African American Policy ForumVarmennettu tili

Still I Rise “builds poignant narratives of struggle and resistance, while also uncovering disturbing truths about the inadequacy of law, regulation, and constrained hope for our youth today,” begins @sandylocks. #HerDreamDeferred

Sheri Shuster is a documentary film director + producer interested in advancing intersectional + moral conversations about race + power. An Iranian-American and L.A. native, her commitment to human rights drew her into the world of public policy + storytelling. #HerDreamDeferred

Leah Albright-Byrd (@leahjonet) is a speaker, author, + social-entrepreneur. In 2011, she founded Bridget’s Dream, a nonprofit that provided services to child & adult survivors of human trafficking. She received the MLK Difference Maker Award for her activism. #HerDreamDeferred

Holly Joshi (@HollyJoshi1) has been a leader in the anti-trafficking & gender-based violence movement. She is a senior research consultant with the Bright Research Group, developing anti-trafficking prevention & intervention strategies. She previously served as the ED at MISSSEY.

"There are always people that take hits at the forefront of revolutionary movements and conversations. And so I knew there was some sacrifice that came with [advocacy work], and I still stand on the fact that it's worth it,' says @leahjonet. #HerDreamDeferred

The media “didn't want to talk about root causes. It didn't want to talk about my observations around the racialized nature and the disparities in terms of who was being victimized,” says @HollyJoshi1. #HerDreamDeferred talkback following STILL I RISE

“I thought, 'Well, why aren't Black girls voices and experiences being centered here, when they're the majority of people who are impacted by this crime?’" says director Sheri Shuster. "Again, it comes back to: victimhood is racially coded.” #HerDreamDeferred

In Los Angeles County, 92% of girls in the juvenile justice system identified as trafficking victims were African-American. https://rights4girls.org/wp-content/uploads/r4g/2015/02/African-American-Girls-and-Trafficking.pdf …

In King County (Seattle), WA, 45% of child victims of sex trafficking were African-American. https://humaninterests.seattle.gov/2019/12/27/talking-about-human-trafficking/#:~:text=Their%202019%20report%20shows%20that,general%20population%20of%20King%20County ….

“At this point in my life, I'm also really tired of the censoring and the feeling like I have to apologize for what I'm advocating for, when what I'm advocating for is for humanity.” - @leahjonet #HerDreamDeferred

A Georgetown study showed that adults view Black girls (in the age range of 5–14) as less innocent and more adult-like than their white peers. #HerDreamDeferred https://www.law.georgetown.edu/poverty-inequality-center/wp-content/uploads/sites/14/2017/08/girlhood-interrupted.pdf …

People think of trafficking as force and kidnapping, says @leahjonet at #HerDreamDeferred. "I think that's an easier way for people to try to understand what happens, versus the intentional and insidious mental manipulation and the vulnerability of youth.”

“There is the problem of colorblindness in shaping interventions for trafficked children, but there is also a gender-[specific] approach to Black children at risk,” says @sandylocks. #HerDreamDeferred

“What is happening is that society is denying Black girl's humanity and then failing to protect their childhood, and then pathologizing their adaptive behaviors and punishing them for surviving.” @HollyJoshi1 #HerDreamDeferred

“I'm really excited about the ability and the possibility of using our privilege and seats at the table to bring survivor voices and survivor needs, as they define it, into these conversations about re-imagining public safety.” - @HollyJoshi1 #HerDreamDeferred

“I've learned that I'm more of a dynamic individual than I was able to acknowledge at that time & I needed to nurture other aspects of myself to stay healthy. Music and yoga— all of those things are ways to emote & to express that our people have always engaged in.” - @leahjonet