Category

Are You an AllY?

What Does the Future Hold for Racial Justice?

Wednesday, November 13, 2024

When we step back to look at the big picture, and also in the daily steps we take at YWCA, we do see progress towards our mission of “eliminating racism, empowering women, and promoting peace, justice, freedom, and dignity for all.” That progress still doesn’t seem to have put us very close to achieving those … Read More

Identity, Ideology, and Imagination

Tuesday, January 16, 2024

Dear AllY, Please reference this article by Jack Doyle: “Rockwell & Race, 1963-1968” The Problem We All Live With – 1963 By the time the turbulent sixties were to begin, painter Norman Rockwell had already established his place in the collective hearts of Americans. For five decades, Rockwell painted covers for the Saturday Evening Post. … Read More

The Neighbor Next Door

Wednesday, November 15, 2023

Dear AllY, Growing up, I wanted to be a gypsy. Young Heather romanticized the idea of picking up and moving about, meeting new people, and learning new things. What can I say, I am an observer of the human experience! And while I have had my fair share of adventures, there came a time to … Read More

Facing Discomfort: A Welcomed Necessity in Addressing Racial Injustice

Tuesday, October 24, 2023

Dear AllY, My late grandmother, Betty, lived with us for a time. I vividly remember her smoking cigarettes and ironing towels while watching soap operas. Grandma Betty was ambidextrous, but she was born left-handed. She shared stories of getting her left hand slapped by teachers until she was retrained to be ambidextrous. Her left-hand preference … Read More

Gentrification in Fort Wayne

Tuesday, September 19, 2023

Gentrification has been defined as “a process in which a poor area (as of a city) experiences an influx of middle-class or wealthy people who renovate and rebuild homes and businesses and which often results in an increase in property values and the displacement of earlier, usually poorer residents.” Today’s patterns of gentrification have deep, … Read More