Fort Worth mayor ‘disappointed’ that Tarrant County blocked state funds for girls nonprofit
When the Tarrant County commissioners voted to block state funding for Girls Inc. earlier this month, Fort Worth Mayor Mattie Parker was disappointed, she said.
The nonprofit, which operates primarily in Northside and Diamond Hill, has served Tarrant County since 1976 and helps nearly 20,000 girls every year with health, education opportunities and workforce preparedness. But, commissioners voted on Oct. 3 against giving a $115,334 state grant for Girls Inc.
The vote came after nearly 20 people showed up to the meeting to decry the national organization’s views on abortion, transgender rights, sex education, free period products and the definition of who can menstruate. One speaker compared Girls Inc. to Nazi education programs.
Parker, a longtime supporter of Girls Inc., said she’s never known the local chapter to be political and told the Star-Telegram she “may have come to a different conclusion.”
“I want young women, especially this population of girls, to feel loved by their city and county,” she told the Star-Telegram.
Parker delivered a proclamation at Girls Inc.’s 11th annual Day of the Girl celebration on Friday afternoon in Burnett Square. Nearly 2,000 people gathered to march downtown in red T-shirts designed by one of the program’s participants.
Girls aged 5 to 18 filled the square. Some sang in the choir. Others danced to the beat of a drum line performed by their peers. They all cheered each other on.
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Given the political attention engulfing the organization, Tarrant County Girls Inc. CEO Jennifer Limas wanted the event to be “all about the girls.”
Throughout the year, Girls Inc. provides school- and community-based programming to support young women at every stage of development, from developing literacy skills to helping teens apply to college.
After Parker read the proclamation, program participants read the organization’s “Girls’ Bill of Rights.”
Jamere Thomas, a senior at Young Women’s Leadership Academy, read the second right: Girls have the right to express themselves with originality and enthusiasm. That’s what the organization has taught her to do, said Jamere’s mom, Delicia.
Jamere has participated in Girls Inc. for seven years. Now she’s a semifinalist for the organization’s national scholarship, which she would use to attend a four-year college. She then plans to get her master’s degree in library science.
“Libraries provide so many resources for people,” she said.
The county may have pulled resources from the organization, but that won’t stop Girls Inc. from providing the programming it has provided to girls like Jamere since 1976.
The same day the commissioners voted on the funding, teacher Haley Taylor Schlitz, a teacher at a Fort Worth charter school, launched a GoFundMe to raise the money the county would have provided. In 10 days, the page has raised more than $21,000.
Individuals have stepped up to support the organization, said Kathryn Bryan, co-administrator of the American Association of University Women’s Tarrant County Chapter.
When asked if the city could provide assistance to Girls Inc., Parker said, “I think possibly. I don’t know yet. I think that they’ve also had a lot of corporate champions step up, which is good. But, we’ll be open minded about that.”
