Shakirah Taylor

We Were Built For This: How Fenton is Answering the Call to Protect and Advance Progress

Posted on by Shakirah Taylor

For over 40 years, Fenton has been proud to stand with our clients at the forefront of progress. From safeguarding democracy and advancing equity to protecting our planet, defending families’ rights and beyond, our history drives us to meet this moment.

Our national team of 100+ strategists brings lived experience with frontline expertise to help organizations build movements, shift narratives and create real change. In times of crisis, we’re also here to support organizations navigate challenges to respond and pivot with strength.

We were built for this—for this moment and every one still to come. Let’s shape what’s next, together.

We’re ready to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with you during this critical moment. Fenton is here to amplify your mission and deliver the results you need.

Send us a message or reach out to us directly at contact@fenton.com. 

Now is the time to act—and we’re here to help you lead the way.

A Story is a Seed: Weaving Narratives of Environmental Justice and Urban Greening

Posted on by Shakirah Taylor

The aroma of red Sandia chile peppers slapped me across the face as I filed into the greenhouse. Looking around, many of the same hands I’d seen swatting at bugs above the muddy Acequias earlier today were now covering noses, attempting to tolerate the sweltering heat while marveling at the expanse of tables layered with drying peppers. Gratitude swept over me for the love of spice, the opportunity to learn about the Urban Greening and environmental justice movements and plant the seed of storytelling.       

Empowering Grassroots Organizations

This year, the Bezos Earth Fund (the Earth Fund) launched the Greening America’s Cities (GAC) initiative, which will award $400M to 30 community environmental justice organizations through 2030. Recognizing that grassroots organizations have expert knowledge of their communities, GAC provides funding to organizations in Albuquerque, Atlanta, Chicago, Los Angeles and Wilmington, Del. Beyond financial support, GAC is building a network to connect these organizations. It aims to empower them with resources and tools to further their missions. GAC engaged Fenton to help these organizations tell their stories, leading a digital storytelling training during its Fall 2024 Greening Convening. 

Understanding the Urban Greening Movement 

As the location of the Fall 2024 Greening Convening, Albuquerque, New Mexico, is one of many cities across the country experiencing “green deserts,” or a lack of access to green spaces like public parks or community gardens resulting from historic underinvestment, environmental degradation and systemic racism. During the opening plenary, GAC’s lineup of speakers helped contextualize this challenge, including President and Earth Fund CEO Sir Andrew Steer, who highlighted our need for nature. Many studies connect physical, mental, social and spiritual well-being to the outdoors. Improving city dwellers’ health can unlock 20-25 billion years of higher quality life; that’s five extra years for each urban resident, according to the McKinsey Health Institute.

Following the plenary, I was privileged to tour urban farms and educational and cultural centers to learn about the work of these organizations and explore the deeper purpose of the Urban Greening movement. Intertwined in this movement are calls for environmental justice, the reclamation of public land and the liberation of historically oppressed communities. As the future of the Environmental Protection Agency is uncertain and we prepare for rollbacks of already insufficient protections, maintaining momentum for the Urban Greening movement is more imperative.   

Digital Storytelling as a Tool for Change 

In two sessions with over 60 grantee leaders, we highlighted that digital storytelling is a necessity in today’s social media landscape and an effective method to convey the importance of Urban Greening. Effectively leveraging storytelling on social media can expand an organization’s reach, whether to policymakers, potential donors or the Urban Greening community nationwide. Digital storytelling can also: 

  • Humanize complex information: Stories that distill jargon, center people and use empathy can build understanding of issues.   
  • Drive awareness of key issues: Good stories command attention, especially when they engage our senses.  
  • Build relationships and grow communities: Stories can generate brand awareness and encourage call-to-action engagement. 
  • Showcase organizational impact: You are the protagonist! Stories can inspire hope, and action, and generate momentum within your movement.

Compelling stories lead with emotion, use an authentic tone that will resonate with audiences and follow a simple structure. They must include arresting visual images or videos and fit the unique needs of each platform.  

