![]() These strategies light the way for those of us who have walked through darkness to continue healing and growing. We can transform this space by telling the truth, taking risk, making ourselves vulnerable and sharing how we have overcome adverse experiences. It is important to me that we transform the current space we are in as a movement, and we cannot do this without youth activists. I also liked the idea of sharing power and co- creating a space where youth voices would be honored and centered in all that we do. I started Priceless Incite because I could not see myself reflected in the leadership of many of the organizations in which I engaged. I worked for a few more organizations before I decided to do consultant work while starting my own organization. I submitted a rebuttal and was retaliated against by the administration. When I expressed concern about decisions that disproportionately impacted people of color, I was subjected to disciplinary action. Shortly after this experience, I began working for an agency whose stated mission was to realize racial and gender justice. ![]() In 2011 I left a hostile environment, feeling powerless as I stood on the corner of a street in a city I did not live in, trying to figure out how I was going to make it home from work. By 2010, I began to identify with what the WOCN coined as the “Endangered Woman of Color Advocate.” This phrase captures the experiences of women of color advocates who are targeted, overlooked, undervalued, and displaced from their organizations. In my work at a state anti-violence coalition during my 30’s, I was introduced to the term Life cycle of a WOC Advocate, coined by the Women of Color Network (WOCN) to depict the high turnover rate and its emotional impact on women of color in the anti-violence movement. I felt empowered as a first-generation college student and single mother.Īdulthood. Upon returning home, I worked full time while completing both my Bachelor's and Master's degree programs. The experience ended with me escaping his control with the help of hotel staff. Once cleared of charges, I was groomed by a local pimp and persuaded to travel out of state with him “to make quick money” and get back on my feet. I met a guy who ran a scam on me, causing me to lose my great paying job at a bank and be investigated for fraud. When one of our crew was attacked, we would all come to their aid. Upon realization and without analysis, I formed “The Fat People Posse,” a crew of young women who equated power with numbers and physical size, we were claiming to be bigger than what we were. ![]() In middle school it was common for the boys to chase girls down the hallway and “beat us up.” My friends and I would have bruises as evidence that “some boy liked us” (which was explained to us as the reason they hit us). I can also recall ways in which I empowered myself and those around me.Ĭoming of age. ![]() When I reflect on my life’s path, I can identify several experiences where I’ve felt powerless. I write through the lens of witnessing violence in “safe” spaces, surviving sexual assault as a child, dating violence as a teenager and date rape as a young adult. At the risk of being misunderstood, what is important must be spoken. Upon conclusion, I will invite you to act or continue to act in ways that create space for healing to occur. I invite you to bear witness to my journey and take an audit of where you are on yours. Growing up, there were times I couldn’t find my voice and times I had no words to describe what was happening. Sometimes I think to myself that there’s not much difference between then and now. I would communicate with people and be dismissed, they couldn’t understand what I was saying. “I have come to believe over and over again that what is most important to me must be spoken, made verbal and shared, even at the risk of having it bruised or misunderstood.” ― Audre LordeĪs a toddler I was often teased because I didn’t speak clearly. By Annika Leonard, Executive Director of Priceless Incite
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Details
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |