PRESIDENT’S Message
The Women's Foundation of the South debuted in August of 2021 with a vision, a true passion for change, and an immutable commitment to addressing the urgent issues affecting women and girls of color in the South. Our mission is straightforward: we exist to build the health, wealth, and power of women, girls, and gender expansive people of color across the South.
Since then, we have worked to establish meaningful relationships on the ground with women of color who lead nonprofits serving women and girls of color and doing critical work across our pillars of health, economic security, and power building. Focused on healing justice, we have grown our work intentionally, one state at a time. This report provides context to the conditions in which these incredible leaders work and their communities endure within the first seven states of our ground game.
The South holds a unique position in the rich and complex tapestry of America's history. In this region of deep roots and complex legacies, women of color have forged their strength in the face of formidable challenges. From the cotton fields of Georgia and the bayous of Louisiana to the Black Belt states of Alabama and Tennessee, and the border cities and rural towns of Texas and Mississippi, these women - Black, Indigenous, Immigrant, and women of color have endured, thrived, and led their families, their sisters, and their communities.
Dr. DuBois's declaration, "as the South goes, so goes the nation," is more than a statement. It is the call to action of our time. In leading WFS, I am guided by two principles: "Freedom is never really won. You earn it and win it in every generation “(Coretta Scott King)” and the Seventh
Generation Principle, an ancient Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) philosophy that teaches us that the decisions we make today should create a sustainable world for seven generations into the future. These two principles must guide our actions as we aim to create and fight for a more just and equitable society.
We are at a critical juncture in the history of our nation. Yes, our political climate is divisive, and our very democracy is at stake. Yet, we continue to navigate racial reckoning and elusive social justice on multiple fronts. In so much, we are cognizant of how the profound and pervasive impact of social determinants – the conditions in which people are born, grow, live, work, and age – dictate the health and well-being of our society. In Shift The South, we examine undeniable evidence that detrimental social determinants are especially egregious for women of color in the South. These determinants include socioeconomic status, education, physical environment, employment, social support networks, protection under the law, and access to quality healthcare – inclusive of women's wellness and reproductive health. Each of these factors profoundly influences the opportunities available to women and girls of color, determining their overall quality of life and that of generations to come. The intricate intersectionality of race and these issues cannot be ignored.
As our work grows in the region, we are deeply troubled about devastating regressive legislation that threatens the health, wealth, and power of all communities, especially women and girls of color and gender expansive people in the South. To be clear, these rollbacks are not isolated events. Often, they are legislating intolerance and create conditions that deepen poverty and
& CEO Women’s Foundation of the South
Carmen James Randolph Founding President
WOMEN OF COLOR:
A Growing Force in the South
The presence and power of women of color have increased significantly in the South, the nation’s most populous region. Out of the 42.3 million women of color in the United States, 41.5 percent of them live in the South. This has been a growing trend, especially given that the South is a destination of many immigrants since 2010. Texas is the second highest destination of immigrants with a total 1,027,000 immigrants arriving between 2010 and 20221 . Georgia is the ninth highest destination with 225,000 immigrants arriving between 2010 and 2022.2 Tennessee is the state with the seventh highest growth rate in immigrant population between 2010 and 2022, with a 36 percent growth.3 This population shift creates a unique environment for women of color to advocate and serve their communities in a region that is enmeshed in culture wars, while also experiencing booming economic and population growth in its urban centers. At this time in the United States, we are witnessing a great migration back to the South: Pew Research reports that regionally, the highest concentration of Black people in the U.S. as of 2021 is in the South; more than half (56%) live there; moreover, this number is growing.4
Majority of the U.S. Black population lives in the South
% of U.S. Black population living in the South in 2022
Note: Figures may not add to 100% due to rounding. “Black” refers to people who self-identify as Black, including single-race Black, multiracial Black and Black Hispanic people.
Source: Pew Research Center analysis of the 2022 American Community Survey (IPUMS).
Correspondingly, five of the largest ten metropolis areas in terms of Black populations are in the South.
According to the US Census Bureau, as of 2023, nine of the nation’s 15 fastest growing cities were in the South.
As of 2022, the largest Southern cities – Atlanta, Houston, Miami, Charlotte and our hometown of New Orleans – all boast booming economies and a near constant influx of new residents. They reflect a South that is not a cultural monolith but a melting pot, bringing progressive ideas and a sizable corresponding voting bloc that is changing the political and cultural landscape.
Black net migration: Metro areas with largest gains and losses, 1965-1970, 1995-2000, and 2015-2020
Southern metro areas are in italics
Detroit Washington, D.C. San
Greatest Gains
* 2015-2020 Net Migration represents 5X the annual estimated net migration for the 2015-2020 period based on the 2016-2020 American Community Survey
Note: Metro area names are abbreviated
Source: William H. Frey analysis of decimal U.S. censuses, 1970 and 2000; Census Bureau American Community Survey, 2016-2020
The South, the nation’s most populous region, was the fastest-growing and the largest-gaining region last year, increasing by 1.1 percent. (US Census Bureau).