Digital storytelling doesn’t stop after you hit “post.” Community management is crucial for movement-building. During our training sessions, we stressed the importance of building time daily to scroll your feed. Liking, commenting and engaging with your peers and fellow changemakers expands the reach of your movement’s message and harnesses social media algorithms. Equally important is monitoring how your stories perform. Are specific messages going viral while others haven’t received a single like? Trial and error is a key part of our day-to-day as digital storytellers, and each post tells its own story for how you can improve your strategy and content.

What Happened on November 5, and What Happens Next?

Posted on by Shakirah Taylor

After a hard-fought campaign, progressives all over the U.S. are asking the same questions: “What happened, and where do we go from here?” Harris received approximately 9 million fewer votes than Biden  in 2020, while Trump gained around 1 million. Even though we don’t yet have a full picture of the 2024 electorate, it’s clear that Trump saw increased turnout in all battleground states and improved his share in several key groups.  On November 7, Fenton joined with national public opinion and political strategy research firm Lake Research Partners to host a webinar discussing what happened in the 2024 U.S. elections, the critical takeaways for progressive organizations, and how they can engage voters in future elections successfully.

What Happened?

This was a change election, and Trump was the change candidate. Just as in 2016, Trump successfully positioned himself as the candidate who could bring that change. He won voters who cared most about change by a 3 to 1 margin. Even voters who said they hated both candidates were 50% more likely to cast their ballot for Trump. With only a hundred days to define herself as a candidate, Harris was unable to separate herself from the current administration fully, and she couldn’t convince voters that her vision was different from the status quo. 

“Seventy percent of the people thought the country was going in the wrong direction, and 67% thought the economy was bad,” said Celinda Lake, President of Lake Partners. “Of the people that voted most for change, Trump won them 74 to 24. There was just no comparison.“

Trump gained ground with men, white women, and voters who did not have a college education. Trump won a majority of white voters, with clear Republican majorities among non-college-educated white voters and a more even split among those with a college education. Among voters of color, Harris overwhelmingly won Black women and Latina voters but lost some ground compared to the previous election. Black men still supported Harris by a large majority, but a larger share went for Trump than in 2020.  

One of the dominant narratives in the wake of the election was based on the contention that Trump beat Harris among Latino men, a supposition that’s not fully supported by the data. But there was still a clear shift among those voters toward the Republican candidate. “Edison’s exit polling had Trump winning Latino men by 12 points, while Newark polls had Harris winning them by three points,” Voss said. “But both have Trump doing better with that group across his three elections.”

Voters supported progressive issues, even when they didn’t support progressive candidates. Despite the losses by Democratic candidates, progressives saw some big wins when it came to state and local ballot initiatives. Seven out of 10 initiatives focused on expanding abortion access passed. Paid leave passed everywhere it was on the ballot. The minimum wage was increased in two states, with votes on California’s measure still being counted.  “When the people had a chance,” Lake said, “they generally voted for progressive change.”

What Lessons Can We Learn?

Legacy media is no longer the answer. The Democrats largely stuck with their 2016 playbook, and it’s clear that approach no longer works. Podcasts reach, and their listeners tend to connect to them more deeply than they do with traditional media outlets. The Trump campaign zeroed in on podcasts, which reach more audiences, particularly young, disaffected men. The result was major exposure, with Trump’s interview on Joe Rogan’s podcast racking up nearly 40 million viewers in just three days. Outreach via legacy media celebrities, such as Oprah, Taylor Swift, and Bruce Springsteen, also failed to move the needle enough. Social media personalities, podcasters, Twitch streamers and other digital influencers carry greater trust, reach, and deliver more bank for the buck than traditional media stars, particularly with Gen Z audiences. “Podcasts have high levels of audience engagement and loyalty,” said Fenton Executive Vice President Daria Hall. “A recent Pew study said that about a third of podcast listeners have tried a lifestyle change because of a podcast they listen to.”

