- Internships are 10 weeks.
- The stipend for 2008 is $3000.
Summer Internship Program
SisterSong Women Of Color Reproductive Health Collective
Organization's Mission:
The SisterSong Women of Color Reproductive Health Collective is a network of 80 local, regional and national grassroots organizations and more than 500 individuals, as well as white women and male allies, who support our goal of improving the lives of women of color in the United States by advocating for Reproductive Justice.
The mission of SisterSong is to amplify and strengthen the collective voices of Indigenous women and women of color to ensure reproductive justice through securing human rights. Our blend of young and experienced activists, academic and community scholars, and grassroots and national perspectives creates a unique coalition of women of color qualified for and dedicated to this vital work.
We make the work of women of color more visible and our perspectives understood, both in terms of national politics and in our local communities. We represent five primary ethnic populations/indigenous nations in the United States: Native American/Indigenous, Asian/Pacific Islander, Arab American/Middle Eastern/North African, Latina, African American/Black/Caribbean/African.
SisterSong lifts the voices of women of color to have an impact on issues that affect us. The Collective was formed in 1997 with the shared recognition that as women of color we have the right and responsibility to represent ourselves and our communities. We do this work within the structure of three objectives:
- SUPPORT: To create spaces for Indigenous women and women of color to strategize on developing a national movement of women of color for reproductive justice.
- MENTOR: To build the capacity of Indigenous women and women of color organizations and to increase their visibility, sustainability, effectiveness, and influence.
- ADVOCATE: To lift the voices and perspectives of Indigenous women and women of color into the mainstream reproductive rights movement and into public policies.
Internship Description:
SisterSong has three potential projects for RRASC interns:
- SisterSong is currently in the beginning stages of development and implementation of both a national and a local advocacy program. Since the National Office is located in Atlanta, Georgia, we have made one of this year’s priorities the creation of a local program and the development of more extensive relationships with local organizations and communities. This program will be initiated with a Community Mapping Project and with the documentation of Feminist History in Atlanta. This would be a research task involving surveying the community, interviewing community members, searching for and examining historical documents, and finally, writing up a report to compile these findings.
- Gender analysis on the United States Social Forum that was held in Atlanta in the summer of 2007. This project would involve interviewing USSF participants and writing about their perceptions of the role of gender at the USSF, their opinions about its success or shortcomings, and their recommendations for future similar gathering.
- Capacity Needs Survey - An intern is needed to construct, conduct and compile the results of a Capacity Needs survey of our women of color reproductive/health/rights/justice organizations to determine how to support the capacity growth of these organizations. In 2008, SisterSong will conduct a Capacity Needs Survey of at least 25 organizations both within and outside of SisterSong. This survey will assess the current capacity state (staff size, staff positions, budget growth, indicators of sustainability, etc.) of organizations at the national, state, and local levels, and will seek to identify the priority capacity-building needs of these organizations. After conducting this survey, we will compare the results to the findings of two similar surveys.
Skills Needed:
Excellent writing and communication skills are required. Policy and/or advocacy skills are desirable.
Understanding of Reproductive Justice framework and history a plus, but not required (see SisterSong publications on our website, specifically the Asian Communities for Reproductive Justice paper – A New Vision of Advancing our Movement for Reproductive Health, Reproductive Rights and Reproductive Justice.)
