Media literacy for teen girls* is essential to their growth. About-Face arms girls with the knowledge and tools they need to fight back against a culture that diminishes and disempowers them.
Toxic Media: We’re Coming For You!
About-Face frees girls from the confines of a toxic culture so they can fulfill their potential.
From unrealistic beauty ideals to narrow stereotypes, girls receive dangerous and limiting messages from social media, TV, movies, and real-life events every day.
Learning how to deconstruct those messages and fight back to create change helps girls see and achieve their full potential.
Girls Need Us More Than Ever
Girls’ depressive symptoms increased by 50 percent from 2012 to 2015.
- Three times as many 12-to- 14-year-old girls committed suicide in 2015 as in 2007.
- Girls are more prone to overusing social media (and they use it at higher rates than boys).
- Girls are bullied 22 percent more often than boys are — much of which happens via text message and social media.**
**Source: iGen: Why Today’s Super-Connected Kids Are Growing Up Less Rebellious, More Tolerant, Less Happy — and Completely Unprepared for Adulthood — and What What That Means for the Rest of Us, by Jean M. Twenge, Simon & Schuster, 2017.
Our Strategy for Change
About-Face arms girls with the knowledge and tools they need to fight back against a culture that diminishes and disempowers them.
Our programs for teen girls range from our Education Into Action in-school programs to a weekend boot camp, and our online resources for teens here on the site. We also support their adult advocates — parents, teachers, mentors, relatives, and group leaders — through adult-centered workshops as well as curriculum development and support.
Education
Teaching girls to think critically so they understand how mainstream culture affects their self-worth.
Education
Equipping teen girls with tools they need to question media messages every day.
Action
Inspiring girls to take action against harmful cultural messages.
Action
By choosing issues that matter most to them, girls commit and reinforce the skills they learn.
Change
Becoming activists and leaders who change the world around them.
Change
Igniting inner, personal change that lasts a lifetime.
Ideas That Guide Our Work
In the past 10+ years working with girls in their classrooms, after school, and online, girls themselves have taught us that:
- Systemic oppressions of girls intersect along lines of race and ethnicity, class, sexual orientation, gender expression, body image and body oppression, and physical ability.
- It’s not just media. Our culture is awash in a misogyny so ingrained as to be almost invisible. Misogyny in the girls’ schools, their families, their friend groups, and in the statements and behavior of celebrities or public figures.
- Let girls lead. When girls take the lead, confidence follows. And confidence is one of the greatest barriers to the damaging effects of our toxic culture.
- Fun. Every aspect of our work needs to include fun and humor. It’s the best way to learn.
Who We Serve
- Girls* ages 13-18
- San Francisco Bay Area
- United States
- All backgrounds, ethnicities/races, income levels
Boys/young men are included in our point-of-entry Education Into Action Workshops in their classrooms or other spaces.
* A note on the word “girls”: We define this word broadly. When we use this term, we mean “girls and those who identify as girls or who are non-binary”. We fully recognize and welcome trans* girls and teenagers who identify as girls or young women, or who are gender non-binary, gender fluid, or agender. We always treat all participants with respect and understanding, and will never exclude participants on the basis of their gender identity.
Our Impact
About-Face has reached over 7,700 youth with our workshops, serving more than 1,000 youth locally in the last two years alone. We also reached more than 340,000 more via our web site and social media, giving them the tools they need to understand and fight back against our toxic culture.
The results of these programs have been truly awesome. With the support of our PhD-level evaluator using rigorous statistical methods to analyze the results, we have demonstrated a positive impact on:
- mental health
- leadership skills
- self-efficacy
How We Are Funded
People often wonder how About-Face has been able to make our impact year after year. Here’s where our funds come from:
- Individual donors who ideally provide multi-year organizational support (48%)
- Fees for our programs from sources/organizations that can afford it (18%)
- Curriculum sales to teachers and schools (4%)
- Foundation grants (25%)
- Other funding such as corporate donation matching, sponsorships, and tickets to our events (5%)
The Role Of Adults
About-Face supports adult advocates in supporting their girls. We define adult advocates as any adult who supports girls’ mental health, leadership skill-building, and self-confidence/sense of agency — whether it be a parent, teacher, guardian, relative, mentor, or other community member. That’s why About-Face offers parent talks, teacher training, and online resources undergirding all the skill-building we do for girls.