Progressives need to reevaluate their Latino outreach. Latino voters can play a decisive role in future elections. However, to succeed, progressive campaigns need to listen to Latino communities, understand their diversity, and engage in ongoing outreach. Many Latinos have stated that they are tired of only being reached out to during election years, and even then, their concerns are often ignored. Surveys showed that Latinos ranked economic issues, such as inflation and housing costs as their top concern in 2024, yet the Democrats’ leading message was about immigration. There are also considerable differences of opinion, values and priorities between Latinos of different ages, family backgrounds, educational backgrounds, economic statuses, etc. “Ethnicity is just the tip of the iceberg,” said Fenton President & CEO Valarie De La Garza. “Levels of acculturation, geography, lifestyle, media consumption, habits and other factors all have to be considered.”

Messages need to meet people where they are. Voters cast their ballots based on what they perceive about their reality. Trying to convince people that the economy was doing well where they were didn’t work. As a result, progressives lost support from people who benefitted the most from a Harris administration. The fact that people supported progressive policies but not progressive candidates suggests that they may not feel included in a progressive coalition and that the campaign messaging didn’t connect with their concerns, experiences or values, even when they agreed with the overall positions. “The only way that we can prevent this from happening again is to approach these conversations with radical empathy,” De La Garza said. “We need to listen and really understand where people are coming from.” 

What Steps Can We Take?

  • Revisit key your audiences. How well do you know the concerns, needs and wants of your core audiences? Are you collecting data regularly? Have you done a listening tour?
  • Review and refresh your organizational messages. Make sure your messages are clear, thoughtful and resonate with your audiences. Consider message testing to gauge their effectiveness. 
  • Expand your media lists. Include outlets like podcasts and non-traditional progressive, moderate and conservative media.
  • Explore new types of messengers. Embrace social media and other digital influencers. Look for other “real-life” voices you can engage, such as health care workers and teachers. 
  • Build out your own long-form storytelling capacity. Podcast audiences take time and investment to develop, but they can lead to high levels of engagement and loyalty.
  • Invest in advertising. Paid advertising can yield huge dividends, but you can’t wait until the next election to build out this capacity. Consider investing in ongoing digital advertising and influencer marketing campaigns.
  • Be media ready. Make sure your spokespeople are media trained and know how to put your organization’s messages, talking points and tough questions to use.
  • Update your crisis plan. Don’t wait until you have a crisis to plan for one. Work out different scenarios beforehand so you’re ready when the moment comes.
  • Think through your coalition. With conservatives in control of all of the arms of government, progressive organizations will need to work together to protect our rights and our communities. Who is missing from your table? How can you build stronger alliances?

Showing Up Strong for Our Sector

Posted on by Shakirah Taylor

I know I speak for many in my Gen X cohort when I say it’s killing me how the social progress we fought for is being undone. Much of that advancement was driven by nonprofits and the philanthropic sector, which were vulnerable then and are likely bigger targets now.

Was this generation naive enough to believe that progress, once attained, would be automatically retained? We attended “No Nukes” rallies in high school. We built shantytowns on the college quad to dismantle Apartheid. Hundreds of thousands of us marched in DC in 1992 to rally for abortion and other reproductive rights. 

Apparently, we won those battles but not the war. Those smoldering embers caught flame in Project 2025. Sure, Trump is trying to run away from it like so many district attorneys, but even if Trump loses, do we think the Heritage Foundation and its compatriots will just fade into the sunset? 

My first campaign as a comms professional was in 1994 when Newt Gingrich led the “Contract for America,” which tried to end public TV and radio. Under the guise of reducing “government waste,” the 104th Congress fought to silence the voices they disdained, and I found my passion fighting for nonprofits, foundations, and their grantees. They tried to kill Big Bird and NPR, but we held on.

There’s more money now to go after. Estimates say over the past 30 years, there’s been an increase in total giving from all sources of $360 billion. And it’s not just our nearly half-trillion-dollar size but the impact we’ve had in moving the culture that has rattled the cage. Decades of reproductive rights, advances in DEI, marriage equality, increasing voter participation, the Affordable Health Care Act, fuller recognition of climate change, misogyny, and racism – our progress poked the proverbial bear.

Before VP candidate JD Vance called foundations “social justice hedge funds,” he told Fox News in 2021, “we are actively subsidizing the people who are destroying this country, and they call it a charity.” A major party candidate for national office who calls progressive foundations “cancers on American society” is firing warning shots we should heed. 

