Washington

Fair Fund: Don't look the other way as girls are exploited in D.C.

Posted on by Andrea Powell

I recently returned from a trip to former Yugoslavia, where my organization, FAIR Fund–a Grantee Partner of The Women’s Foundation–leads a program designed to help sexually exploited, homeless, and trafficked girls find safety and meet basic needs like housing or legal documentation.

These 20 girls, and more than 200 like them in Serbia, Kosovo, and Bosnia, have mainly been living on the streets. At ages as young as 11, many of these girls have been sold into a life of prostitution and are often forced to use drugs by dangerous pimps. These are not hidden girls and often the pimps are well known by local law enforcement.  I have seen people just walk right past these children and look the other way.  They are begging for food, they are standing dirty on street corners, they are being kept in abandoned buildings that are just blocks away from major centers of business and neighborhoods.

I have many times asked myself and others, including governmental representatives, one question that I have yet to find the answer:  How can you walk past these girls? If you know they are there, why won’t you reach your hand out?

In a country where leading MSNBC reporters will casually use phrases like “pimp out,” or where top selling rap artists name their songs P.I.M.P., we are also turning our backs on some of the most vulnerable youth of today’s society. 

So, I can’t judge without also acknowledging that right here in Washington, D.C., we are also walking right past girls and boys who are in desperate need of assistance.  In D.C. alone, law enforcement identify sometimes as many as 26 girls monthly who have been exploited through commercial sexual exploitation. 

Many of these girls, just like their young counterparts across the world in places like Serbia and Kosovo, are being controlled and abused by pimps.  Here in D.C., someone looking to purchase sex from a child need to look no further than Craigslist and the ads are right there on their erotica section. Or, drive through the downtown area of Washington, D.C. late at night and you will see those girls.

Here are three simple things you can do to help right here in D.C.:

  1. Don’t look the other way.  If you see a young person who looks like they may need help, you can call the Washington D.C. Police Department and speak to the Youth Division or call 911.
  2. Be conscious of language.  If you hear someone casually using the word pimp, take five minutes to explain to them that pimps are not cool, that they are abusive and controlling people who exploit those more vulnerable–often girls as young as 11.
  3. Get involved.  Volunteer with youth groups to mentor or speak with youth at risk of exploitation.  Many of the girls we work with from places as far away as Bosnia to right here in D.C. really just need someone to listen to them and sometimes explain to them how to keep themselves safe.

Andrea Powell is the executive director and co-founder of FAIR Fund, a 2007 Leadership Awardee of The Women’s Foundation.

Ascensions: If we can change lives with $100, imagine what we can do with $5,000. Vote today!

Posted on by Dr. Satira Streeter

Ascensions Community Services provides psychological and community interventions to low-income families in Washington, D.C.’s Wards 7 and 8.  We provide clients with the assistance they need to improve their self-concept, interpersonal relationships, and make positive contributions to their communities.

One example of our recent work stemmed from a simple gift of $100, which we used to affect a group of young women’s attitudes about themselves and the changes they experience in adolescence.

In October, myself and one of our other therapists started a group for girls ages 8-11. All of our girls live in Anacostia and go to Moten Elementary school in southeast D.C. 

The $100 gift helped pay for our “Little Ladies Tea” last Wednesday in which our guest speaker was Dr. Saunders, a pediatrician who wrote a book titled Ooops, a story about a young lady beginning her menstrual cycle.  Each of the girls was able to take home a book along with an “Ooops pack” for feminine care.

I was already excited about doing this presentation in this format, but it became all the more real to me in a recent therapy session with a 35 year-old single mother of four.  This woman had been repeatedly abused and neglected as a child.  As we were talking about her history and how her mother had not “prepared her for life,” one thing that she remarked about being most upset about is that neither her mother, nor her five older sisters, ever took the time out to explain to her her cycle and how she should take care of herself, or how she would know her period was coming.

Not only did we invite the mothers to participate in the tea last week, we also sent home information about how to start and continue this discussion–which is so important in a young ladies’ life. 

This whole "period" thing seems so small to some, but it was huge to my girls and their moms.  This past week, I’ve talked to several of the mothers that thanked me for bringing the doctor in and they all shared their stories of assuming starting your cycle meant you were a "woman now."

My prayer is that our message last week got through, that the girls are just girls, who now have to take special care of themselves once a month, and not "women" who should start having sex or think about having kids.

The Women’s Foundation has changed my life, which therefore helped me change the lives of others.  Being a woman is great, but helping women and girls is greater!

