GGE Update: What's Next for the School Girls Deserve Campaign

The following announcement was submitted by Brittany Brathwaite, Manager of Organizing and Innovation for Girls for Gender Equity. 

Earlier this week we held the School Girls Deserve Press Conference on the steps of NYC City Hall, and it was a huge success!

Girls for Gender Equity is driving the conversation in New York City around sexual harassment and gender and racial equity in our public schools, but we're not alone! At Tuesday's press conference we had the support of many City Council Members such as Council Majority Leader Laurie Cumbo, Education Chair Mark Treyger, Council Member and Co-chair of the Women and Gender Equity Committee Helen Rosenthal, Council Member Co-chair of the Women’s Caucus Carlina Rivera, Higher Education Chair Inez Barron, Council Member Adrienne E. Adams and Council Member Robert Cornegy Jr.

We also had the support of amazing organizational partners, activists and organizers such as Brotherhood Sistersol, DRUM, DSC-NYC, Women’s Sports Foundation, Planned Parenthood NYC, the ACLU, Girl Scouts of NYC, Bronx Legal Services, Lambda Legal, Connect NYC, National Women's Law Center, the NYC Alliance Against Sexual Assault, Carrie Goldberg, Esq., NYC Anti-violence Project, SafeBae, and Girls Inc. 

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After the press conference, we joined our partner organizations and other advocates in the New York City Council Chambers for the Oversight Hearing on Title IX and Gender Discrimination, where our Young Women's Advisory Council youth organizers gave testimony that made it painfully clear how desperately NYC Department of Education (DOE) needs to act to protect students.

At the close of the hearing, Council Member Helen Rosenthal said, "Your testimony here reflects a deeper understanding of why [the] education [you've provided] is important. Each of your stories is about the climate that you're in and how it's not conducive to learning. And you've explained it very well, and I'm sorry the DOE didn't stay here to hear and understand what you said. But we're here, and we heard you, and we want to thank you." 

The fight continues... We'll be testifying at the Executive Budget Hearing for Education on May 20th for the NYC DOE to fulfill our ask to hire seven additional full-time Title IX Coordinators.

We'll also be working on our second campaign ask for NYC DOE to adopt an affirming and supportive city-wide dress code. 

Thank you for your continued support as we work to make schools a safe place for all Black and Brown girls, trans and gender non-conforming and non-binary youth of color!