What I’ve read of Project 2025 makes me wax nostalgic for the 1990s. It’s a hellscape pledging mass deportations of immigrants, gutting the civil service for loyal henchmen, and the end of abortion, IVF, and possibly birth control and divorce. It defines a family only as a married man and woman and their biological offspring. The rights and recognition of those outside the platonic ideals of white Christian Nationalism are in danger of being erased forever.

Unlike when my generation was coming up, new media tools make dividing and conquering much easier for the forces arrayed against us. Today, disinformation, misinformation and media corporatization are dangerous. But let’s not forget that we have the truth and the values of our work on our side. The demographic changes of these past decades also mean fewer Americans can easily be convinced otherwise.

Gen X frustration aside, all the generations need to get aligned to defend ourselves and promote a vision of how nonprofits and philanthropy are forces for good. Here’s what I believe our sector needs to do right now:

  • Message strength and unity. We may work on different issues and compete for precious few resources, but we should emphasize our combined power. With nearly 2 million nonprofits and 7% of the national workforce, our sector is on the frontline of solving people’s everyday problems and making our country stronger, healthier, and more equitable.

  • Keep declaring our value—not corporations or government, but a massive field of professionals dedicated to the public good. Most Americans have little understanding of the infrastructure nonprofits provide to everyday life. They know even less about philanthropy, and less knowledge means more vulnerability to misinformation.

  • Invite the public into our challenges. We hide the serious obstacles that we face at our own peril. If giving was down in 2023 but needs are up, we need to say so. If we face a politically motivated attack, we need to call it out. Anti-democratic forces try to weaken civil society, and that means us.

  • Listen to youth and let them lead. Some of the most impressive work being done right now is by young people. From guns to race equity to community safety, Gen Z and the Alphas behind them are less risk averse or hidebound to doing things the old ways. They are not just the potential donor base, they are the future’s leaders and we should be making space now.

  • Maintain the commitments to DEIJ. While the country faces a Great Regression, especially from the corporate sector, it’s critical that we don’t give up our ideals. The Supreme Court’s ruling in higher education created a permission structure for Wall Street and corporate America to abandon their flimsy commitments. We can and must do better. 

Jennifer Hahn is the Chief Client Officer at Fenton. 

Designer by Day, Writer by Night

Posted on by Shakirah Taylor

There comes a point in nearly every job interview I’ve ever partaken in where the question inevitably arises: “What are you? Do you want to keep pursuing graphic design, or is it your dream to be a writer?” I understand where the question is coming from. A desire to know where to place me, to be reassured that I am focused on the job I’m being hired to perform. I know they mean well. Regardless, it feels like the same invasive question as when someone or some form asks me to pick an identity – Black or Latina. In both cases, I am both, all, everything, everywhere all at once, and each identity informs the other.

When I first graduated college with a degree in Graphic Design and a minor in Creative Writing, I originally had my eyes set on working in magazines. But combining the two sides of myself this way wasn’t the magical ideal I’d built it up to be. I should have realized this sooner when even in college, I separated them and did two thesis projects. The design thesis (branding research on intercultural communication between the U.S. & Latin America) led to my first job at the World Health Organization. The writing thesis (a magical realist short story collection) later became my first published novel, High Spirits. Writing skills were used to make the mockup copy for my design project compelling and believable. Design skills were used to format the stories into a bound book and create a cover that eventually got noticed by a publisher. From the beginning, it worked better for me when I split my brain in two, using one discipline to bolster the other.

Design has always felt more analytical to me. Like a puzzle I’m trying to solve. It doesn’t belong to me; it’s more like a tool I know how to use. As design theorist Beatrice Warde put it, it is a glass vessel that needs someone else’s substance to fill it. Writing, on the other hand, feels more personal. It is what I’ve been doing to express my emotions since I was journaling in middle school. It belongs to me; no one can tell me how to wield it. It is the substance itself.