We’re so grateful for the gifts that make this work possible, and hope that you’ll vote for us in the online vote to help fuel even more work on behalf of the women and girls we serve.

The online vote continues through February 15.  Vote today.

Dr. Satira S. Streeter is the founder and clinical director of Ascensions Community Services, a 2007 Leadership Awardee and African American Women’s Giving Circle grantee.

DCWA: Plan to purge up to 57,000 from affordable housing wait list needs more time, outreach.

Posted on by Debbie Billet-Roumell

The DC Women’s Agenda is very concerned over the DC Housing Authority’s plan to purge the waiting list for the Housing Voucher Program. The DC Housing Authority (DCHA) is attempting to reach the 57,000 families by mail in a two-month period and if the family does not respond by March 11th, 2008, the family will be taken off the wait list.

Many of these very low-income families, the majority who were making less than $30,000 at the time of their application, are transient and/or homeless.

Some of them have been on the waiting list for over seven years.

DCHA is using the address placed on the application for the voucher to locate these families. In many cases, the address was a temporary shelter or that of a relative who has long since moved without a current forwarding address. DC shelters do not have the resources to make thousands of calls to track these families down and certainly cannot undertake this task on such a short timeline.  And, in some instances, these families are fleeing domestic violence and are currently in a shelter with an undisclosed address.

The DC Women’s Agenda is recommending that the DCHA extend the timeline for one year and establish a plan in consultation with service providers to the homeless to include public service announcements, posters in the metro and buses and other methods of communication.

Debbie Billet-Roumell is Coordinator of the D.C. Women’s Agenda, a Grantee Partner of The Women’s Foundation.  The DC Women’s Agenda is a local advocacy and policy coalition, comprised of a broad group of organizations and individuals, to promote the advancement of equality health and well-being of women and girls in Washington, D.C. The DC Women’s Agenda is chaired by the DC Employment Justice Center and Wider Opportunities for Women–both of which are also Grantee Partners of The Women’s Foundation

Looking at the mortgage crisis through a gender lens.

Posted on by carolee

Staff from homeless shelters and advocates for the homeless spent much of yesterday canvassing the metropolitan area for a “point in time” study to get a count on the region’s homeless population, and to learn more details about their needs and challenges.

Laurel Advocacy and Referral Services (LARS), a Washington Area Women’s Foundation Grantee Partner, participated in this study and was highlighted in today’s Washington Post article, "A Growing Desperation: Housing, Economic Slumps May Portend Rise in Ranks of Region’s Homeless, Survey Shows."

Studies such as this are important because they allow service providers to get a handle on the rising homeless population and help to guide their services based on real data collected on the numbers of people they serve. It helps them make their case.

And it shows the continued, powerful fallout from the mortgage crisis – from the huge impact on homeowners with subprime loans, who are disproportionately women, to workers in the service and construction industries.

As the Washington Post piece explains, these families are “doing the right thing,” but the weakening economy is hitting very close to home for the already vulnerable women in the Washington region – more than half of families living in poverty here are headed by single mothers.

At times like this, it is important to recognize and support the work of organizations like The Women’s Foundation’s Grantee Partners, such as LARS, who provide vital services to low-income women and their families in our community.

Other resources on this issue and its impact on women are:
Buying for Themselves: An Analysis of Unmarried Female Homebuyers

Women are Prime Targets for Subprime Lending: Women are Disproportionately Represented in High-Cost Mortgage Market (Press release) (Report)

Learn more about our Grantee Partners and how you can be involved in their work and make a difference in women’s lives.

Powerful testimony on poverty inspires hope for positive change in D.C.

Posted on by Sharon Levin

Last week, Washington Area Women’s Foundation and several of our Grantee Partners testified at an incredible DC City Council Roundtable Hearing called “Poverty Issues: Developing a Public/Private Strategy Aimed at Eliminating Poverty Among District Residents.”

I was truly impressed by the commitment to addressing poverty in our community that was apparent at this hearing. More than 100 people signed up to be witnesses – in fact, such a large number of people wanted to testify that the hearing had to be extended from one to two days!

Witnesses came from every corner of the District and from every segment of the anti-poverty community – funders (like The Women’s Foundation), academics, researchers, clergy, tenant association members, businesspeople…the list goes on.

The most moving testimony, though, came from those who provide services directly to the city’s low-income population (like our Grantee Partners) and the individuals who came forward to discuss how these programs helped them to move from poverty to financial independence. I am in awe of the bravery of the women and men who testified on the record (and on cable TV) about their very personal trials.

