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“I’m from a line of courageous women. I’m from the motherland of my community. I am enough.” Blessing Omoruyi, 9th grade King-Drew student attendee WLP’s fifth annual LGBTQIA+ Youth of Color institute was facilitated by alumnus and El Camino student Lizette Nsilu. During the session, high school youth participants wrote autobiographical poetry, participated in a Black queer-led Earthlodge drum circle and voguing demo by Jet Finley, discussed the racial and gender politics of news coverage of communities of color with Guardian journalist Abene Clayton and gained knowle ..read more

In 2020, 268,884 girls and women were reported missing in the United States, according to the National Crime Information Center. A third of those reported missing were Black — far greater than their share of the overall female population. Nationwide, Black girls and women are also experiencing escalating rates of domestic violence, sexual violence and intimate partner violence, partly driven by the pandemic.  Nationwide, Black women between the ages of 25-44 were six times more likely to be murdered than white women. Despite these facts, Black girl survivors and victims across sexuality ..read more

The Women’s Leadership Project (WLP) organized a significant event for Black History Month on February 29th, 2024, at King Drew Magnet High School. The focus was on the upcoming political races in 2024 and their implications for Black women, women of color, and queer communities. The panelists, included Sade Elhawary, a candidate for Assembly District 57, Lizzy Orkeh, her campaign manager, and Summer McBride of the Black Women’s Democratic Club. The event was moderated by members of the King Drew WLP and WLP interns, who ensured a smooth flow of conversation. The panelists emphasized their dee ..read more

On March 1st, members of the #Standing4BlackGirls coalition spoke at the L.A. City Council meeting calling out prominent Black politicians’ and Mayor Karen Bass’ failure to act on the March 2023 L.A. City Human Rights and Equity division report documenting disproportionate rates of sexual and domestic violence victimization against Black women and girls. Nationwide, horrific cases such as that of Black women murder victims Mahogany Jackson, Maleesa Mooney and Niani Findlayson underscore how much peril Black women and girls experience in their homes, intimate partn ..read more

WLP students present on Denim Day and domestic violence prevention at Gardena HS, 2017 By Sikivu Hutchinson Imagine being a Black eight, nine or ten year old and being herded into a “special” elementary school assembly that only Black students at your campus are required to attend. Imagine hearing “trusted” adults at the assembly effectively label you a “problem” and declare that your “bad” academic “choices” would lead to either incarceration or death from gun violence. This scenario occurred recently at Bunnell Elementary in Flagler County Florida. African American fourth and fifth ..read more

By Raziya Estes The presidential election is an extremely important event that dictates the next four years for us as Americans. Time after time, with the exception of president Barack Obama, the president of the United States has been a white, straight, male. This is despite the fact that a lot of the target issues the president needs to address involves people of color, women, and the LGBTQ+ community. I don’t see why we continue to get the same persistent, yet unreliable individuals in charge of our country. Not to mention some of the many daily challenges faced by Black women and women o ..read more

By Kimberly Ortiz As 2023 comes to a close, and WLP prepares to start the new year, we would like to highlight important events that shaped the year: GLSEN LGBTQ+ Survey Presentations  Lawnie and Dafne discuss the Genderbread Unicorn Since 2019, WLP has conducted GLSEN (Gay and Lesbian Student Education Network) campus climate survey presentations at our partner schools. The GLSEN survey is based on LGBTQI+ school climate, curricula, allyship, and identity. It focuses on the power of pronouns, respecting the authentic gender identities of queer and transgender youth, and advocating for ..read more

Although Black youth are more likely to identify as LGBTQ+ than non-Black youth, there are few safe, Black queer-affirming spaces for middle and high school youth in our communities. African American LGBTQIA+ youth from ages 14-18 are invited to participate in a fun and culturally enriching opportunity to connect with other queer Black youth from across L.A. County. This youth and adult mentor facilitated event will focus on mental health, social justice leadership, safe space creation, yoga, music, art and literary expression. Breakfast, lunch, raffles, and participant gift items will be pro ..read more

On December 1st, the Women’s Leadership Project, Black Skeptics L.A., REACH L.A., Project Q and other community partners held the third annual Black LGBTQIA+ Youth institute at Stoneview Nature Center in Culver City. The session was facilitated by WLP youth interns and alumni, Ashantee Polk (Class of 2020) and Brianna Parnell (Class of 2019). Forty youth and adults participated in group mental health and wellness activities, school and community climate assessments, music therapy, theater, prose writing and yoga workshops that focused on culturally responsive Black LGBTQIA+ community building ..read more