Conferences are an opportunity to connect, to educate, and to organize. To take stock of where we stand as a community, to put forth a vision for the future, and to examine the steps that might take us there. We gather and share resources, put forth ideas, and leave with a sense of optimism and hopefulness that arises out of proximity to others who share our commitment and ideals. For those of us working on behalf of others, particularly in areas of advocacy and social justice, finding others who can broaden our awareness and reflect our experience is particularly meaningful. 

Our Annual Advocacy Conference: Just Systems and Thriving Communities, for Every Child and Youth, held earlier this month at the Capitol Plaza in Montpelier, was an opportunity to do just that- to connect with our community, to gain valuable insight and information from our colleagues in the field, and to organize and plan our next steps in the fight to improve the lives of disadvantaged and under-resourced children and youth in Vermont. The event was packed with breakout sessions, plenary talks, and advocacy workshops, and brought together over 80 presenters and attendees to think about what positive change looks like on a state-wide level. What follows is just a glimpse at some of the wonderful work that took place on that day. 

Plenary sessions

Meaningful systemic change requires radical ideas, and our plenary keynote speaker, Keith Catone of CYCLE (the Center for Youth and Community Leadership in Education), set the tone for the day by putting forth a theory of social justice organizing focused on uprooting rotten foundations. Using the metaphor of systemic root rot, Keith teased apart the idea that true systemic change requires not simply reforming the products of a rotten system, but going further by concentrating our efforts on combating environmental and root causes like racism, colonialism and white supremacy culture. Keith provided a meaningful framework upon which advocates can build, and highlighted the work of the Ethnic and Social Standards Advisory Working Group here in Vermont as an example of one way this important work can manifest. 

Participants were provided with a clear example of why this kind of systemic change is so important during our afternoon plenary film viewing. Kiah Morris of the Vermont Coalition for Ethnic and Social Equity in Schools led a viewing and discussion of NY Times Retro Report featuring her family’s role in the Gautreaux project, a desegregated housing program that took place in the 1970’s. The film, and in particular the ensuing discussion, examined how inequitable policies that are the product of racism and white supremacy shape lives, and how well-intentioned reforms can fall victim to the very same forces of white supremacy they are intended to combat when not approached in a systemic way. This theme of working for systemic, transformational change was reflected throughout the day and continued into a workshop Kiah led later that afternoon focused on moving from transactional relationships with policymakers toward transformative, inclusive governance. 

Breakout Sessions & Workshops

The concurrent sessions & workshops reflected both the scope of our work on behalf of children and goals for the coming year. Sessions focused on reproductive justice and health equity, the child protection system, racial literacy, economic justice, storytelling for social change, and ethnic and social equity in schools. At times deeply personal, bold, and introspective, the sessions offered professionals and community members from a variety of different backgrounds the space to connect, reflect, and confront challenging questions in order to better move forward on behalf of the movement as a whole. 

Personal experience played an important role in a number of the sessions, including the session led by Standards for Ethnic and Social Equity in Schools Advisory Working Group members Deborah Lisi-Baker and Asma Elhuni, which Deborah explained was intended to “create a safe space for honest conversation and a sense of shared purpose” based on shared exploration of personal “histories and experiences with social justice and equity issues.” Similarly, the session on health equity balanced the sharing of personal experiences and history with imparting an awareness of the progress we have made as a state in orienting policies, language, and accountability toward health equity.  By listening to and reflecting the voices of our communities, we create space for individual experiences while also recognizing our strength as a whole. 

Youth Leadership

Any commitment to changing the future must begin by valuing and elevating the voices of those who stand to inherit it. Youth played a critical role in the conference, and were represented by the Voices for Vermont’s Children Youth Council, as well as the student members of Voice’s community-based organizing network, Parents and Youth for Change (PYC).

The Youth Council, with help from Lt. Governor David Zuckerman, took advantage of the day as an opportunity to establish a clear sense of direction for the coming year and a strategy for accomplishing their goals. Alex Smart, coordinator of the Youth Council, expressed gratitude for the space presented and explained that the conference was such a safe place for the council that they felt comfortable presenting a "flash reading" of a piece of poetry written by one of their members, Narges Anzali, that described the many things that youth feel and worry about throughout the day. The piece, titled, “I Wish,” was for many, one of the most impactful moments of the conference. 

Youth continued to inhabit a leadership role during an afternoon advocacy workshop led by PYC students from the Burlington School District. The students used the workshop to explore the ways that BSD students are organizing to decolonize their school and implement a restorative practices approach. Project Manager and Lead Organizer Infinite Culcleasure reflected the importance of this work: “In the midst of so many political, economic and social crises impacting our lives, it is truly a privilege to have the time and space to be co-creating healthier ways of relating to each other.”

Looking Toward the Future

As we look ahead to the coming legislative session, it is with a sense of optimism and profound purpose. During the conference, attendees had the opportunity to participate in the following areas of our 2020 Policy Agenda:

Birth Doulas

A morning session focused on reproductive justice considered ways to work across movements and across the many facets of self-determined family creation. The session provided the opportunity to build momentum around the development of a policy initiative designed to provide medicaid coverage for birth doula services. This is an evidence-based policy that supports better, safer, less expensive births; improved birth outcomes and infant health; and perinatal well-being. 

Child Poverty

The conference provided a platform for Voices to take the first steps to launch a state-wide campaign to improve the lives of the thousands of children still living in poverty who rely upon safety net programs like Reach Up cash assistance (TANF), child care financial assistance, housing subsidies and more by demanding that the state fulfill its statutory purpose to provide for their basic needs. The campaign builds upon the work of the national Child Poverty Action Group, (CPAG), and was informed during the conference by a generative discussion on the next steps for Vermont. Looking ahead toward the coming year, Voices and our partners will tailor a Vermont-specific version of campaign in an effort to reframe the policy conversation in the legislature; moving from a field of single-issue campaigns vying for resources and attention to an integrated, multi-issue approach to improving children’s wellbeing. 

Office of Child Advocate

Voices was pleased to host national expert Lynn Tiede of the CHAMPS campaign, Representative Emilie Kornheiser of Brattleboro, as well as a number of Vermont foster parents in a breakout session panel on the child protection system, followed by a data walk exploring how to make our child protection system as child and family centered as possible. The day after the conference, Voices held a Child Protection Workday, with the intention of building a coalition and a policy agenda for our child protection work. It was wonderful to have representatives from DCF, legislators, court staff, foster parents, parent advocates and youth advocates sharing their collective wisdom to better understand what structure would be most effective for an Office of Child Advocate. The workday was capped off by a viewing and discussion of the film Downstream led by Tricia Long, about the impact of incarceration on children and youth. Many of the themes that were present in the conference were highlighted during the panel including the intersection of poverty and court involvement. 

Stay Involved

Voices has a lot on the agenda for the coming legislative session, and we won’t be able to accomplish it without your help. Interested in getting involved? Contact the following Voices representatives to add your voice and expertise. Your experience matters to us! 

     Contact Research Director Sarah Teel to learn more about the Doula Initiative 

     Contact Policy Associate Amy Brady to support work relating to the Office of Child Advocate

     Contact Executive Director Michelle Fay to join the Campaign to End Child Poverty

Support VT Kids

In between now and next year’s conference, we hope you’ll consider helping to enhance the lives of children and youth in Vermont by becoming a member of Voices. Even the smallest donation can make a big difference. Members receive important legislative news and information updates, learn about issues affecting children through our Kid's Count report, are provided with tools and information to help make change happen for Vermont kids, and gain access to special member rates for conferences and events. We can't do the work that we do for kids and youth in Vermont without your support! 

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