Among those Grantee Partners who testified: Capital Area Asset Builders, Covenant House Washington, DC Employment Justice Center, DC Women’s Agenda, Empower DC, MANNA Inc., Marshall Heights Community Development Organization, Inc., My Sister’s Place, Inc., the Rebecca Project for Human Rights, So Others Might Eat and Wider Opportunities for Women.

The commitment of the Members of the Committee on Housing and Urban Affairs is also to be commended. Chairman Marion Barry and Council Members Yvette Alexander, Muriel Bowser and Tommy Wells were all present for a significant portion of the two days of hearings.  As somebody who has worked for two Members of Congress, I can tell you that that is an exceptional amount of time to dedicate to one hearing.  All of the Councilmembers carefully listened to each of the witnesses and asked thoughtful questions of each – all 100-plus of them.

The question now, of course, is what happens next.  Councilman Barry has stated that he plans to create a concrete policy agenda to address poverty in D.C.  Hopefully, this effort will lead to the creation of, and additional funding for, effective programs that help low-income people acquire the tools they need to provide for themselves and their families. To that end, The Women’s Foundation will continue to offer our expertise.

I have to say, though, that regardless of what laws eventually get passed, I think the Roundtable Hearing had a purpose unto itself (and you cannot say that about every hearing that is held before the City Council). Experts had the chance to educate the Committee about the parameters of poverty in D.C. Anti-poverty organizations were able to discuss their programs directly with Councilmembers – and I saw several meetings being set up so that Councilmembers could follow-up on the testimony.

Most importantly, the hearing gave a voice to so many people who are often voiceless in Washington. It is a powerful thing to command the attention of lawmakers. It was inspiring to see that power handed to those who must need it.

To check out video of the testimony of The Women’s Foundation, its Grantee Partners and others, click here.  These hearings took place on January 16th before the Housing Committee, and on January 17th before the Housing Committee.

To read The Women’s Foundation’s testimony:
Short version
Extended version

Tell us how you'd invest $5,000 in our community.

Posted on by Lisa Kays

Bummed that the writer’s strike meant no Golden Globes this year?  Miss the glitz and glamor of the red carpet?

Well, we may not have glitz and glamor, but we do have an awards process for you!  And this time, you’re invited to be part of the academy…the academy of social change!

It’s our way of rolling out the red carpet to you!

Visit us from February 1-15th and vote for the 2007 Leadership Awardee that you think stands to make the greatest long-term impact on the lives of women and girls in our region. 

It’s the "People’s Choice of Philanthropy" and it’s all about social change–long-term, true change in social structures, institutions and processes that permanently address the root causes that foster inequity.

We’ve got eight outsanding organizations that are all doing effective, life-changing work for women and girls in the area of health and safety for you to learn about, choose from and then vote on. 

The 2007 Leadership Awards Committee has already done the leg work for you, researching and interviewing organizations, going on site visits and engaging in serious deliberations to get to this pool of eight outstanding awardees.

Now it’s your turn to weigh in on an even tougher decision–which among them stands the best chance of contributing positively to the women and girls in our community.

Get a head-start here, and then come back in February to cast your vote!  As we’ve learned before, saying no to get to the yes vote isn’t always as easy as one might think, so do your research, get ready, and vote!

The organization that receives the most votes will win an award of $5,000 in addition to their $10,000 Leadership Award–all a result of you using your voice for social change!

And if you would like an email reminder to come back and vote, or if you’d like more information about how to be a part of the 2008 Leadership Awards Committee, just drop me a line at lkays@wawf.org.

For more information, view the press release.

Phyllis Caldwell is New at the Top!

Posted on by Lisa Kays

2008 is a new year for us all, and particularly for The Women’s Foundation as we head into it with a new leader at the top! 

The Washington Post highlighted Phyllis’ appointment with The Women’s Foundation and her career to date in their New at the Top column on New Year’s Eve.  Check it out here online, or as a PDF here.

In the piece, Phyllis discusses her childhood roots in social action and philanthropy, the transition from the corporate world to that of a small foundation (us!), the five themes she carries with her always, her respect for the importance of risk-taking and her take on how the corporate world, government and the philanthropic sectors must all work together if meaningful social change is to be achieved.

Phyllis says, "It’s very easy in business to talk about earnings growth and shareholder returns; in philanthropy, talking about the mission; and in government, the spending and voter initiatives. It’s much more complex to have the three working together around a common goal. And I think one of the things that motivate many of us in the community development industry is the change that can happen when we have the power of these three working together."

See what else Phyllis has to say, and what everyone is saying about her and The Women’s Foundation right here.

