CAMBRIDGE YOUNG WOMENS CHRISTIAN ASSOCIATION
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Mission Statement
YWCA Cambridge is dedicated to eliminating racism, empowering women and promoting peace, justice, freedom and dignity for all.
About This Cause
YWCA Cambridge is a 501(c)(3) organization located in Cambridge, MA, whose mission is “eliminating racism, empowering women, and promoting peace, justice, freedom, and dignity for all”. As a YWCA USA member association, we accomplish this work through direct-service programming and community-based advocacy work. YWCA Cambridge provides single-room occupancy housing for 103 self-identified women in our Tanner Residence; a safe haven for 10 homeless families at Renae’s Place, our Family Shelter; and youth programming on a mission to cultivate self-love, self-expression, and leadership skills for middle and high school Cambridge youth through mentorship and community partnerships. In addition, we provide space for community groups to meet in the heart of Central Square and we serve as a welcoming place for women of all ages to find shelter, support, and opportunities to learn and grow. HOUSING ASSISTANCE TANNER RESIDENCE, SINGLE ROOM OCCUPANCY (SRO) HOUSING In Tanner Residence, YWCA Cambridge offers 103 units of quality, safe single room occupancy (SRO) housing for women who have experienced trauma and need a supportive living environment where they can heal and grow. In recent years we have doubled our programming at Tanner Residence to create a more well-rounded living experience for the women residing there. Thanks to Cambridge Savings Bank, Project Place, IMPACT, and many other donors and supporters we now offer a varied schedule of activities, that includes an healthy eating classes funded through Cambridge in Motion. Tanner Residence is funded through contracts with various service providers, including: Vinfen, Heading Home, Aids Action and Cambridge Housing Authority. A small number of rooms are available at market rate rent, some of which are occupied by residents who have sufficient resources to pay for themselves. YWCA Cambridge contracts with Cambridge Housing Authority to manage Tanner Residence. RENAE’S PLACE, SHELTER FOR HOMELESS FAMILIES Renae’s Place offers a warm, stable environment for up to 10 homeless families at a time and provides support and guidance while the families work to build or rebuild sustainable lives. In April 2018, our shelter relocated to a fully renovated site in Central Square and subsequently was renamed Renae’s Place in honor of Renae Gray, a former Board Chair and tireless YWCA Cambridge volunteer. Renae’s Place is funded through the MA Department of Housing & Community Development (DHCD) under a contract managed by the City of Cambridge Department of Human Services. ADVOCACY & SOCIAL JUSTICE YWCA Cambridge takes our mission of eliminating racism and empowering women very seriously. We serve individuals in our community through awareness-raising campaigns and events, advocacy and legislative work, and the development of partnerships with similarly focused groups and organizations. Our Board of Trustees plays a large role in this effort through the Advocacy and Social Justice Committee, which is committed to educating, creating, and engaging in action-oriented dialogue on issues of race and justice as well as to building a safe and open environment for community members to speak and be heard. YWCA Cambridge is committed to incorporating a lens of inclusion and intersectionality in all facets of the work we do to advance racial and gender equity. For our work to be meaningful, it must be grounded in addressing the lived experiences of our community members and grow from listening & incorporating as much feedback as possible. Part of our work in advocacy is internal; centering resident well-being and agency is a massive part of our endeavor. We are dedicated to ensuring that all policies we advocate for on a legislative level are reflected in the ways our organization is structured. Furthermore, our main legislative foci are not self-contained; our work in one area informs our work in other areas. As an organization, we are proud to learn and grow as we continue our work. YWCA Cambridge 2022 Events included: Reimagining Reparations discussion with Saskia Vann James of the Massachusetts Recreational Consumer Council; a collaboration with Lesley University’s Office of Community Service to promote Right To Council & Common Start legislation; an interview with Maritza Grooms of Cambridge Community Television about Racism and Film as part of our month-long collaboration with YWCA USA’s Stand Against Racism; and a conversation about sex education with Eko Canillas-Myles (Peer Health Exchange), Tanya Neslusan (MassEquality), and Elijah Oyenuga also as part of Stand Against Racism. YWCA Cambridge 2021 Events included: Sexual Violence & Community-Led Safety, co-led with The Black Response, SURJ Boston, and Hema Sarang-Sieminski of Jane Doe, Inc; as well as co-organizing the Youth-Led Rally Against Period Poverty with the Massachusetts Menstrual Equity Coalition. YWCA Cambridge 2020 Events included: Debby Irving: I'm a Good