October 24, 2019

In this issue:

Meet Our Shero of the Month: Alicia Diggs
OFP 2020 Teams Head to Atlanta for Electoral Organizing Bootcamp
Vote for PWN’s Summer Block Party Series on POZ?
Congratulations to Five Years of Service Counter Narrative Project
Webinar You Won’t Want to Miss

Meet Our Shero of the Month: Alicia Diggs

Our October 2019 Shero of the Month is Alicia Diggs of Greensboro, North Carolina. Alicia is PWN’s North Carolina state lead, a leader of the North Carolina Organizing for Power team, a member spokesperson, and appeared in two videos in the PWNCares series. This fierce advocate is also an author and recently completed her PhD in public health education.

“Alicia is truly someone who lights up the whole room with her smile,” said Jennie Smith-Camejo, PWN’s communications director, “but don’t think for a minute that she came to play. She’s incredibly warm and compassionate, but she is serious about making change. She knows very well how to advocate for her community and for herself. One of the things that has most impressed me in my work with Alicia is her unwavering commitment–to making things better for others, but also to learning as much as she can and putting what she learns into action. That’s so refreshing and makes her strong in everything she does.”

Organizing Spotlight: Organizing for Power Teams Head to Atlanta for Electoral Organizing Bootcamp

PWN-USA is going on the road to Atlanta, Georgia, for our in-person electoral organizing bootcamp starting this Sunday, October 27! Teams from 11 key geographic locations who are part of PWN’s cutting-edge new Organizing for Power: Road to 2020 (OFP) electoral organizing project will be trained up on concrete skills and knowledge they need to succeed to educate, activate, and mobilize their communities for the 2020 election cycle, with plenty of hands-on practice.

OFP teams will be heading to Atlanta from Alabama, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Michigan, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, and Texas.

The excitement and momentum for a successful bootcamp are well underway. Our teams have been selected through a rigorous application process, have been planning and participating in pre-bootcamp webinars, and they have fundraised to get to Atlanta. We asked core members from each team to tell us about their motivations and their expectations as OFP 2020 gets underway in earnest.

Vote for PWN’s Block Party series on POZ Media Awards!

We are so excited that PWN-USA’s Summer Block Party webinar series has been nominated for a POZ Media Award. The series took place June 29 to September 14, 2019. We discussed the history and empowerment of community organizing, organizing in art and science, the story of now, where to find our people and building leaders, how to have courageous conversations, and how to keep our lists warm by staying in touch.

Catch up on the block party series if you haven’t already! We never anticipated being nominated for the POZ Media Award. We would be so deeply honored to win. Here is where you come in! Voting is still open. You can cast your vote for the series. Have you voted yet?

Vote for the Block Party series here!

Counter Narrative Project Turned Five!!

Congratulations to our partners at Counter Narrative Project on 5 years of building power for Black gay men! Inspired by the legacy of artist/revolutionaries Essex Hemphill, Marlon Riggs, and Joseph Beam, CNP sought to build a sacred space built on the dreams and desires of Black gay men. CNP is among other things, a love letter to those courageous and visionary voices.

“The Counter Narrative Project’s work to celebrate and uplift Black gay men is revolutionary, visionary, and is changing the game,” said PWN’s executive director Naina Khanna. “Through art, culture, community building and advocacy, they weave new possibilities for justice and liberation. Congratulations on five years! PWN is thankful to be in movement with you.”

We are proud to partner with you and look forward to many more years of working together!

Webinar You Won’t Want to Miss!

National Network to End Domestic Violence:
Discussing Domestic Violence with People Living with HIV

October 29 at 3 PM EDT/ 2 PM CDT/ 1 PM MDT/ 12 PM PDT (English)

October 30 at 3 PM EDT/ 2 PM CDT/ 1 PM MDT/ 12 PM PDT (Spanish)

This webinar will focus on how HIV organizations can discuss domestic violence with individuals living with HIV. The webinar will also provide tools to use and how HIV organizations can better partners with domestic violence agencies.