Equal Rights Advocates’ Impact Report
We are most powerful when we join forces for change. Your support in 2021, enabled us to actively listen and build on-the-ground momentum to transform workplaces and schools. We got laws passed, then made sure they were being enforced by bringing high-impact lawsuits. We powered changemakers and leveraged our collective strength to advance gender, racial, and economic justice.
Read on to see how you helped make these changes possible. Thank you for your support and dedication to gender justice!
Download the PDF
Explore the Report
- Message from Executive Director Noreen Farrell
- Our Favorite Moments of 2021
- The Impact of Your Dollar
- Building Power: Essential Worker-Led Change
- Our Strategy
- What’s Next? Take Action
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Letter from the Executive Director
“As we charge into the year ahead with the power of community behind us, I’m inspired by ERA’s vision for a future where we all can thrive — where women, girls, and people of all gender identities are supported throughout their lives as students, workers, and family leaders. No matter the crisis or political landscape, our goal is to build power for our shared values, including care for our families, quality work, equal opportunity to prosper, and representation in all spheres. Thank you for joining us in the movement to advance gender, racial, and economic justice.”
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Our Favorite Moments of 2021
We asked ERA team members: What was your favorite accomplishment of 2021? What are you most proud of? Their answers are featured throughout this report. Scroll and read on to hear from our thought leaders.
Delia Coleman, Deputy Director:
“For me it was everything about the Essential Women Workers’ Summit. ERA went ALL IN on this kind of online mobilization event that pulled together all our key stakeholders and it had great engagement. It has been a great springboard for our future work.”
Watch a recording of the Summit
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The Impact of Your Dollar
Together, we can radically reform and rebuild this country into one that works for us all. Here’s what we accomplished together with your support in 2021:
Let’s keep making radical change together. Donate today.
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Our Favorite Moments of 2021
Jessica Ramey Stender, Deputy Legal Director:
“I’m so proud that we made the Silenced No More Act happen in California. For years, NDAs have been on the rise as a way for employers to silence workers who experienced discrimination and workplace abuse. With the enactment of SB 331, employers can no longer avoid accountability and sweep workplace harms under the rug. Our partners on the bill — Senator Connie Leyva, the California Employment Lawyers Association, and Earthseed Founder Ifeoma Ozoma — and the ERA supporters who took action, really pushed that bill over the finish line.”
Read more about SB 331 and our other 2021 Stronger California legislative wins.
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Building Power: Essential Worker-Led Change
In 2021, we fought side-by-side with low-paid immigrant garment factory workers, women of color domestic workers, and severely underpaid service industry workers through class-action lawsuits, fast-response legal support, and community-powered legislative campaigns.
Learn more from Ifeoma Ozoma, one of our partners on a community-led campaign for California’s Silenced No More Act, which was successfully signed into law last year:
Our Favorite Moments of 2021
Katie Sexton, Staff Attorney for Advice & Counseling:
“For me, it was our Protector’s Roundtable, where we brought together students from K-12 schools to talk about the challenges and achievements of being Title IX activists for their schools. These young people were so inspiring and were so happy to be connected to and support one another. Our Free Legal Advice & Counseling program was able to reach them and bring them together, and for that I am very proud.”
Read more about our Free Legal Help program.
Looking Ahead: A Year of Worker-Led Action
Essential women workers know best the time for transformative work is now. To truly transform the broken systems that have devastated workers and families for the past 2 years, we’re partnering with the everyday heroes who keep our country afloat to reimage and reform our workplaces, laws, and care infrastructures.
That’s why we gathered 400+ essential women workers, advocates, organizers, legislators, and White House officials for an Essential Women Workers Virtual Summit in October, kicking off a Year of Action. Here are some highlights from the event:
We’re continuing this work in 2022 with our Essential Women Workers’ Year of Action campaign, partnering with worker leaders, advocates, and partner organizations to keep up the drumbeat for change led by and for essential workers.
Together, we can reshape broken systems into ones that actually help workers and families like they’re supposed to. Learn more from the worker leaders and changemakers we’re partnering with:
Help us transform workplaces in partnership with essential women workers. Make a gift today.
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Our Favorite Moments of 2021
Harjit Kaur, Pro Bono Managing Attorney:
“My favorite accomplishment as a Sikh attorney was taking on a Title IX case for a Sikh college student and not only winning her claims in the initial hearing and appeal, but also being able to provide important advocacy that made a huge impact in her daily life as well. I was able to connect with her family to ensure she was receiving trauma-informed support at home and in the broader community, shattering some very harmful cultural stereotypes along the way.”
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Our Strategy
Our multi-pronged approach means we can challenge harmful systems and structures on multiple levels. Read more below.
Taking on systemic injustice requires attacking it from multiple angles at the same time.
Through our Free Legal Helpline, we hear from and support workers, students, and families being harmed by forces of oppression and injustice.
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This on-the-ground knowledge informs our High-Impact Litigation, so we can take on cases that will have the biggest possible impact in workplaces and schools.
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While we’re fighting injustice in court, we’re also Movement Building outside with grassroots campaigns led by workers, students, and families.
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Through our national and statewide coalitions, our Legislation & Policy work helps pass some of the country’s most innovative laws to advance gender equity and economic justice for struggling families.
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Our partnerships with clients and other organizations inform our Community-Based Research, which in turn guides our future work so we can consistently be sure we’re attack systems of injustice effectively and impactfully.
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And of course, none of it would be possible without your support. Donate to fuel this work.
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Our Favorite Moments of 2021
Lara Morgan Rush, Director of Development:
“In 2021, ERA proved that it could bring together the community, even in the second year of our virtual event format. As the Covid-19 pandemic continues, I am so proud that ERA’s supporters, ambassadors, clients, and friends stand by our work and show up to raise funds and awareness for our mission.”
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What’s next? Take Action
Contact lawmakers to support our groundbreaking bills for gender, racial, and economic justice in 2022.
Visit our Action Center
Our action campaigns make it easy to contact lawmakers with a few clicks!