Despite this growth, Southern states rank at the bottom for women’s rights and opportunities . Moreover, in the last two years since the Dobbs decision of the U.S. Supreme Court, Southern legislatures have been passing dramatic policy shifts that are regressive and present harm to women and families. The ban on abortions, the inability to pass expanded Medicaid, and the prevention of LGBTQIA’s access to gender-affirming care in certain Southern states are creating a hostile and unsafe climate in the South, especially for women and girls of color as well as those in the LGBTQIA+ community.
1 https://www.migrationpolicy.org/article/frequently-requested-statistics-immigrants-and-immigration-united-states-2024#destinations
2 https://www.migrationpolicy.org/article/frequently-requested-statistics-immigrants-and-immigration-united-states-2024#destinations
3 https://www.migrationpolicy.org/article/frequently-requested-statistics-immigrants-and-immigration-united-states-2024#destinations
4 Facts about the U.S. Black population | Pew Research Center. (2024, January 18). Pew Research Center’s Social & Demographic Trends Project. https://www.pewresearch.org/social-trends/fact-sheet/facts-about-the-us-black-population/
5 https://giwps.georgetown.edu/usa-index/
Painting the Realities of Women and Girls of Color in the South
The Shift the South report seeks to paint a picture of the economic and policy realities that women and girls of color must live through in the South as well as the conditions that nonprofits who serve women and girls of color in the South must contend.
Our three pillars — Health, Wealth, and Power — reflect our understanding of how Social Determinants of Health in the South consistently fall below the national average for communities of color, with women and girls being impacted the most. The U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (USDHH) defines
The social determinants of health coalesce to impact HEALTH, WEALTH, & POWER in amplified ways for women and girls of color, particularly as they relate to women's wellness and reproductive health. We believe that Shifting the South requires a deep understanding of how applying intersectionality to our work fully empowers the communities we serve and builds sustained impact. Intersectionality is an integral part of the lived experience of women and girls of color. It is an invitation to look past internalized racism, misogyny/misogynoir, gender discrimination and anti-LGBTQ rhetoric and work towards a truly equitable and just future.
Intersectionality is a lens through which you can see where power comes and collides, where it interlocks and intersects. It’s not simply that there’s a race problem here, a gender problem here, and a class or LBGTQ problem there. Many times, that framework erases what happens to people who are subject to all of these things.
There is no such thing as a single-issue struggle because we do not live single-issue lives.
Audre Lourde
Kimberle Crenshaw
Law Professor at Columbia and UCLA who coined the term
In the Shift the South report, we will present various assertions backed by quantitative and qualitative data which show this intersectionality as well as the inequitable and unjust realities that women and girls of color face in seven Southern states, namely Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, and Texas. Some of these assertions include the following:
Health
The overturning of Roe vs. Wade by the U.S. Supreme Court has led to an attack on reproductive rights and healthcare in many conservative States, mainly in the South.
6 7
In six out of the seven focus states – Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, Texas, and Alabama, abortion is illegal.6 Five of these states had trigger bans in place that took into effect once Roe vs. Wade was overturned 7
Trigger bans are abortion bans which were passed since Roe vs. Wade was decided that are intended to ban abortion entirely if the Supreme Court limited or overturned Roe or if a federal Constitutional amendment prohibited abortion 8. This has negatively affected the fertility treatment access, gender- affirming care, and the overall healthcare provider ecosystem in these states.
In most of the focus states, limited sex education exists at schools has led to higher incidences of sexually transmitted infections and unintended pregnancy. In Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, and Alabama, sex education is not mandated 9. In all seven states, the need for consent to have sex is not discussed 10. Five out of the seven states do not include the topic of contraception in sex education 11 . 5 7
4 7
The lack of access to contraception leads to higher rates of unintended pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections in the South, which in turn can contribute to the higher poverty rates in these Southern states. Additionally, the lack of access to pre-natal care and long distances to birthing hospitals in the South have resulted in higher incidences of maternal deaths and infant deaths. Four out of the seven states have a higher percentage of counties that are maternity care deserts as compared to the national average of 32.6 percent of counties that are a maternity care desert. Maternity care deserts are areas without access to birthing facilities or maternity care providers.
All of these challenging realities in the South is compounded by the fact that five out of the seven focus states have not passed expanded Medicaid which exacerbates the aforementioned healthcare-related realities that women and girls of color have to deal with among those who fall within the coverage gap – households that make too much to qualify for Medicaid but do not earn enough to afford health insurance 12 .
