WASHINGTON, D.C., (March 20, 2020)—As an organization whose mission is to eliminate racism, empower women, stand up for social justice, help families, and strengthen communities, YWCA is dramatically scaling the direct service we provide in communities every day. During this unprecedented time of uncertainty around the novel coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, more than 200 YWCA local associations across the country are mobilizing to ensure the safety and well-being of our nation’s most vulnerable populations.
For more than 160 years, YWCA has been in over 1,200 communities across the United States, providing services and resources for many of the most vulnerable children, women, and their families — including those experiencing domestic violence and/or homelessness; those who make up the backbone of our service economy and now face job cut-backs; and those who are impacted by emergency school closures particularly because they lack affordable childcare options.
We will continue to monitor the latest information and guidelines surrounding COVID-19 and communicate best practices with leadership of YWCA local associations. Each of our local associations are keeping a close eye on the developing news and recommendations from both national and local health authorities in orderto provide the communities we serve with programs, services, and the adequate support they need during and beyond the COVID-19 pandemic. YWCA is also working with federal policy makers to ensure that our local associations and other nonprofits have the funding, resources, and emergency supplies to meet urgent and growing needs.
As the situation evolves, we will continue to work together to respond to the needs of the over 2 million women, girls, and their families we serve every year in the United States. We are asking everyone to adhere to health and hygiene recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and take necessary measures to protect themselves and the people they come in contact with. Our goal is to ensure that our local associations can continue to deliver critical services safely and as quickly as possible, while working to create capacity, strengthen resiliency, and held re-build communities during and after the coronavirus pandemic.
Throughout our history, YWCA has stood with the most vulnerable and underserved communities, helping women to find a safe place during the industrial revolution, supporting our men and women during WWI and WWII, aiding our first responders during the Spanish Flu and fighting for gender equality and racial justice throughout the 20th Century and still today. We will continue to get up and do this vital work every day. We are grateful to our associations and partners and realize that we are stronger together.
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About YWCA USA
YWCA is on a mission to eliminate racism, empower women, stand up for social justice, help families, and strengthen communities. We are one of the oldest and largest women’s organizations in the nation, serving over 2 million women, girls, and their families.
YWCA has been at the forefront of the most pressing social movements for over 160 years — from voting rights to civil rights, from affordable housing to pay equity, from violence prevention to health care reform. Today, we combine programming and advocacy to generate institutional change in three key areas: racial justice and civil rights, empowerment and economic advancement of women and girls, and health and safety of women and girls. Learn more at www.ywca.org.
Media Contact
Yolanda Raine
Director, Marketing and Communications, YWCA USA
202-524-5331
yraine@ywca.org