Join Us: Take A Stand Against Racism

As an organization that has been working for justice for over 160 years, we at YWCA know how important it is to continue having dialogue and building community among those who work for racial justice, and to relentlessly persist in raising awareness about the impact of institutional and structural racism in our communities. That’s why, every April, we are intentional about hosting our network-wide, national Stand Against Racism, a campaign that provides an opportunity for communities across the U.S. to unite their voices to educate, advocate, and promote racial justice.While we’re not new to this work, we know that we are experiencing a watershed moment in the fight for racial justice. As civil and human rights continue to be eroded for immigrant communities and people of color, we stand united in solidarity with all immigrants and communities of color facing the very real threat of racist and xenophobic attacks.That’s why this year’s theme for Stand Against Racism, taking place April 25-28, is No Hate. No Fear. Immigrants are, and should always be, welcome here. We invite communities to host activities and hold dialogue around the topic of immigration. We know that immigrant justice is integral to racial justice. All immigrants — regardless of status — deserve to be safe, healthy, and treated with dignity and respect. Too often our stereotypes around immigration are cemented around terms of division, fear, and hate against the stranger among us.Immigrants live in every state in the United States, and arrive from a broad range of countries across Asia, Africa, Europe, Central America, and other regions of the world — not just through land ports of entry at the southwest border, but also through airports and seaports across the interior of the country. They are our friends, neighbors, co-workers, teachers, classmates, doctors, electricians, first responders, ministers, and more. They are us, and we are them.YWCAs across the country have always opened their doors and provided resources to women, children, and families in need, and we won’t stop now. As new attacks are waged on immigrant communities and folks of color each day, we are asking outright: Are you ready to stand with immigrant women and families?If you are, join us for Stand Against Racism on April 25-28 — and let us know if you’ll be participating!Each of us has a role to play in the fight for racial justice, and we encourage you to join our nation-wide campaign as we raise awareness and highlight the injustices faced by immigrant communities. Together, let’s lift up concrete steps that we can all take — no matter where we live — so that immigrant women and families seeking safety and opportunity in the U.S. can arrive and live without fear, harm, or discrimination.Participating in Stand Against Racism is easy! Anyone can take action in ways big or small, in-person in your local community or online with people from across the country. From planning and hosting an event or contacting your members of Congress, to participating in our Stand Against Racism Twitter chat or posting about immigrant justice issues on social media, here are a few ways you can get involved and show your support:

Attend an event

There are over 100 events planned in communities across the country! Find and attend an event in your community and bring your friends and family with you! Encourage others to do the same.

Host an event

Can’t find an event near you but still want to help raise awareness in-person? Register to host your own event! Your event can be any size and take place anywhere, from your school or local community center, to a café or even your own home. For example, a town hall, a webinar, a community dinner, a film or book discussion, a Facebook Live, or a letter-writing gathering are just a few ideas.When you register with our website, you’ll gain access to an online toolkit to help you plan your event, engage in advocacy work, and more. When you’re ready to promote your event, simply log-in to the website and click the “Create Event” tab on your dashboard.

Take the pledge

Sign the pledge to stand against racism, today and every day, and encourage your friends, family, and colleagues to do the same! The pledge is a good way to commit yourself to this important cause and hold yourself accountable.

Contact your members of Congress

The American DREAM and Promise Act of 2019 (H.R. 6), introduced on March 12, is a new piece of legislation that would offer protections and a pathway to citizenship to undocumented immigrants who arrived in the U.S. as children and people with Temporary Protected Status (TPS) or Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) status. This is a comprehensive immigration reform bill that ensures fairness in the immigration process and relieves the tremendous stress and undue trauma that undocumented youth and those with TPS and DED status now face. Take action now: Contact your Representative and urge them to support immediate passage of a “clean” American DREAM and Promise Act free of immigration enforcement legislation that could harm immigrant communities.

Raise awareness and show your support on social media

Use the resources in our online toolkit to share information. Don’t have access to the online toolkit yet? Register today to get access to fact sheets, graphics, and more. Use social media to:

• livetweet, recap, and post pictures from events you attend;
• spread important information about system racism and immigrant justice issues;
• share how current racist and xenophobic attacks and narratives are impacting immigrants and other marginalized folks in your community;
• highlight ways people can be engaged, work to dismantle barriers to immigrant justice, and take action to advocate for policies that create change and support immigrant communities
• raise awareness about what barriers to safety and dignity exist for immigrant families;
• share your personal thoughts on why it is so important to stand against racism;

Promote the campaign on social media using the hashtag #StandAgainstRacism and share why taking a Stand Against Racism is important to you! If you’d prefer to post a video sharing why you stand against racism, check out our toolkit for tips, prompts, and sample posts.

Attend our policy briefing in DC on April 25

Join YWCA USA for a policy briefing on “Ensuring Safety and Opportunity for Immigrant Women” on Thursday, April 25 at 12:00 p.m. ET in the Russell Senate Office Building in Washington, DC. Learn more and register to attend.

Participate in our online conversation on April 26

Join YWCA USA on Friday, April 26 at 2:00 p.m. ET for a Twitter chat about “Expanding the Immigrant Narrative.” We’ll be tweeting out questions from @YWCAUSA, and we encourage you to join the conversation using the hashtag #StandAgainstRacism.We know that when we use our collective power, we can create real change. Join us today.