End of the Semester Reflection

This semester at Lift has been interesting. I have been able to combine my experiences at Tulane and Lift together. My role at Lift is being the head of the Race, Equity, and Inclusion Committee of Lift Louisiana is to insure the organization is living up to its commitment to diversity and inclusion. I have meetings with other experts in this field who sit on this committee to help guide me through this process. They volunteered their time because their values align with the values of Lift and they wish to see the organization work to the fullest potential. One of our committee members, Mandisa, wrote this mission statement and it reads “Lift Louisiana works on behalf of Louisiana women, their families and their communities. At Lift Louisiana, we know and hold that “women” is inclusive of trans and non-binary people. We recognize the racialized, classed, and ableist paradigm of which bodies get seen and upheld as “woman” or “feminine,” and we reject this paradigm in our advocacy, litigation and partnership work. We uplift the experiences and needs of people across gender identity and expression, sexuality, race, class, immigration status, ability and age.” I can take what I learned this semester and apply it to being a student activist here on campus. Tulane is a very white space and I have some tools that I learned from this experience to diversify the space and make it better for POC and LGBTQIA+ people. As I continue to enhance these skills, I am thankful for this internship because I can apply them in any field. Here’s a picture of me, Mandisa, and a representative from Women with a Vision at a Lift event.