“Donde la mujer avanza, no hay hombre que retroceda.” –Zapatista saying
“When women advance, there’s no man who moves backwards.”
2012 has brought with it a surge of leadership in our organization, reflecting our community, and advancing our work for social justice.
(Image from Women of Color Leadership Network)
Vanessa Moses, veteran lead organizer, has stepped up to work alongside her long-time mentor, Dawn Phillips, as Co-Director of Programs. Her experience in member leadership development, expertise in civic engagement, and a systemic and compassionate approach are a solid addition to our director team. She has been awarded the honor of a fellowship from the Black Organizing for Leadership and Dignity project, providing her and the organization expert support through this exciting growth transition.
Patricia Zamora, who led the creation of our successful Oakland Tenant’s Rights’ Clinic, has stepped up to become our new Oakland Lead Organizer. In this role, she will do even more linking of our rights-based services and community organizing campaigns. She has also been named commissioner on the City of Oakland’s Building Services Improvement Advisory Task Force, bringing her expert tenant advocacy to bear in conversations about housing code compliance, an issue close to the heart of any tenant who needs repairs.
And that’s not all! Our very own Cinthya Muñoz-Ramos and Lucía Castañeda-Kimble have been awarded powerful fellowships at Women’s Policy Institute, learning the ins and outs of policy change work, and bringing their community-based perspective and leadership to that needed work in our state legislature.
Not to be left out, our ED, María Poblet, has been awarded a highly competitive 2-year Leader Spring Executive Fellowship!
We congratulate all these powerful organizational leaders for their accomplishments, and look forward to even more groundbreaking contributions from them in our community and our movement.