Young Women Leaders Share the Mic with Minnesota Changemakers on February 26

#WFMNXSHARETHEMICMN Collaboration Amplifies BIPOC Voices for Change

As we witness the power of young women leading movements for social change and transforming the world, the Women’s Foundation of Minnesota (WFMN) and #SHARETHEMICMN are amplifying the work, lives, and stories of the brilliant young BIPOC women who are leading today. Recognizing that every sector in our state needs the voices and solutions of young Black, Indigenous, and women of color, the #WFMNXSHARETHEMICMN partnership is seizing the moment to power a movement for change.

In this first-ever collaboration launched in January, #SHARETHEMICMN is partnering with the Women’s Foundation to amplify the voices of WFMN’s Young Women’s Initiative of Minnesota, representing eight communities across Minnesota most impacted by inequities in economic opportunity, safety, and leadership. Over three months, young women and gender expansive leaders will take over the social media channels of statewide leaders to highlight the change that is possible when we put young women who have been pushed to the margins at the center of solutions.

During the first quarter of 2021, young women and gender expansive leaders representing eight communities across Minnesota most impacted by inequities in economic opportunity, safety, and leadership will take over the social media channels of statewide leaders to highlight the change that is possible when we put young women who have been pushed to the margins at the center of solutions.

Each month, social media channels of prominent Minnesotans will be taken over by young women leaders from WFMN’s Young Women’s Initiative of Minnesota, including current and alumnae members of the Young Women’s Cabinet, appointed by the Office of Governor, who have been trained as policy advocates, directed nearly $1 million in grants to nonprofits and individuals to advance equity, and engaged in leadership development. Also sharing the mic will be WFMN Innovators who received microgrants investing in their ideas and solutions to create a state where all young women thrive.

Mic shares featuring young Black, Indigenous, and women of color are changing the narrative to show how young BIPOC women are leading across Minnesota. On February 26, featured mic shares will include:

• Chanda Smith Baker, Chief Impact Officer and Senior Vice President of the Minneapolis Foundation will share her Instagram channel with WFMN Innovator and entrepreneur and healer Kitana Holland to bring attention to the role of movement in radical self-care and Black wellness.
• Amanda Brinkman, host and executive producer of the “Small Business Revolution – Main Street” series will share her mic with Young Women’s Cabinet alumna and Native language educator and advocate Vanessa Goodthunder. On Instagram, Goodthunder will share the power and value of Native cultural identity. “Our compassion, our Dakota ways, and our love for our children, that’s what keeps us strong,” Vanessa said.
• WCCO “This Morning” anchor Heather Brown will share her Instagram channel with Young Women’s Cabinet member and American Indian educator Athena Cloud, who will address the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women’s epidemic in Minnesota.
• Reba Dominski, Executive Vice President and Chief Social Responsibility Officer of U.S. Bank and President of the U.S. Bank Foundation will share her mic on LinkedIn with Young Women’s Cabinet alumna Ling DeBellis, an evolutionary biologist and a mixed media artist, who will use a variety of social platforms to highlight intersectionality in STEM and the arts.

Mic shares on January 22 featured Cheniqua Johnson, a civic leader from Worthington and relationship manager at the Saint Paul & Minnesota Foundation, taking over the LinkedIn channel of Gloria Perez, President & CEO of the Women’s Foundation of Minnesota, Andrea Duarte-Alonso partnered with Clockwork Interactive founder and CEO Nancy Lyons to share her mic on Twitter and Instagram. As Duarte-Alonso shared with the Worthington Daily Globe: “Oftentimes, young women of color are on the margins. They often are not given the mic, taken as seriously, or seen as leaders.” Young Women’s Cabinet alumna Raie Gessesse shared the mic and Twitter account of Rochester Mayor Kim Norton to spotlight the groundbreaking leadership of young women in communities and through the Young Women’s Initiative of Minnesota. See more about the collaboration. The final media takeover will take place during Women’s History Month, on March 26.

WFMN and #SHARETHEMICMN share a vision of an inclusive and equitable Minnesota where every young Black, Indigenous, and woman of color thrives. Founded by Jasmine Brett Stringer in June 2020, #SHARETHEMICMN expands the reach of Black and Brown women in Minnesota with connections that extend beyond a one-day media takeover. “Collaborating with the Women’s Foundation of Minnesota’s Young Women’s Initiative is a natural fit for #SHARETHEMICMN because it supports our greater mission of making Minnesota a more equitable state. It’s important that we bring disenfranchised and often unheard younger women on the journey with us and help them amplify and expand the reach of their voices as it pertains to the impactful work they’re doing in their communities and our state,” said Jasmine Brett Stringer, founder of #SHARETHEMICMN and Carpe Diem with Jasmine.