Dear Friend,

Welcome to our quarterly newsletter! We have so much news and highlights that we’d like to share with you all - this will be the first out of four newsletter emails you’ll be receiving from us over the coming days.

At Adhikaar building power and organizing our communities is at the center of our work. We are the only women-led worker and community center in the country committed to supporting and organizing Nepali-speaking communities, including Nail Salon workers.

For the majority of our members English is not their first language and many have limited literacy, so it’s a challenge to navigate the U.S. system as a new immigrant. They often face difficulties at the intersection of race, caste, and gender.

To address these issues, Adhikaar started offering both theory and practical sections of the New York State Nail Salon licensing course in Nepali language at our workers center, through our partnership with the NYCOSH Beauty School. Along with the course, we also started offering additional support with the license application, exam preparation, and on-the-job training which are crucial for our members to successfully pass their licensing exam. To support their ability to access these courses, we also offer industrial English for Empowerment classes, with a popular education approach to equipping members with the English skills they need for the job.

Throughout these essential services, we take every opportunity for political education and leadership development. Workers rights is woven into the workforce development curriculum and we build leaders out of these services, so they can become trainers and co-facilitators in the future.

This is a snapshot of our holistic approach to transforming the lives of Nail Salon workers in our community. To learn more about our campaigns, services, and advocacy efforts check out our latest newsletter.

Thank you for taking the time to support and uplift our work. Your donation helps Adhikaar meet the challenges of today and work to build a system that works for all of us.

In solidarity,

Prarthana Gurung,

Director of Campaigns & Communications