What's the state of (women's) philanthropy in our region?

Posted on by Lisa Kays

Washington Grantmakers just released its annual giving report, "Our Region, Our Giving 2007."

I haven’t had a chance to look over the whole report yet, but I did have a chance to steal some stats from their blog.

It seems that investing in the Washington metropolitan region is taking off, even if Newsweek is talking up giving globally this week.

According to the annual giving report, in our area:

  • National foundations have more than tripled their investments in our region, with $1.5 billion today compared to $407 million in 1992;
  • Local foundations are investing 63% of their philanthropic dollars in this region – a significant rise from only 46% fifteen years before; and,
  • The assets of the region’s community foundations have grown from $31.5 million to $412.5 million.

Nothing to shake a stick at.

And just to round it out, here are some figures on how the philanthropic landscape looks in our region when seen through a gender lens–from our 2003 Portrait Project.

  • Women-led foundations oversaw more than $141.2 million in giving in 2001.  However, analysis of 12,000 grants made in 2003 by the top 100 foundations showed that of the $441 million in grants paid, only $30.7 million–or 7%–went to women’s and girls’ programs (a trend still reflected nationally as of 2006).  Of those, only about half went to organizations in the region.
  • Only 2.86%of grants made by foundations formed between 1996 and 2003 in the Washington metropolitan area currently with assets of at least $1 million went to women’s and girls’ programs.
  • Women lead 28 percent of the largest foundations established in the region since 1996.
  • Women play a significant role in the management of the top 100 foundations, directly leading 34 of them and serving on the boards of 85 in 2003.

Now, I know you’re wondering…where does Washington Area Women’s Foundation fit into all of this after being around for nearly a decade?

Washington Area Women’s Foundation:

  • is the only donor-supported public foundation in the region that works to improve the lives of low-income women and girls and to increase philanthropy by all women (i.e. 100% of our grantmaking is devoted to improving the lives of women and girls).
  • The Women’s Foundation currently provides more than $1 million annually in grantmaking devoted to women and girls in our region.
  • Since 1998, The Women’s Foundation has provided more than $4.1 million in grants to more than 100 outstanding Grantee Partners throughout our region, all working to change the lives of women and girls.
  • The Women’s Foundation is one of the fastest growing women’s funds in the country.

And that’s after just 10 short years.  Just imagine what we’ll do in the next 10. 

We’re more motivated than ever, particularly given the ever-increasing importance of focusing grantmaking, strategy, discussion and advocacy on the needs of our region’s women and girls. 

Because women and girls are worth way more than just 8%.  So, to make up the difference, we’re giving them 110% and growing, and changing the lives of everyone involved along the way.

What are women business owners contributing to our economy?

Posted on by Lisa Kays

Inspired by Roxana’s post on women entrepreneurs and the study Trinity University conducted for The Women’s Foundation about how to support them, I couldn’t help but click when I came across an article in the Jacksonville Times-Union called "Women mean business: $18 billion worth."

The article cited a study that showed how women-owned businesses in northeast Florida had made an $18.8 billion impact on the local economy and created more than 200,000 jobs.

The study was done similarly to the way that Trinity had done theirs in our area, and revealed some of the same findings.  Including how women just feel that they can do better on their own, rather than working for someone else.

The article states, "For some reason, [women] think they can do better on their own than somewhere else," said Gwen Martin, managing director of research at the Center for Women’s Business Research. "From these numbers, I’d say they’re right."

It all got me thinking more about the local statistics about women-owned businesses, and the power of investing in women entrepreneurs–and in programs that build their skills and help them step out on their own.

Programs like those found in the directory of women’s small business development that Roxana created with her students.

It got me to thinking about the status of women-owned businesses in our area.  From the Center for Women’s Business Research I learned that as of 2006:

  • In D.C.: There are an estimated 21,706 privately-held, 50% or more women-owned firms, generating $5.4 billion in sales and employing 20,667 people.  Between 1997 and 2006, the number of these firms in the District of Columbia increased by 52.3 percent and sales increased by 48.7 percent.
  • In Virginia: There are an estimated 243,756 privately-held, 50% or more women-owned firms, generating more than $42 billion in sales and employing 320,198 people. These firms account for 40.2 percent of all privately-held firms in the state.
  • In Maryland:  There are an estimated 210,751 privately-held, 50% or more women-owned firms, generating more than $32 billion in sales and employing 223,760 people. These firms account for 41.2 percent of all privately-held firms in the state.