Person, Isn't That Enough?, Channeling Anger into Action, Selma Online 6 Week Study Group, Your Voting Questions Answered, Feminist Roundtable Series: Channeling Anger Into Action, and a three part series on Black Maternal Health. Within the current (192nd) legislative session, we have also written testimonies in support of the I AM bill to eradicate menstrual poverty, Transparency in the Workplace for racial and gender wage equity, the HOMES Act to seal eviction records, the COVID-19 Housing Equity Bill to extend the eviction moratorium and provide rent support, and the Safe Consumption Sites bill. As part of the Alliance of YWCAs of Massachusetts, we submitted written testimony in support of distribution of ARPA funds towards mental health services, housing and homelessness programs, and childcare. Each year YWCA Cambridge participates in Stand Against Racism, a signature campaign by YWCA USA to build community among those who work for racial justice and to raise awareness about the negative impact of institutional and structural racism in our communities. The campaign is a strategic component of our efforts to eliminate racism. Voting rights and civic engagement are, and have always been, core components of our racial justice and empowerment work. As individual civil rights are being eroded for communities of color, we work to support full access and engagement in the political process for women and girls of color. We have developed and maintain close partnerships with like-minded advocacy and social justice oriented organizations such as the Cambridge Citizen’s Civic Unity Committee; Cambridge Peace Commission; Charles Hamilton Houston Institute for Race & Justice, Harvard Law School; Cambridge Women’s Commission; the MA Menstrual Equity Coalition, MA Coalition for the Homeless, Cambridge Non Profit Coalition and many others. Our Racial and Social Justice work and our Advocacy efforts are sustained by volunteers and through donations and other public support. Youth Leadership Programs YWCA runs two youth programs, Gold and Gender Expansive Youth, to develop, nurture, and support leadership and advocacy skills in at least 30 youth between the two programs, ages 11-18. Both groups work with youth to build self esteem, master social justice issues, engage in social emotional learning, create community, build leadership skills, explore intersectional feminism, and gender as a social construct. The Gender Expansive Youth Program and the GOLD Program curriculum involves weekly meetings with specfic themes, including topics such as healthy relationships, consent, mental health, cyber safety, bullying, environmental justice, racial justice, queer and trans liberation, and intersectional feminism. Femmes, women, girls, non-binary youth, queer youth, and trans youth aren’t often provided spaces that are their own and where their subjectivity is seen as expertise, as multifaceted, and as important. We aim to give youth the self determination to create the spaces they need with our support. Gold was founded by Counselor Denise Simmons and has evolved into a program for middle and high school youth. Gold centers the experience of misogyny affecting folks, both trans and cisgendered, and explores intersectional feminism, anti-oppression, and youth leadership. Throughout the year youth will build the skills to engage in social action in their communities by facilitating groups and activities on subjects they are passionate about. The Gender Expansive Youth Program centers the experiences of trans, nonbinary, and gender nonconforming youth. This program follows a similar model of youth leadership development as Gold and is open to anyone interested in exploring gender as a social construct, intersectionality, anti-opression, and queer issues in our community. Guest speakers are also a crucial part of our program. Each year, we invite two - six outside speakers depending on the amount of funding we have. These outside facilitators are educators, mental health professionals, and youth activist organizations. We prioritize inviting guest speakers who are people who hold the same identities as our youth so that the participants have role models that they can relate to and learn from. Having outside speakers also allows the youth participants to learn about many different careers and job opportunities that they might not have been exposed to. GOLD is funded through grants from the Cambridge Department of Human Services and the MA Department of Public Health, as well as donations and other public support. HEALTH & WELLNESS BOSTON CLASSICAL SOO BAHK DO Boston Classical Soo Bahk Do had been housed at the YWCA Cambridge for more than 15 years before becoming a YWCA Cambridge run program in 2016! Soo Bahk Do is a traditional Korean martial art whose historical sources date back over 2,000 years. It is both a highly effective self-defense system and a beautiful, traditional art form. Boston Classical Soo Bahk Do martial arts program offers income based scholarships for people of all ages. Through Soo Bahk Do we are able to bring self defense and leadership skills to the Cambridge community and beyond, regardless of income.