This duality is handy at my current job as a designer at Fenton, a full-service public relations agency. When designing for clients, I always think from a storyteller’s perspective. How do I make this sequential? How does this GIF move from one frame to the next? What is the visual narrative being told? Inversely, I’ve gained marketing skills that I can use to promote my own writing (like best practices for social media ads and how to create a Mailchimp campaign). Having the financial stability to only write when I’m passionate about something, rather than to pay the bills, is another plus. It also doesn’t hurt that I work remotely, which means last summer I had the flexibility to close my work laptop and swiftly throw on my author hat to review copy edit notes on my second book, The Girl, the Ring, & the Baseball Bat. I was also afforded the flexibility to take some time off to speak at writing conferences and to travel to Chicago to pick up my American Library Award.

A couple of years ago, I did an alumni event at my college, helping students with their portfolios speed-dating style. I was paired with a young girl whose eyes lit up when she saw me. “You do what I want to do!” I remember her expressing to me. She said she also wanted to write fiction and be a graphic designer but she wasn’t sure if she should pick one or the other. She’d never seen anyone do both before. I laughed, remembering how it felt to be the only graphic design student in my writing classes, meant primarily for film and animation students. “You can absolutely do both,” I told her. “You can do whatever you want, actually.”

FENTON CERTIFIED AS A MOST LOVED WORKPLACE®

Posted on by Shakirah Taylor

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Danielle Schlanger, dschlanger@fenton.com
JUNE 20, 2024

 

FENTON CERTIFIED AS A MOST LOVED WORKPLACE®
Designation comes during banner year for social change agency 

LOS ANGELES, CA — Fenton Communications, the first national communications firm dedicated to social impact, today announced that it has been certified as a Most Loved Workplace®, recognizing its commitment to tackling society’s most pressing issues and helping build a more equitable and just society. This designation comes when Fenton is experiencing a powerful year, with more clients, revenue, and impact than at any point in its 40-year history. 

“Receiving the Most Loved Workplace® designation is a testament to the culture of inclusivity, collaboration, and excellence we have deliberately fostered,” said Valarie De La Garza, CEO of Fenton Communications. “This recognition belongs to our staff, who have made Fenton the dynamic powerhouse it has become. They are committed to our clients and deeply care about each other. We celebrate them today and every day.” 

Most Loved Workplaces®  certify companies where employees are the happiest and most satisfied at work. Fenton became certified as a Most Loved Workplace based on its scores on the Love of Workplace Index™, which surveyed employees on various elements of employee satisfaction and sentiment, including the level of respect, collaboration, support, and sense of belonging they feel inside the company.

ABOUT FENTON

Fenton is an award-winning, multicultural communications agency focused solely on social impact. For over 40 years, the agency has helped organizations, foundations, brands and government agencies shape public policy, change behavior and create a more just, equitable and sustainable society. It offers a full spectrum of strategic, creative, digital and advertising services, combining expertise, subject-matter knowledge and lived experience to realize its partners’ visions and champion the most important issues of our time. Fenton is also a proud industry leader in diverse and inclusive representation. For more information, visit fenton.com. 

 

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The Power of Message Testing: Crafting Effective Messaging to Boost Consumer Carton Recycling Habits

Posted on by Shakirah Taylor

Carton Council of North America (CCNA) is an industry organization committed to growing carton recycling in the U.S. When CCNA first started, only 18% of U.S. households had access to carton recycling. Now 62% of households – more than 78 million – can recycle their cartons via local recycling programs. Despite a significant increase in U.S. households’ access to carton recycling, many families are still unsure whether they can recycle their cartons.

In 2023, Fenton partnered with CCNA to facilitate two message tests to deepen our understanding of consumer behaviors and attitudes toward carton recycling. Online focus groups that surveyed consumers who live in areas where carton recycling is accessible were used to determine the most effective messaging for increasing consumers’ likelihood of recycling and their trust in recycling centers and systems. 

Some of the findings from these message tests surprised us. For example, we know from our many years working on elections that social pressure is incredibly effective for moving voters. However, we learned through these tests that the opposite is true when moving consumers to recycle their cartons. 

We learned this through our first test, which sought to determine the most effective messaging in increasing audiences’ favorability towards carton recycling. The tested messaging was developed using consumer research studies, which indicated that an emphasis on the simplicity of recycling and the social pressure to recycle are key behavioral insights and motivators for consumers to recycle their cartons. 