Not too shabby, particularly when you consider the challenges that women face in developing a small business, and particularly low-income women like those featured in the Trinity study.  The challenges cited include access to start-up funding, credit issues, lack of business knowledge and training, time constraints, family commitments, health insurance and a fear of failure.

Given that, it would make sense then that one of the study’s most important questions would be why a woman, and particularly a single, low-income woman without another breadwinner in the home, would even attempt it. 

The study found the following answer, "…As minority low-income single mothers, they are more likely to have experienced difficulties and disadvantages in the labor market. Inadequate income, lack of opportunities to build wealth and assets, insecure jobs, little opportunity for advancement, poor working conditions, and conflicts with supervisors appeared to encourage these women to consider self-employment as a more desirable option than their existing wage employment…"

Trends that sound similar to those expressed in a recent DC Women’s Agenda post on the challenges facing women wage earners in Washington, D.C.

Then there are the Portrait Project‘s findings that throughout our region, women earn less than their male counterparts with the same level of education, due largely to the fact that women are crowded into fields that offer lower wages and fewer benefits.  Nationally, for instance, 23 percent of women are in administrative support roles (compared to 5.4 percent of men) and 17 percent of women are in service jobs (compared to 11 percent of men).  When women do hold professional or managerial jobs, they earn from $12,000 to $16,000 less than their male counterparts.

So it may be that women are feeling that they can do better on their own because, by and large, they can–particularly for low-income women looking at jobs that don’t provide stability, security, insurance or paid leave.

The risk of starting a business may seem small in light of the potential reward of succeeding.

And given the statistics about women-owned businesses in our area, it certainly seems as though investing in their success has a similar risk/reward ratio and is highly likely to pay off. 
 
As the Times-Union article stated, "We can reduce that stress so they can get on with the rest of their lives, whatever their dreams might be."

Learn more about how our Stepping Stones initiative is helping women in our area fulfill their dreams–from owning their own business to advancing in a secure career.  And how you can get involved!

Trinity develops resource for D.C.'s entrepreneurial women!

Posted on by Roxana Moayedi

As a recent Stepping Stones Grantee Partner (I’m an associate professor at Trinity University in Washington, D.C.), I partnered with students in three of my courses over two semesters to develop, conduct, and analyze two community-based research projects to benefit D.C.-area women.

Trinity University takes seriously its role as a member of our community and one of the ways we work to fulfill our social justice mission is by partnering with other community-based organizations to identify and address our area’s needs.

Our community work takes a number of different forms both on and off campus. Not only do we encourage our students to volunteer, we require students to engage in course-based service projects that benefit our community while reinforcing and extending what they learn in class.

And, unusual for an undergraduate institution, we also provide opportunities for undergraduates to perform hands-on research—something which is usually limited to graduate students at larger universities.  These opportunities not only introduce them to sophisticated and rigorous concepts and methods, but allows them to use their own community as a laboratory and a lens, adding depth, dimension, and a grounding in reality to their college educations.

Our students learn “in the ivory tower” as well as “in the neighborhood.”

Our two community-based research projects had different, yet complimentary, focuses. In one course, my students and I conducted three focus groups bringing together low-income single mothers in the D.C. area to gauge their potential interest in starting their own small businesses.

Our key finding was that these women believed that they would never be able to get ahead as someone else’s employee.  They saw small business ownership as the only way they would ever be able to get ahead financially while balancing the competing (and often conflicting) needs of work and family. We compiled our research findings and analysis into a comprehensive report.

Our research explored both the opportunities and advantages women envisioned when considering self-employment, as well as the obstacles they perceived to be keeping them from making the leap from wage employment to micro entrepreneurship. One of the biggest obstacles our research participants identified was a lack of information about resources out there to help them plan—then actually launch—their businesses (primary need, start-up funding).

This finding neatly segued into our second, parallel research project: an online directory of D.C.-area micro enterprise assistance organizations, a project that we researched and compiled over two semesters.

My students and I developed a research instrument to find out specific information about each organization we studied. We compiled a list of local organizations to survey, and students tenaciously contacted these organizations, surveying them then analyzing survey results to judge whether they met our criteria for inclusion. The Association for Enterprise Opportunity’s member directory served as the foundation for this asset-mapping project.

We were able to build on the information they provided and we eventually identified 25 organizations in the Washington metropolitan area that provided micro loans, business training and technical assistance, and/or other relevant information and assistance that women in our community can use to make their entrepreneurial dreams a reality.

Roxana Moayedi is associate professor of sociology at Trinity University, a Grantee Partner of The Women’s Foundation.