thedreideldiaries:

I’ve been super discouraged lately by everything that’s been going on in this ridiculous excuse for a nation. And my financial situation is an absolute mess. My resolution this Elul was to get more political, because to be honest I’ve been too tired to do much besides work and sleep.  

BUT! It’s almost Yom Kippur, and I’m given to understand that a lot of people make charitable donations this time of year, and this organization is the first thing that’s given me hope in a long time. I just donated what I could spare, and maybe if you’re having trouble deciding where to put your charity money this year – consider the Radical Monarchs?

5 REASONS I LIKE THEM IN PARTICULAR (besides the obvious feminism, racial justice, etc)

1) They’re a tiny organization just starting out. I mean, it’s like four women running this thing. This means that 1a) they have pretty low overhead at this point because their admin costs are fairly low and 1b) they haven’t had time to develop a lot of the problems with transparency, etc. that a lot of larger organizations can have. 

2) They’re from Oakland. I am not from Oakland, but I have family there and visit at least a couple times a year. It’s a beautiful, richly diverse city experiencing a lot of big changes, and young girls of color aren’t exactly a priority in the gentrification wave that’s sweeping the Bay Area. Teaching them not only how to empower themselves, but how to help empower others, seems more important now than ever. 

3) Cool merit badges! They’ve got badges for environmental justice and racial justice and positive body image and lgbtq pride and okay just check out their website

4) They’re looking to expand. I’m not sure how many chapters there are right now, but there’s interest all over the country and beyond. They’ve also talked about forming a similar organization for boys, which would be cool.  

5) Kids are literally the future. I know it sounds cliche, but it’s true. They need to learn about injustice in a way that empowers them to do something about it, and they need adults to listen to them. And hey – I don’t want to make this all about politics, but positive community-building is just about the only thing standing between us and our evil plutocratic overlords. Young girls need to realize that we have power, and that we live in a society that can look however we, the actual humans in it, want it to look. 

Another world is possible, dammit. Let’s make it happen.