Adelante Goes Virtual: A Pandemic Won't Stop Us
Javier, Daniela, and Odalis of our Empresas Small Business Development team meets virtually.
On February 26, 2020, the CDC confirmed the first case of COVID-19 suspected to be locally transmitted in the United States.
Now, just a month later, everything has changed. Across Oregon, businesses have closed, schools have switched to virtual teaching, and everyone has been told to “shelter-in-place” in order to stop the spread of the highly contagious virus.
At Adelante Mujeres, our hearts go out to all of the families who have lost loved ones to the virus or whose lives have been upended by this crisis. This is a dark time for many people around the world. We send our love to everyone courageously working on the front lines.
While no one is immune to the coronavirus, vulnerable communities, including immigrant families struggling with economic disparities, will be greatly affected by this pandemic. Latinx small business owners have been temporarily shut down, working parents don’t have child care options, monolingual Spanish-speakers aren’t sure where to find resources in Spanish, and people are being laid off without any financial buffers to keep them temporarily afloat.
In a video message from Bridget Cooke, our Co-Founder and Executive Director, Bridget talks about the need to support immigrant communities during this global crisis. “We know that most of our vulnerable members of our communities will not benefit from the committed federal aid. It will be up to us to respond,” says Bridget. “This crisis also paints in black and white the very disturbing disparities we see across the globe.”
Bridget Cooke (left), with Adelante Mujeres staff at an event in 2019.
But, there is hope. With every crisis comes opportunity.
“At Adelante Mujeres, our motto in times of crisis is to model hope and justice in everything we do, acting courageously,” explains Bridget. “So let’s use this time to be in solidarity with others. Let’s use it for creativity, and dreams of what real global justice could look like — of how we could fund a healthcare system that assures quality access for all. We can use this time to reflect on, and commit to, a truly humane response to immigrants and refugees who are just trying to find a safe place to raise their families.”
Taking Action and Going Virtual
To do our part to stop the spread of COVID-19, the Adelante Mujeres building has temporarily closed, all in-person classes and workshops have come to a halt, and all of our staff is working from home. But we aren’t letting a pandemic stop us from empowering Latinas to lead. We’re going virtual — a new frontier for Adelante Mujeres.
Here is an inside look at what our team is doing right now to support the women and families that we serve during the COVID-19 crisis:
Connecting 1-on-1 with participants
Our program staff has connected 1-on-1, either by phone or video chat, with most of our participants and their family members at least once, doing a thorough assessment of needs and providing families with the resources they need.
We are also connecting families with the right resources to ensure they have access to high-quality internet at home, as well as devices to use video chatting services on.
Our Education teams checks in with participants from our Adult Education and Early Childhood Education Programs.
2. Building a strong online community for Chicas participants
Our Chicas facilitators are providing girls with DIY project ideas, TED-style talks, and high school seniors are receiving support with finishing high school and applying to college.
Our Chicas team uses an active Instagram account to connect with the girls.
3. Teaching our classes online using Zoom
Our Beyond Trauma Program is conducting workshops via Zoom and our Adult Education team is preparing to also make the jump to virtual teaching and online Zumba classes — a learning curve for all involved! Instructors at Portland Community College have been helping our teachers learn how to use Zoom for teaching.
Alexandra recording a video about how to use Zoom for Adelante Mujeres staff.
4. Virtually Advocating for Immigrant Rights
Our team is talking with elected officials about the need to provide emergency funds to immigrant communities to address issues like: supporting small businesses, ensuring anyone in need can access food, housing, and health-related services regardless of their status, supporting our efforts to share information about the 2020 Census and DACA Renewals and more.
Our Leadership and Advocacy team engages people on Facebook to teach them about the 2020 Census.
What Lies Ahead
The future is full of unpredictability right now. We can hope for the best but we must prepare for the worst. What we do know for sure is that Adelante Mujeres is in this fight for the long-haul, but we’re going to need you, our supporters, to continue standing with us. We are committed to supporting Latina women and their families throughout the entirety of this crisis. They depend on us, and they know we’ll be there on this journey with them.
Education won’t stop. Learning will continue. We will keep providing leadership training and empowering opportunities for immigrants and refugees. We will act courageously. We will not let a pandemic stop us.
Thank you to everyone who has, and continues to, support our work. You make this possible.
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