The results of this initial message test indicated a clear winner. The “simplicity” message, emphasizing the ease of recycling, increased audiences’ favorability towards carton recycling more effectively than the “social pressure” message, which encouraged audiences to recycle because everyone else around them is, too. 

Additionally, this test indicated a general distrust of recycling systems from consumers, with several survey responses sharing disbelief that carton recycling is effective or that cartons are recycled once picked up.

We developed a second message test to determine the most effective messaging in increasing audiences’ trust in recycling centers and systems to address consumers’ indicated barriers to carton recycling.

We developed the two messages for this second test using insights from our first test, including consumers’ preference for messages of simplicity or the ease of recycling and the fact that many consumers reported not being aware of how carton recycling works. Our hunch was that by clearly showing either 1. how cartons are easily transformed into everyday products or 2. how carton recycling works, we would see a shift or increase in the trust consumers reported towards recycling systems. 

This test indicated the importance of educating consumers on the carton recycling process and that this awareness correlated with increased trust in existing recycling systems. Ultimately, the second video “How Carton Recycling Works” which explained the process of recycling cartons, was the most effective for increasing consumers’ trust in recycling centers and systems.

Both message tests generated statistically significant results, at a 90%+ confidence level, with a majority of positive responses from all the videos used in both tests across potential (those who don’t currently recycle but likely could) and current carton recyclers. They each provided key insights and learnings that Fenton has successfully utilized to inform our strategy for growing the movement of avid carton recyclers, including:

  • Audiences are eager to understand the process of carton recycling and when consumers are educated on this process, they are more likely to trust and participate in recycling their cartons. 
  • Emphasizing the simplicity and ease of carton recycling is essential for increasing consumers’ likelihood to recycle their cartons.
  • Explaining the intricacies of carton recycling increases trust across the board, especially among those who never recycle or dispose of cartons in the trash.

Lastly, we learned that testing and online focus groups continue to provide insightful findings on the messaging that moves target audiences. 

 

Defending Education and Democracy: Key Takeaways from SXSWEdu

Posted on by Shakirah Taylor

A free, accessible education is central to our nation’s success. But right now, we see concerted efforts to challenge what is taught in schools and how it is taught. Efforts to protect and strengthen our education system are more critical now than ever, and events like SXSWEdu encourage the thinking necessary to fuel these vital efforts. 

SXSWEdu is a dynamic event that brings together educators, activists, policymakers, parents, and students to discuss complex issues in education and explore solutions to create inclusive spaces for students and lifelong learners. At the forefront of these conversations are issues that deeply impact all of us, including legislation that stifles how educators talk about race, gender, and identity and prevents schools from fostering enriching, fact-based and age-appropriate discussions in their classrooms. 

In her keynote speech, Kimberlé Crenshaw, co-founder and executive director of The African American Policy Forum and a pioneering scholar whose work has been foundational in critical race theory and intersectionality, reminded us that: “It is not an accident that when we’re rolling back and moving away from the societal consensus about what’s necessary to create full and inclusive citizenship, one of the first things to go is full and inclusive education.” 

At Fenton, we defend education and diversity by dismantling barriers challenging safe and inclusive schools. Here are three key takeaways from my SXSWEdu experience that resonated for me: 

1. We cannot do the work of the right and censor ourselves: Right now, 28 states have passed legislation that limits the ways race, gender, and identity can be taught in schools, impacting millions of students. These bills have cast a chilling effect across public schools by creating conditions of self-censorship. In the session Mapping the Assault on Critical Race Theory, Jeremy Young, program director at PEN America, noted that these restrictive bills are intentionally vague to intimidate educators and administrators to distance themselves from what is essential for students to learn out of fear to avoid discipline or criminal liability. 

