On Oct. 25, 2023, President Biden formally called on Congress to provide $16 billion in child care stabilization funding. If passed by Congress, this supplemental funding request would extend for a year the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding that kept 220,000 child care providers afloat, saved as many as 9.6 million child care slots, and saved more than 1 million early educator jobs during the COVID pandemic.  In response to this funding request, YWCA USA CEO Margaret Mitchell issued the following statement:    “President Biden’s request for $16 billion in emergency ..read more

On Oct. 6, Hamas launched a surprise attack on Israel, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared war. To date, thousands of people have died or been injured, and more than 100 others have been taken hostage. In response to the escalation of conflict in the Middle East, YWCA USA CEO Margaret Mitchell issued the following statement: “At YWCA USA, we believe in a world of justice, where all people — particularly women and girls — are safe and free from violence. The violence that erupted this week in the Middle East – including reports of violence committed against civilian wome ..read more

Wireless carrier and nonprofit renew partnership, commit to create TechGYRLS digital curriculum CHICAGO (Sept. 19, 2023) – UScellular is partnering with YWCA USA to update their TechGYRLS® Curriculum for a planned launch in 2024.  The company announced a $100,000 grant today to support the update to the curriculum that will help to reach more young women and encourage careers in STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts and math). YWCA is dedicated to eliminating racism, empowering women and promoting peace, justice, freedom and dignity for all. Launched in 2003, YWCA TechGY ..read more

On Friday, September 15, 2023, gender and racial justice experts convened at the White House to address the critical issue of closing the wage and wealth gap for Black women. The meeting was a pivotal step toward discussing strategies to achieve gender and racial pay equity. The discussions were framed within the context of the 60th Anniversary of both the Equal Pay Act and the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, underscoring the intersectionality of the challenges Black women face. Recent Census data released earlier this week reveals that Black women working full time, year round, are ..read more

For Immediate ReleaseContact: Deborah Baldwin Manager, National Campaigns and Cause Marketing YWCA USA dbaldwin@ywca.org WASHINGTON, D.C., July 12, 2023 – YWCA USA is pleased to announce the appointment of six new members to its national Board of Directors: Mallory Donaldson with the Center for Healthy Families; Cristina A. Gomez with CA Consulting, Strategies, Management; Kara Perkins with California State University at Long Beach; Ramy Rauf with Northwest Area Foundation; Deon Riley with Bath & Body Works; and Joanne Tabellija-Murphy with Walmart. The YWCA USA Board of Directors con ..read more

“America’s Invitation” will encourage every American to be part of historic 250th commemoration Nextdoor, YWCA USA join historic effort as official partners (Milwaukee, WI) – The United States Semiquincentennial Commission, also known as America250, the official nonpartisan entity charged with planning and orchestrating the 250th anniversary of the nation’s founding, is kicking off the three-year countdown to 2026 with “America’s Invitation,” a new nationwide public awareness and engagement campaign encouraging every American to be part of this historic commemoration. America250 will launch Am ..read more

This week, the U.S. Supreme Court issued rulings in multiple cases that—in the aftermath of their 2022 decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health—continue to roll back rights and protections for women, communities of color, LGBTQ+ individuals, victims of stalking, and other marginalized communities: Students for Fair Admissions Inc. v. President and Fellows of Harvard College and Students for Fair Admissions Inc. v. University of North Carolina, which all but eliminates the consideration of race in higher education admissions 303 Creative LLC v. Elenis, invalidating the Colorado An ..read more

Today, June 29, 2023, the United States Supreme Court rolled back decades of progress on educational opportunity and socioeconomic mobility by narrowing the consideration of race in higher education admissions. In response to this egregious ruling by the Supreme Court in Students for Fair Admissions Inc. v. President and Fellows of Harvard College and Students for Fair Admissions Inc. v. University of North Carolina, YWCA USA CEO Margaret Mitchell issued the following statement: “For the last 45 years, affirmative action has paved the way for equity in higher education. With today’s ruling, th ..read more

Author: Roxanne Vigil  In the March 1947 edition of YWCA’s The Woman’s Press magazine, Mary Takeyama reflected on her work throughout her time in YWCA Los Angeles and later in the Colorado Relocation Center during World War II, writing, “I miss Y activities but am carrying on its ideas” (bit.ly/3LCaXq7). Takeyama had done much for the YWCA movement, most notably having worked to develop YWCA Girl Reserves in the Amache-Japanese Internment Camp in Granada, Colorado after Executive Order 9066 forced 120,000 Japanese Americans, including her and her family, into internment. At the time of he ..read more

  By: Roxanne Vigil YWCA has a storied legacy of advancing equity and justice for all women. From voting rights to reproductive rights, financial literacy and more, we have long advocated on behalf of women — all women — and we continue to carry out that critical work to this day, working to get out the vote among women in communities across the nation; advocating for reproductive freedom; providing digital skilling, entrepreneurship training, financial literacy programming; and more. Throughout Women’s History Month, we are proud to showcase our history of advocating for women as we cont ..read more