together we stand...

The YWCA's legislative priorities address the core social and economic issues that reflect our values and mission of empowering women and girls and eliminating racism. Our seven legislative priorities are:

1. Elimination of Racism
The YWCA supports policies that help us achieve our mission of eliminating racism. These policies include those that eliminate racial profiling, increase immigrant rights, retain and strengthen affirmative action, reduce hate crimes and educate the public about eliminating racism.

2. Affirmative Action
We support maintaining and strengthening affirmative action laws that protect people from discrimination on the basis of race or gender.

3. Hate Crimes
The YWCA supports the passage of hate crimes legislation that protects people from harassment, violence and other crimes on the basis of race, sex, gender, religion, ethnicity, age, disability or sexual orientation.

4. Violence Against Women
We advocate anti-violence policies that protect victims, hold perpetrators accountable and work to eradicate sexual assault and domestic violence, trafficking of women and dating violence.

Specifically, the YWCA supports the continuance and increased funding for the Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) and Violence Against Women Act (VAWA). We also support legislation that ensures employment stability and economic security for victims of violence against women.

5. Increasing Women's Income
The YWCA supports initiatives to increase the income of women, including policies that raise the minimum wage, protect overtime, strengthen equal pay, maintain the earned income tax credit, oppose the privatization of social security and expand non-traditional training for women from all socioeconomic and racial backgrounds.

6. Welfare Reform
We support an anti-poverty approach to welfare reform that increases education and training opportunities, opposes marriage promotion/incentives, opposes religious discrimination in hiring, restores benefits to legal immigrants, addresses barriers to self-sufficiency, such as domestic violence and substance abuse, and provides affordable and accessible childcare.

7. Early Childhood Education
The YWCA supports quality, affordable and accessible early childhood education that assists adults in moving toward economic independence and provides children with culturally sensitive, developmentally appropriate activities that enable children to succeed in school.

ywca hartford region's 2010 public policy agenda

YWCA Hartford Region, an affiliate of the YWCA USA, is dedicated to eliminating racism, empowering women and promoting peace, justice, freedom and dignity for all. The YWCA Hartford Region provides programs and services in the greater Hartford area including, child care, supportive housing, teen leadership development, racial justice awareness and financial literacy. Our priority issues for 2010 are to create opportunities for women and girls and contribute to economic and redevelopment efforts for the Greater Hartford area: We support:

High Quality Childcare and Early Learning

• Adequate funding for Care 4 Kids that fully reflects the cost of providing care.
• Income eligibility guidelines that are revised upward to include moderate income working families.
• Standards for high quality care and education and systems to measure outcomes and promote continuous quality improvement.
• A state funded program offering salary enhancement, affordable benefits and appropriate incentives for all early childhood educators in the field.
  
  

Equity in Access to Healthcare

• Universal and affordable access to health insurance.
• Transferability of coverage for those who change jobs or are self employed
• Availability of coverage to all with existing health conditions.
• Enhanced emphasis on prevention, particularly on those services that will help to reduce population disparities in health.
• Access for all women to the full scope of reproductive health services.
  

Reproductive Choice

• Reproductive and sexual health rights, including the right to choose, for all woman to make decisions regarding their reproductive and sexual health options.
• Age-appropriate sex education for teenagers which is medically accurate and provides them with the necessary information and skills to make safe and responsible decisions surrounding their sexual health.