Crenshaw noted one example of self-censorship in her keynote speech: the Supreme Court’s decision on race-conscious admissions policies in two universities. After the decision was passed, institutions nationwide began removing diversity from their organizational mission and limiting racially inclusive recruiting practices. By doing this, these institutions were doing the work the “anti-woke” movements wanted them to do. However, throughout history, we have seen that practices aimed at advancing diversity, equity and inclusion were not embraced with the same urgency. When Brown V. The Board of Education was decided – 70 years ago –  there was massive opposition to integrating schools. Crenshaw said, “We need to have more of a spirit of resistance against the backward turn in American society. We need to fight like our lives depend on it because they do.” 

2. Civic education is crucial for education and democracy: One way to center young people in the decisions that impact their lives and enable them to participate in the fight for an inclusive and multiracial society is through civic education. It allows students to connect the dots between the issues they care about and make informed decisions to take action for themselves and their communities. In a session titled The Future of Democracy Starts in the Classroom, Verneé Green, CEO of Mikva Challenge, enters students into the discourse by asking, “What are the issues you are more concerned about and what do you think people should do about it?” By engaging students in civic education early in their academic journey –– some cities start as early as kindergarten –– they will become empowered and informed active citizens. 

3. Libraries are essential for safeguarding history and promoting inclusive education: The attacks on history and DEI have profoundly impacted schools and public libraries. In some states, new policies have been set that remove diverse voices from the shelves and limit access to accurate, diverse, and inclusive stories. Last year, The American Library Association’s Office for Intellectual Freedom documented 4,240 unique book titles targeted for censorship, as well as 1,247 demands to censor library books, materials, and resources, nearly half of which are by or about people of color or people who identify as LGBTQ+. 

Librarians nationwide are rightly pushing back against these attacks to preserve diverse stories. Elaine Westbrook, a librarian at Carl A. Kroch University Librarian at Cornell University, reminds us, “The way we see the world today depends on the information we have.” Without access to information, books and stories that support an understanding of truly inclusive and representative histories, we risk losing the richness and complexity of our past and present society. 

Outside the voting booth, there are no spaces more important to building and protecting our democracy than public schools. As the 2024 election kicks into gear, we know that efforts to tear down public education and roll back DEI will continue and we are ready for the fight. 

Amanda Ebrahim is an account director at Fenton based in New York City. To learn more about Fenton’s work in the education and youth development sector, contact Amanda at aebrahim@fenton.com. 

 

Don’t be impressed, Be convinced

Posted on by Shakirah Taylor

This Women’s History Month, I celebrate my mother, the author of this quote. She made this remark in response to a compliment. It’s taped on my wall. Little does she know that I see it as a powerful affirmation to those of us who have struggled with imposter syndrome and don’t see the genius in themselves that others see.

My mom was born to a father who worked in a junkyard and a mother who raised seven children. My grandparents were first-generation Mexican Americans. Their two-bedroom home in Watts, California, was filled with lots of love but little money, which also limited opportunities. She often laments that she was raised “just” to be a wife and mother, which she became at just 19. My father struggled with PTSD from his service in the Vietnam War, which he kept a secret from us for decades. Love was not enough to save my parents’ marriage, which started so young and was affected by this trauma. She then had to do something no woman generally plans for – become a single mother. Like my grandparents, my home in Southeast Los Angeles was filled with love and little money, limiting opportunities. 

Today, I’m proud to serve as the CEO of Fenton Communications, a position that, unfortunately, very few women hold, much less women of color. My brother is a very talented and successful electrician at a major corporation. We’ve all come a long way. Growing up was tough as my mom worked hard to make ends meet and raise her children. We are incredibly proud of and support one another in every way, making all the difference in my life.

When my father recently passed away, my mother remarked that she believed his encouragement was a force for me to pursue a college degree. I am deeply grateful that he told me I could do anything, but as we all know, encouragement alone does not guarantee success. I reminded my mother that she fed and clothed me, put a roof over my head, got me to school, ensured I was healthy, and healed me when I was not. She took me to church.

I couldn’t be more impressed.  I am convinced. Convinced that my mother gave me her genius, tenacity, and, most importantly, love. She modeled precisely what I needed to take along the challenging journey of my career. She taught me grit, resilience, grace under pressure, the value of hard work, compassion, kindness, and the power of faith. She’d come home every night exhausted but grateful for her life. I saw that, and I took it in – impressed AND convinced. 

