with a focus on identity development, self-esteem, confidence building/self-advocacy, and leadership training, and allyship.
- In the last stages of the fellowship, young folks will complete a self-led action project in which they will be expected to engage in advocacy work outside of program meeting times.
Remuneration
- The Empower Fellowship is a stipended opportunity.
How to Apply
- CLICK HERE, for the Official Notification.
- CLICK HERE, to apply for the Fellowship.
- For more information, or questions contact Divine Ndombo at [email protected]
Looking for similar opportunities, join Opportunity Cell on WhatsApp or Telegram here.