Wealth
7 7%
Poverty rates in five of the seven focus states are higher by up to 7% of the national poverty rate 13 Manifestations of this greater incidence of poverty can be seen in the areas of food and housing insecurity. Moreover, for women and girls of color in these states, poverty is starker because of the gender pay disparity that exists nationally. In 2022, women earned an average of 82 percent of what men earned based on an analysis of median hourly earnings of both full- and part-time workers 14
The repeal of Affirmative Action has given way to more policies of intolerance towards people of color and LGBTQIA being legislated, especially in the South.
In three of the seven focus states – Arkansas, Mississippi and Georgia, laws banning or limiting Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives have been introduced 15
In Alabama, a bill has passed at least one legislative chamber 16 .
In Texas and Tennessee, laws banning or limiting DEI have been enacted 17 .
Greater women of color (WOC) representation in the local, state and federal legislatures and the judiciary are critical to realize just policies and application of the law for individuals in a manner that advances health, wealth, and power of Southern women, girls, and gender expansive people.
Their representation is about more than just numbers. In addition to having legislative and judicial bodies that accurately reflect the demographics of the communities they serve, the lived experiences of WOC officials and judges give power to their representation through rulings and policies tilted toward justice and equity. Bias on the bench has proven historically to be a barrier for communities of color. With more WOC serving at the state and federal levels, gains can be made that ameliorate or destroy social inequities that are reinforced by unjust laws, policing, and policy.
New York City mayor Fiorello La Guardia appointed the first Black woman judge in the U.S., Jane Bolin, in 1939. It would take another 27 years for a federal court to appoint its first Black woman, Constance Baker Motley, in 1966. Fifty-six years later, in 2022, President Joe Biden nominated and confirmed Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson as the first Black woman to serve on the Supreme Court
32%
The number of women in state legislature has quintupled since 1971, with 32.7 percent of the 7,386 seats going to women. However, seventy percent of these seats are occupied by white women. In the bottom ten states for women’s participation in state legislatures , five of the seven focus states are included –Tennessee, Louisiana, Arkansas, Alabama, and Mississippi 18
The percentage of women of color Supreme Court judges in the seven focus states is significantly less than the percentage of women of color in that state 19. In fact, in Tennessee, Mississippi, Arkansas, and Alabama, where women of color between ages 18 and 64 constitute 29-30% of the state population, there are no Supreme Court justices who are women of color 20 .
6 https://reproductiverights.org/maps/abortion-laws-by-state/
7 Ibid.
8 Ibid
9 https://www.guttmacher.org/state-policy/explore/sex-and-hiv-education
10 Ibid
11 Ibid
12 https://www.kff.org/affordable-care-act/issue-brief/status-of-state-medicaid-expansion-decisions-interactive-map/
13 US Census Bureau
14 https://www.pewresearch.org/social-trends/2023/03/01/the-enduring-grip-of-the-gender-pay-gap/
15 https://www.nbcnews.com/data-graphics/anti-dei-bills-states-republican-lawmakers-map-rcna140756
16 Ibid
17 Ibid
18 https://cawp.rutgers.edu/facts/levels-office/state-legislature/women-state-legislatures-2024
19 Based on WFS analysis done by researching each of the state’s official state government websites.
20 Analysis based on Kaiser Family Foundation and US Census Bureau data as well as information from state government websites.
The Women’s Foundation of the South supports the following policies and efforts, which we believe will uplift the lives of women and girls of color in the South:
0 1
Critical investments in social determinants of health that influence maternal health outcomes, like housing, transportation, nutrition, and safety.
0 2
Expansion of Medicaid to cover families that fall within the coverage gap.
0 3
Increased access to birth workers by increasing Medicaid benefits and/or insurance coverage to allow for doula and/or midwifery care reimbursement.
0 4
Extend WIC benefits and Medicaid coverage through the first year of postpartum and breastfeeding periods.
0 5
Increased leadership of women of color at the local, state, and federal levels both in legislative and judicial bodies.
0 6
Access to gender-affirming care.
0 7
Equal pay for equal work for all genders across race.
0 8
Adoption of family leave with pay.
0 9
Required comprehensive sex education in public schools.
1 0
Increased access to contraception and pre-natal care.
1 1
Body autonomy and safe access to abortion, especially in cases when it is medically necessary or when a person or child has experienced rape or incest.
We encourage philanthropic actors, policymakers, and non-profit and movement leaders to read the Shift to the South report to determine how they can lift the health and well-being, economic security, and agency of women and girls of color in the South. Nonprofits that serve women and girls of color produce so much positive impact for our nation’s communities, but only get 0.5 percent of philanthropic funding. This needs to change.
The report will be released on
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