Hi fellow Females of Filadelphia readers š» Hope everyone is staying safe and practicing self-care. Iām super excited about todayās guest, Joy! Joy is constantly giving back to the Philadelphia community through organizations such as NAHJ Philly, LULAC and the GreenLight Fund, all while also being the Community Voices and Engagement Fellow at WHYY. She is always advocating for the local Latinx youth community, but before I say anymore letās get started …
V: Thanks so much for joining me today Joy. Why donāt you tell the audience and myself a bit about yourself?
J: Yes, so I am originally from Philly, and am still here. I graduated in 2011 from Albright College in Reading, and thatās the only time Iāve lived outside the city. I got my bachelorās degree in political science and pre-law. My parents wanted me to be a lawyer, and although I had interest in it, I donāt think, ultimately, it was my passion. A lot of professors told me to take a gap year before law school, and I took their advice and never got around to going.
During that time, which was still hard to find a job because of the recession, I interned and volunteered a lot. Eventually, I became a part of Americorps for a small nonprofit in Southeast Philly. I worked with families to help them with healthy eating and healthy living under a grant. Also, I helped teens in the area get involved in their communities through clean ups and things like that. I never thought of working at a nonprofit or with youth so that pushed me in that direction. I had always volunteered and was part of student government in high school, but I never really thought it could turn into a career.
From there I worked with the City of Philadelphia for 3 years, again working with youth running the Youth Commission. In this role, I really dug down deep learning about different parts of the city and the young communities. I also learned about how to advocate for myself, as a young Hispanic woman, and also how not to force my views on younger communities. I was in my 20s at this point, still learning my way, and learning what it means to be a leader. Those were probably some of the best years, so far, of work Iāve done. Working for the city was also an eye-opener as someone who studied political science and had a passion for local government.
Unfortunately, I lost my job after a new mayor came in because thatās sort of what happens in that space. That year, 2016, was very hard. But everything happens for a reason and I was glad it happened early on. It also made me think about where my life was headed towards next and what was important to me. After 2016, I did work here and there with small nonprofits, looking to do work with youth.
V: That definitely sounds hard, what was something you learned from that experience?
J: For me, as a Latina woman, Iām very much a go-getter and was raised to believe that if you work hard, youāll reap the benefits. But unfortunately that doesnāt always happen. And thatās something I had to learn and continue to tell young professionals about. I also always tell them to make sure theyāre doing the job because they want to. Now, I really try to go for things Iām passionate about and keep the professional/personal balance in my life.
V: I 100% agree with you. Itās hard to lose something you really want, in the moment, but it does often provide clarity. Is after that when you started working at WHYY?
J: In 2017, I started at WHYY, which is the local NPR station. I am not a journalist, but I started as a Newsroom Coordinator but now Iām their Community Voices and Engagement Fellow. So Iām back to community engagement and advocacy. I also work a lot on grant deliverables regarding diversity in the newsroom. In my role, one of the things I had to research was who are journalists interviewing and why. And with the hard data, we found out journalists are talking mostly to white males when they are looking for āexpertsā. And we work with them to change the way they think about experts. Itās not always about a university administrator or City Hall worker, it could be about the block captain or the small business owner.
Anybody can be the expert. I didnāt have experience in diversity, but with my experience in community engagement and working on the ground in a small nonprofit and also in the city with organizations, I was able to bring those skills. Also, being originally from Philadelphia, since a lot of people are not from Philly professionally, gives me an advantage and something I noticed my employers are excited about.
V: Thatās very true sometimes the fact that someone has a specific perspective is their advantage or what makes them an expert in something. One of the reasons I interviewed you was because of your incredible work in the community. Why donāt you tell me a little bit about your involvement as an SAC Member at GreenLight in Philly and what that organization is doing?