I lead a company committed to social change that is comprised of 70% of people who identify as women.  I am convinced they are making a difference in the world daily, and they are informed by the genius examples of their mothers, aunts, sisters, godmothers, and grandmothers. This Women’s History Month, I invite you to be convinced of your power, beauty, and contribution to creating a better world.  

 

                     

                                                                                                                                                                      

Leading the Charge to Protect IVF, Fenton Creates Media Avalanche

Posted on by Shakirah Taylor

Using the media to educate people, shape opinion, and create impact is Fenton’s superpower. When an extreme state ruling put IVF at risk, we marshaled all our forces to #FightforFamilies. 

RESOLVE, the National Infertility Association, and Fenton’s partner since 2022 has been warning for years that the increasing number and severity of restrictions on reproductive freedom would eventually threaten fertility treatments. On February 16, this potential threat grew to a very real crisis when the Alabama Supreme Court ruled that embryos are considered children and that destroying them amounts to wrongful death. 

Since the news broke over President’s Day Weekend, our team has generated at least 235 unique stories and 6,300 media hits in less than two weeks. This includes 25 hits on CNN, 8 hits on CBS, 8 on ABC (including Good Morning America), 8 hits on NBC (including a TODAY Show appearance), 7 hits in the AP, 6 hits on the BBC, 6 hits on MSNBC, 4 hits on NPR, 3 hits in the New York Times, and 3 hits in the Washington Post. During the first week alone, we published five op-eds. And it’s not over yet – not by a long shot. 

Working around the clock, we saturated print and broadcast with interviews and op-eds from the organization’s leaders, as well as Alabama women who have undergone IVF and fertility doctors who find their practices paralyzed. We kept updating our messages and statements as this issue caught fire and dominated the news for more than 10 days.

“I don’t know how you can be pro-family and tell people that you can’t have a child. I just – I can’t reconcile that. And that’s what you’re doing. You’re telling people in the United States that certain people can have kids and certain people can’t,” RESOLVE’s president and CEO, Barbara Collura said on National Public Radio.

In less than 24 hours, we planned a media event and legislative advocacy day in Montgomery, AL, attended by more than 200 people – and covered by just about every large national media outlet that a communications firm would put on its wish list. The local community told us this was the biggest media event the state capitol has ever seen.

We extended the moment’s reach to digital audiences, engaging the passionate infertility community in a social media takeover from the ground. All of RESOLVE’s channels were flooded with messages of thanks and support, especially on Instagram, as we shared footage from the gathering in-feed and on stories. One Instagram post reached over 6700 likes in under 30 minutes. 

This event landed on the homepage of the New York Times and CNN and was featured prominently in dozens of other national media outlets. The White House invited Collura to a meeting the following day and Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-VA) invited her as his guest to the State of the Union address. The White House and multiple elected officials are using our messaging in their remarks on social media and beyond.

The all-female Fenton RESOLVE team is deeply motivated by their belief that reproductive decisions belong to individuals alone in consultation with their healthcare providers. They spoke to women who had undergone multiple rounds of IVF. They elevated the voices of doctors who described the past two weeks as the most wrenching in their careers – a big statement from doctors who see grief, heartbreak and anguish all the time from people struggling with infertility. And they ensured that it was the stories and messages of these advocates that were always at the center of the narrative. 

More than 46 Democrats in Congress are pushing for national legislation, sponsored by Sen. Duckworth (IL) to protect IVF from potential future court decisions that side with embryos over people pursuing parenthood and their doctors, but Republicans have blocked it. Vice President Kamala Harris responded on X, “How dare they.”

Alabama Republican lawmakers have introduced two bills to protect medical staff, patients and anyone providing IVF goods and services from criminal or civil prosecution. Still, the bills do not go far enough to restore IVF to what it was in Alabama on February 15. 

We are tired, and we’re still angry that the rights and access of would-be family builders were compromised. Reproductive decisions are grounded in health care and are deeply personal to the people who make them every day. But we are thrilled that millions of people across the country – including lawmakers, their staffs and political parties – have read, watched and heard RESOLVE leaders and IVF patients and doctors.