OUR STRATEGIES

PUBLIC LEADERSHIP

Through advocacy and direct action, this initiative focuses on divesting from systems of harm—specifically incarceration, deportation, gender-based violence, and other forms of state-sanctioned oppression. The program engages youth in collective organizing to challenge systems of power that perpetuate violence, displacement, and marginalization. The program builds youth leadership by offering them the chance to lead organizing campaigns, mobilize their peers, and take on key roles in decision-making processes. Through training and mentorship, youth learn how to run campaigns, speak at public forums, and effectively mobilize communities around issues of systemic harm.

CULTURAL ORGANIZING

These programs give space to youth to reclaim their cultural identities in the context of systemic oppression. This process of cultural organizing involves using cultural traditions and heritage to strengthen community bonds and support collective efforts for justice.

LEGAL ACCESS & MUTUAL AID

ENTREPRENEUR AND EDUCATION

Provide youth with the trade and skill resources, mentorship, and networking opportunities necessary to become fully paid Human Rights Advocates

• Intergenerational Cultural Sharing: Engage elders or community leaders to share cultural knowledge and practices, connecting youth to their history and helping them understand how cultural identity has always played a role in resistance movements.

• Gender Affirmation in Cultural Contexts: Provide workshops on the importance of gender-affirming practices within cultural communities and explore ways to incorporate these principles into activism and community organizing.

• Queer and Trans Rights in Cultural Spaces: Organize events and discussions that highlight the experiences of queer and trans youth in resisting state violence, ensuring these voices are at the forefront of the divestment movement.

Through mutual aid networks, youth contribute to building resilience within their communities, while legal support helps individuals navigate the injustices of incarceration, deportation, housing displacement, and gender violence.

• Community Care Program: Youth staff work with local governments and organizations to develop and promote alternative models for housing and support of incarcerated youth and reentry placement. Advocating for public safety, such as restorative justice programs, community-based mental health services, and non-police crisis response teams.

• Resource Distribution Networks: Set up resource-sharing programs, such as food distribution, legal aid, or crisis intervention tools, to provide immediate support to families impacted by deportation or gender violence.

• Crisis Response Teams: Establish teams of youth volunteers trained in crisis intervention, peer support, and emergency response to assist communities during times of heightened danger or political unrest.

• Legal Aid Clinics: Partner with legal professionals and organizations to provide free or low-cost legal services to youth and families facing issues such as deportation, wrongful incarceration, or gender-based violence.

• Know Your Rights Workshops: Host workshops that teach youth and community members how to assert their rights in the face of legal challenges, particularly focusing on immigration law, criminal justice, and gender-based violence cases.

• Creative Entrepreneurship and Organizing: Youth are encouraged to turn their activism into entrepreneurial ventures that address systemic harms. These can include social enterprises, advocacy-based products, and creative arts projects that raise awareness about divestment and justice.

• Skill-Building & Mentorship for Social Justice Careers: Offering practical workshops on skills that can be applied to social justice careers, including campaign management, legal advocacy, digital organizing, and community-building. Connecting youth with professionals in the fields of law, social work, advocacy, and organizing to provide mentorship and career guidance.