J: Iāve been at GreenLight since 2016. A lot of the members run their own businesses or are head of big organizations. GreenLight Philly funds outside organizations to partner with existing organizations. We advice the head, Omar Woodard, about who will get funded for a certain amount of time. Since Iāve worked with youth in Philly I know a lot about what that community is looking for or needs. Itās also great to sit back and listen to the other professionals on the board, who have years and years of experience, about their perspective while also being confident in my perspective because I am on the ground. At the moment I got the position at GreenLight, I had lost my job and so it was pretty scary. But I have to remind myself that if Omar had the confidence in me to give me the position, why shouldnāt I be confident in myself? GreenLight is an organization that directly gives back to the community, which is super important to me.
V: I struggle with with asking myself if Iām good enough for a positions too so I can imagine how you feel, even though Iāve never had that much power in an org. What about your experience as Events Chair at LULAC, how did you end up working with them and what do they do?
J: Yes, so LULAC is a national organization. Itās the oldest civil rights organization for Latinx in the country. Rebeca Cruz-Esteves, the current president in Philly, and I have been colleagues and friends for the past few years so she thought it would be great to have me join since Iām from Philly and because of my previous experiences. This position is definitely up my ally since it has a lot to do with civic engagement and workshops. We also do fundraisers and give scholarships to high school seniors, especially Latinos in Philadelphia. This year we raised the most money Philadelphia has ever raised and split it up by giving it to five students. Things like that directly affect Latinos specifically, but also the entire Philly community. Itās really important for me, since I grew up in those neighborhoods to help them.
V: Thatās really great to see how so much has come full circle from being a part of the community to then also finding ways to help them. Speaking of helping Latinos, can you also talk about your experience as a Board Member at NAHJ and what the organization does?
J: The NAHJ is the National Association of Hispanic Journalists and we recently just restarted that chapter a few months ago, after a few years. Iām not a journalist but Iām on the board after being asked to restart it. I work in diversity in the newsroom and I can definitely count, on my hand, how many Latinos are in my newsroom. And although we have a lot of Latinos at Telemundo, for example, what about the other newsrooms?
We try to connect students in the area, like Klein students at Temple, with opportunities in the newsroom. Again thatās directly going back to helping Latinos, specifically, because I see the mark that isnāt getting hit with Latinos or even journalists of color in general. We also link up with other associations, like PABJ and AAJA Philly, to think about how we are going to tackle problems such as what recently happened with the Inquirer.
V: I think itās so important to see that collaboration amongst minority groups because in unity there is strength. What is one specific thing you hope you can change in the next few years, through the work you are doing in these organizations?
J: One thing I would like to see, going back to my background in political science and government, is smaller organizations coming together for the big picture and to change policy. The organizations like GreenLight, that are big and have their ear to the government, are able to move the needle a lot quicker and with greater results. I hope a lot of the smaller organizations Iām in move towards collaborating with others to really move the needle, have their voices heard and bring results. Iām usually the youngest in the room, one of the only Latinas in the room, and I think thatās a problem in 2020. Iād really like the city, and bigger organizations that have pockets to invest in these communities and see a return.
V: I definitely agree. Unfortunately, a lot of change does come with money or with policy changes (which oftentimes also has to do with money). As my last question for you, do you have any last minute, quick advice for young professionals that donāt know what to do with their life or find themselves in a difficult situation now with all the job losses?
J: The biggest lesson Iāve learned is that your job, or internship or anything youāre involved with at the moment, does not define you. Right before I left my job, I was an executive director for the mayorās office in Philadelphia. When I lost that job, I was still going to meetings and it really stung when I no longer had that title. It was a wake up call because just because I donāt have a certain job or a certain position- that does not define me. What defines me is what Iām doing at my current job to get to the next level and what I do in my spare time with purpose. Nothing is permanent. Nothing is set in stone. Take a step back and think about what you were involved with that made you happy. Take chances. Itās not about what title you donāt have or what title that other person has because you have no idea what that other person is going through. Donāt worry about things happening instantly.
V: Thatās some really solid advice, and I can say that as a recent college grad itās really helpful to hear from someone. Thank you so much Joy for your incredible advice, advocacy for Philly youth and for taking the time to share your story. Through the triumphs and trials youāve found out a lot about yourself and what you want to do and I think thatās an incredible thing to take away from this post.
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