Youth in the Lead: Shifting Power and Moving Resources to Youth Organizers

Throughout history, young people have played crucial roles in catalyzing, organizing, and connecting movements. Despite this, many of us in philanthropy consistently hear the adultist, classist, and racist myth that youth organizing is a less serious form of organizing. 

Today, as movements demand for the abolition of the prison and military industrial complex, reproductive justice, wealth redistribution, Indigenous sovereignty, genuine climate solutions, and more, we need the leadership, vision, and political analysis of young people to guide how movements today build deep community power and push the boundaries of our collective imagination. 

Funders that are serious about mobilizing resources for organizing must also be serious about supporting youth organizing groups and the range of organizing, leadership development, political education, and relational work these organizations engage in. How we support youth organizers doesn’t just matter for the future’s movements, it matters to our movements now. 

This webinar is an opportunity for funders to sharpen their ability to genuinely show up as partners and co-conspirators with youth organizers. In this two-hour interactive, dynamic webinar with Chicago Freedom School, funders will: 

• Understand how Chicago Freedom School’s model envisions, develops, and implements programs with BIPOC youth organizers that equip young people and adult allies to study the work of past movements, deepen their understanding of current social problems, build new coalitions and develop strategies for change
• Deepen their understanding of adultism and how it manifests in society and philanthropy 
• Learn about ways to build with youth organizing groups in ways that address power differentials and center young people
• Explore strategies to empower and resource youth organizing

This webinar includes a funder-only session for co-strategizing and collaborative reflection, including sharing strategic casemaking tools to support funders with bringing this conversation back to their institution.

This event is hosted by NFG’s Midwest Organizing Infrastructure Funders, Voqal, and W. Clement & Jessie V. Stone Foundation.