Friend,

Have you ever thought about what a safe community would look like for you? As you can imagine, everyone has different ideas of what a safe community looks like for them. When we use reproductive justice to guide our thinking, we think about what a safe community looks like for the most marginalized members of our society. We realize that, when the most marginalized folks are safe, everyone else is, too.

The ability to live safely in one’s community is an essential part of a dignified life, yet it is denied to far too many young people. Across the United States, young people — particularly young women, young people of color, immigrant youth, and LGBTQIA+ youth — face many threats to their safety: sexual violence, discriminatory policing, immigration enforcement, and environmental degradation. To ensure the safety of young women, young people of color, immigrant youth, and LGBTQIA+ youth, we must address persistent criminalization and the looming climate catastrophe. Read about how we can use policy to address these issues today.

One thing you can do right now to help create a safer community during the pandemic is to take action and share our Youth Demands for COVID-19 Relief action with your state and federal elected officials.For more updates on policy happenings across our states and federally, please remember to join me Monday, May 11th, at 4pm EDT on URGE’s Instagram. Until then, please stay safe and do what you can to take care of others by practicing social distancing.

In Solidarity,

Preston Mitchum (He/Him)

Director of Policy 

URGE: Unite for Reproductive & Gender Equity