BALI staff and alumna attend NYS Conference for Civically Engaged Women

BALI Executive Director Liz Abzug and BALI staff Ebony and Oriela, attended the first NYS Conference for Civically Engaged Women held on December 1-3, 2016 and hosted by the NY Women Political Caucus at the Riverside Church in Manhattan. Liz spoke about the importance of Intergenerational Leadership in politics and about her mother's amazing work,the great Bella Abzug who founded the National Women Political Caucucus, to bring women's issues to the forefront of the nation's political agenda. She also spoke about the importance of passing on Bella's work and her ideals to the future generations of women leaders.

Along with Liz, BALI alumnae from class of 2016, Yardena Gerwin and Giselle Rodriguez Benitez (pictured below), spoke about their experiences as part of the 2016 BALI Leadership Training Summer Program and the impact the program had on them as current and future leaders in their communities. They also both spoke about the importance of having young women leaders in all walks of life for young girls to be able to see them as an example to follow.

Other speakers in the conference included Manhattan Borough President Gail Brewer, Rebecca A. Seawright-NYS Assemblymember, Miko Branch-Founder/Ceo of Miss Jessie's, Loida Nicholas Lewis-Chair/Ceo of TLC Beatrice LLC, Jill Stein-Leader of the Green Party and 2016 Presidential Candidate and more.

Main topics of discussion included: 

• Bridging the Gender Gap - What battles can Women Win?
• Healthcare awareness, Paying attention to Women's Physical and Mental Health
• The "F" word (feminism) in the 21st century - What does it mean?
• Safety and Security - being your own best "defensive" Player in today's marketplace
• Leadership - Are Women better Leaders?
• Getting started in your own Business? Receive important tips from experts.

The Conference's goals included: 

1. To bring the message of civic engagement and responsibility to all women regardless of age, race, color, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity. 

2. To pay tribute to the 100th anniversary of New York State Women Suffrage Movement. 

BALI girls and staff attend the 2016 International Day of the Girl Summit at the UN

BALI girl leaders and staff attended the 2016 International Day of the Girl Summit at the UN this past Tuesday, October 11th, 2016. BALI has proudly been a sponsor of this event for 4 consecutive years. The International Day of Girl is a day to celebrate girls all over the world and to talk about issues that concern girls all over the world. Every year, girls from organizations working with girls from all over the country and the world, such as BALI, perform, sing, read poetry and speak out about the most important issues concerning them such as education, empowerment, rape culture, child marriage and so on. They also talk about how they are being active young leaders and how they are impacting the world today and the future generations.

Our very own Hariella (picture below) spoke about the importance of having more girls in politics; involved in their schools' governments, in their neighborhoods and in their communities. Hariella spoke about her experience at BALI this past summer and how it empowered her to become a better leader and how she wants to pass that on to other future girl leaders. She also spoke about the historical moment she and every girl in the US are lucky to be experiencing right now, when a woman is for the first time in history the presidential candidate of a major party and how that is a dream come true for every girl in this country.

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BALI attends the Opening Bell Ceremony at the NY Stock Exchange for Women's Equality Day, August 26th 2016

On August 26th 2016, BALI staff, Executive Director Liz Abzug and Program Associate Oriela Baliaj, attended the NY Stock Exchange Opening Bell Ceremony in honor of Women's Equality Day. We at BALI feel honored that American women have our own Bella Abzug (D-NY) to thank for the Women's Equality Day. It was because of her tireless work and dedication to women's equality that the U.S. Congress designated August 26th as the Women's Equality Day in 1971. The day was selected to commemorate the 1920 certification of the 19th Amendment to the Constitution, granting women the right to vote. Some of the women who attendeded the Opening Bell ceremony for Women's Equality Day were: NY Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney, NYS Lieutenant Governor Kathleen C.Hochul, Liz Abzug (Daughter of Bella Abzug).

After the Opening Bell ceremony at the NY Stock Exchange, a large group of succesful, powerful NYC women gathered at the stairs of City Hall where Manhattan Borough President Gail Brewer was holding a conference in honor of Bella Abzug to talk about women's status in the US and especially the ERA. She had brought hats (because Bella was known for always wearing a hat in public) for everyone, such a wonderful gesture. Her daughter Liz Abzug, BALI founder and Executive Director, spoke at the event and said: "We need to get a woman elected president, we need to get 50% of Congress to be women, House and Senate, and we really need to elect a woman for mayor and governor in NY as we never had a woman mayor or governor and that is unacceptable" And boy is she right!

BALI girls lead Girls Govern Town Hall at GWU, Washington DC

This past Wednesday, September 14th 2016, a group of our BALI alumnae got to be a part of the first ever Girls Govern Town Hall, a wonderful event held at George Washington University, Washington DC, and a collaboration between BALI and Girls Global Media (GGM). At this event, the first ever Girls Bill of Rights was introduced. 

BALI staff Ebony and Oriela, along with our Board Member Cynthia McKnight, accompanied the 14 proud BALI alumnae to DC, some of whom had the opportunity to to participate in the event as panelists and moderators. 

The event started with a wonderful performance from Girl Be Heard and followed with a BALI girl, Jasmine Amladi and a GGM girl reading the Girls Bill of Rights, as it was voted on from thousands of girls around the country. 

The Girls Govern Town Hall included three panels on very important issues to girls and young women today and multiple keynote speakers from all three sectors: public, private and nonprofit. 

The first panel, where our own Maia Regman served as a panelist, was called Girls Rights Are Human Rights, and the main topic discussed was the issue of rape culture being so accepting in the United States. The second panel was called Navigating Social Media and Free Speech and our own Bharvi M.Chavre was a panelist, and the discussion revolved around the importance of having free speech while also making sure you are safe. The third panel was called Should She Run and it discussed the lack of girls and women in politics and what there could be done. Panelists, including BALI's Natasha Dodge, spoke about the importance of having more girls and women in politics from the lowest level to the highest, as well as the impact the current presidential election is having on them, considering the leading candidate for the first time in US history is a woman. 

Pictures from left to right:

Picture 1: BALI alumanae on the bus to DC. Left to right-Kay, Nicole, Bharvi, Farzana

Picture 2: BALI girls and staff being interviewed by Precious Fasekin (GGM)

Picture 3: BALI's Jasmine Amladi and GGM girl reading the Girls BIll of Rights

Picture 4: BALI girls and staff take a picture after the event, on their way back