PC(USA) - Racial Ethnic Young Women Together


	Learn about our work
	Core members at Kavanaugh Enrichment Center, Crestwood, Ky. Photo by Nancy Khella. The purpose of REYWT is to be a nationally structured network of racial ethnic young women whose leadership will reflect the diversity of today's church and who will develop and provide resources that support our goal of becoming a vital and recognizable constituency of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). We are Hispanic and Latina, Asian, Middle Eastern, Native American, Black and African American, Bi-racial and Multi-racial. We are the faces of activists, pastors, college students, seminarians, mothers, missionaries, church members and leaders.


	Areas of focus
	REYWT has three areas of focus: Leadership development Networking Social Advocacy and education


	How we work
	Core team REYWT has a 12-member decision-making body. Meet the current Core Team. Committee participation By participating in various committees, REYWT members affirm our mission statement of "becoming a vital and recognizable constituency of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)" by offering leadership opportunities in the denomination. Safe space Safe Space is provided by REYWT to reflect and engage in honest dialogue about the thoughts, ideas and concerns of racial ethnic young women in both the church and society. Scholarships Scholarships are offered to representatives of REYWT to defray registration or travel expenses for conferences or events that relate to the interests of young adults, women or racial ethnic people. E-mail and mail updates We keep you involved and informed of events, current affairs and organizations focusing on young adults, women or racial ethnic people. Sign up to receive email updates from REYWT.


	How Are We REYWTed?
	Meet the core group members: (back, from left to right) Micah Emerson, Jen Burgess, Amanda Cheromiah, (front, from left to right) Marnie DelCarmen, Karen Castro, Carolin Graise, Melva Lowry, Sam Colbert, Vanessa Aja-Sigmon and Cathy Chang. Not pictured are Omayra Gonzalez and Tammy RedOwl. Photo by Marnie DelCarmen We are rooted and connected by our Christian faith, gender, cultural and age identities. We are young women seeking to reconcile our humanity with God's calling for us. We seek to educate and cultivate cultural, gender, class and age sensitivity to affirm our individuality. We seek to be followers of Jesus in confronting cultural barriers.

	We provide a safe place to talk about our faith, relationships, experiences and issues. We value faith and spirituality; theological studies from the perspectives of all women; dedication to peace and justice, with a focus on the concerns of young women of color; mental and physical wellness and wholeness; free expression and questioning; integrity and honesty. We come to travel this journey together.


	REYWT's history Like all good ideas, Racial Ethnic Young Women Together (REYWT) began with a conversation. And another. And another. Conversations among racial ethnic young women. Read about how REYWT began.


	Are you a Womanist, Mujerista or Asian-American Woman Theologian? Have you ever heard of theology from a womanist, Mujerista or Asian-American woman’s perspective? Join racial ethnic young women as they explore these theological viewpoints. Through personal reflections, each woman shares her unique response to a primer that introduces a different expression of theology. Reflections on “Coming Home” Two Asian-American women provide reflections on Coming Home: Asian American Women Doing Theology. Larissa Kwong Abazia Core member In her reflection on Unzu Lee’s primer, Larissa Kwong Abazia gives the reader her thoughts on the primer, as well as a personal reflection of what she considers home. Read this deep and heartfelt observation of “Home” through the eyes of this young, faithful, Asian-American woman of God. Irene Pak Young Adult Intern for Racial Justice and Advocacy “As I reflected on what coming home means for me as an Asian-American woman before reading the primer, I realized that home in terms of my own identity has always meant a place of in between.” Read Irene’s reflection. Read Young adult intern Bridgett N. Cannon’s reflection on The Womanist Theology Primer — Remembering What We Never Knew: The Epistemology of Womanist Theology. The final installment of the primer reflection series will be Toward a Liberating Faith: Introduction to Mujerista Theology by Magdalena I. Garcia. Order this free primer.


	REYWT members reflect on the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women REYWT member Laura Polk reflects on 2008 United Nations Commission on the Status of Women Laura Polk is a member of REYWT's 12-member decision-making body, also known as Core. She is a native of Williamsburg, Virginia, and a recent graduate of University of Maryland where she received a master’s degree in Applied Anthropology. She has been very active within the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). Laura has served as a Young Adult Intern for Mission Service Recruitment and as a Young Adult Volunteer in Seattle, Washington. Read Laura’s reflection on the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women. The Commission on the Status of Women is a functional commission of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), dedicated exclusively to gender equality and advancement of women. It is the principal global policy-making body. Every year, representatives of member states gather at United Nations Headquarters in New York to evaluate progress on gender equality, identify challenges, set global standards and formulate concrete policies to promote gender equality and advancement of women worldwide. 2007 From around the world, women (and men) came to the United Nations in New York for the 51st Session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) from February 26 to March 9. Seven Presbyterian women, representing Racial Ethnic Young Women Together (REYWT), were among those who participated in this annual gathering that evaluates progress on gender equality, identifies challenges, sets global standards and formulates concrete policies to promote gender equality and advancement of women worldwide. Learn more. Read reports on the U.N. CSW event from Shivonia Singleton and Amanda Cheromiah.