Category: Youth of Color

Women of Color Amplify Their Voices in the 2014 Midterm Elections!

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Metropolitan areas across Georgia made impressive strides in progressive voter engagement and turnout; Georgia is headed in the right direction.

SPARK Canvassing TeamA heartfelt thanks to the staff of SPARK Reproductive Justice NOW and our enthusiastic canvassing team for your dedication and diligence to our integrated voter engagement work for the 2014 midterm elections.

Progressive voters in Atlanta, the State of Georgia, and across the nation may have lost important Gubernatorial and US Senate races, but we won locally and on the issues!

Latin, African American, and Asian women are an increasingly large voting block within Georgia and the United States. Nationally, women tended to vote for progressive candidates this election cycle. Further, a majority of voters in metropolitan cities and counties across Georgia demonstrated support for progressive policies. Progressive lawmakers were able to maintain majority control of important local seats as demonstrated by the results of the Fulton County Commission race.

Initial data also shows that women of color were particularly supportive of social issues, including reproductive justice and LGBTQI rights this election cycle. Issues like minimum wage and paid leave were won in several states, while personhood was soundly defeated in others. Women of color understand and experience the intersectionality between poverty, race, gender, and access to health care – and brilliantly bring this framework to the polls.

While there is still much work to be done, be encouraged. Georgia is headed in the right direction.

Ms. Benètta M. Standly, MPA
Interim Executive Director
SPARK Reproductive Justice NOW

SPARK Canvassing Positions Available

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SPARK is a reproductive justice (RJ) organization based in Atlanta, GA advocating for policies that protect and expand access to the full range of family planning options, abortion, and sexual health education for women and youth of color in the state of Georgia. Importantly, SPARK ensures the voices of women of color, young parents, and LGBTQQ youth of color living in the south are included in the reproductive rights and justice movements.

SPARK is seeking professional and outgoing individuals to conduct door-to-door and phone canvassing in Fulton County. Canvassers will provide voter education and engage the public on their experiences with accessing health care. No prior experience is required.

Responsibilities

  • Educate and engage voters through door-to-door or phone canvassing
  • Complete daily and weekly reports on progress and meet all goals and metrics
  • Effectively use technology tools to ensure accurate and timely data entry
  • Participate and complete all required training

Qualifications

  • Must be over 18 years old
  • Must have excellent communication and people skills; must be comfortable speaking with strangers and people from different backgrounds
  • Ability to work with other staff and canvassers in a team
  • Ability to work under deadlines
  • Experience in phone or door-to-door canvassing is a plus
  • Political Campaign experience is a plus
  • Must be able and willing to walk for long distances outside in a variety of weather elements (door-to-door canvassing)
  • Licensed and insured drivers are desired; fuel reimbursement is available (door-to-door canvassing)

Hours & Hourly Rate

  • Door Canvassers work 8 hours/week (late September – early November). The position pays $10/hour.
  • Phone Canvassers work 9 hours/week (late September – early November). The position pays $9/hour.

Location
The candidate must be located in or willing to relocate to Atlanta, GA.

Application Process
Please complete the online application at https://sparkrjnow.wufoo.com/forms/canvasser-application. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis.

Thank you for your interest. No phone calls please.

SPARK is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, sex (including pregnancy and gender identity), sexual orientation, parental status, national origin, age, disability, family medical history or genetic information, political affiliation, military service, or any other non-merit based factor.

Highlights from the 2014 FMJC with Personal Note from Youth Leader Jordan Scruggs

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2014 FYRE Media Justice Camp

2014 FYRE Media Justice Camp

By Quita Tinsley, SPARK Youth Organizer

SPARK’s 2014 Fierce Youth Reclaiming & Empowering Media Justice Camp (FMJC), in collaboration with Advocates for Youth, brought 10 queer and trans youth of color from across the Southeast to Atlanta to reimagine and create their own media. This year participants advanced their blogging and vlogging skills and learned how to incorporate it into their activism.  The trainings included reproductive justice, digital storytelling, and the following topics: closing the coverage gap, abortion access (1 in 3 Campaign), and violence against queer and trans youth of color and women of color.

In 2011, Funders for LGBT Issues found that Georgia received only $526,783 or less than $2 per person in LGBTQ funding. This lack of financial support often means that organizations are forced to make difficult decisions about how best to serve a growing, underserved community. The SPARK FYRE program does this by providing opportunities for queer and trans youth of color from the Southeast to develop relationships, get hands on media training, and gain reproductive justice organizing and leadership skills. Importantly, it gives participants a platform to amplify their voices, lived experiences, and accelerate their activism.

The 2014 media campers produced three short videos and wrote three blogs, which will roll out later this fall.

Jordan Scruggs

Jordan Scruggs, FMJC ’13 Camp Attendee, FMJC ’14 Camp Peer Leader

Jordan Scruggs, one of SPARK’s youth leaders, was a 2013 FMJC participant and returned this year as a 2014 FMJC peer leader. “I wanted to be a peer leader because I know how important the voices and stories of QPOC lives are,” says Jordan. “We’re a beautiful, diverse, and complex community and our lives and stories matter. They deserve to be told and I believe that blogging is the perfect medium to do it.”In her spare time, Jordan runs several blogs, one of which is Jordan Ponders. As we mourn the loss of another black youth at the hands of state violence, now more than ever, we must recognize the psychological impact it has on those living at the intersections of race, gender, class, and sexuality.  In the wake of current events, Jordan’s recent post, “Absence of Hope,” is on her journey with mental health and depression. As a true to life activist, she uses her own experiences as a way to help others and fight for justice!

It is the voices of young people like Jordan that SPARK strengthens. To learn how to support SPARK’s FYRE Media Justice Camps, visit our website here.

Apply NOW to the 2014 FYRE Media Justice Camp!

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2014 FMJC Post CardCamp Dates: July 24-27, 2014
Location: Atlanta, Georgia

Priority Deadline : Friday, June 13th – Applications reviewed on a rolling basis after the deadline. Space is limited.

The FYRE Media Justice Camp is a dynamic 4-day/3-night gathering of Southern lesbian, gay, bi, trans, queer, and questioning youth of color (LGBTQQ), ages 18-25, reimagining and creating media for our resilience, our lives, and our communities.

This year, we’re amplifying the voices of LGBTQQ Youth of color through social media and blogging! Participants will engage in interactive skill shares about reproductive justice, media justice, and artivism while gaining the skills needed to create liberatory media.

You must be able to attend the camp in its entirety to be accepted. To apply, please complete the 2014 FYRE Media Justice Camp online form. Please answer each question to the best of your ability. We thank you for your interest in this amazing gathering and look forward to reading your responses.