paulina helm-hernandez

Co-Director | SONG / Southerners On New Ground

Paulina Helm-Hernandez is a queer femme cha-cha girl, artist, trainer, political organizer, strategist & trouble-maker-at-large from Veracrúz, Mexico. She has been the Co-Director of Southerners on New Ground (SONG) for 9 years. Paulina has a background in farm worker and immigrant / refugee rights organizing, cultural work, youth organizing, anti-violence work, and liberation work that centers people most affected by violence, poverty, war and racism.

Presentations from Facing Race 2016

Formations at the intersections of Black, Immigrant, Queer and Trans Intersections

Join us in a compelling conversation, rooted in popular education, to share stories, lessons and best practices of intersectional organizing. We've been grinding for Black, Immigrant, Queer and Trans liberation through grassroots organizing campaigns and building strong coalitions. What are we seeing, what are we up against, and what is it really going to take to have liberation in our lifetime?

Speakers: paulina helm-hernandez, Mary Hooks

Raza Que Raza: The state of Latinx Racial Justice

A major demographic shift is at hand in the United States: Latinx are slated to become the majority. On this shifting ground, the US Census Bureau no longer categorizes Latino/Hispanic as a race. Meanwhile organizers, advocates and community leaders are struggling with immediate threats and challenges that impact Latino/a/x people. Join three Latina leaders to discuss the trends and obstacles in addressing the needs of Latinx communities while grappling with questions of identity, allegiance and intersecting oppressions.

Speakers: Janvieve Williams Comrie, Maegan Ortiz, paulina helm-hernandez

United for Human Dignity: Fighting the Mass Criminalization of our People

Casting our people as criminals is a central tactic in stripping us of our humanity, dignity and peace. Recent victories in drug sentencing, closing private federal prisons, and exposing the harm of immigrant detention are encouraging, but much more remains to be done. In this panel and discussion, we will learn how different communities of color are fighting mass incarceration, mass deportation and out-of-control policing, while moving new demands and solutions that unleash the power and potential of our communities.

Speakers: Liliana Segura, Zachary Norris, paulina helm-hernandez, Breon Wells

Presentations from Facing Race 2012

Better Together: Bridging LGBTQ Rights & Racial Justice

This workshop builds off ARC?s Better Together project, and looks at the strategic impetus for bridge-building and cross-sectoral innovation between LGBTQ and people of color communities. We will be talking about the imperatives for intersectional lenses in research, advocacy, policy, organizing and activism. At the heart of this workshop is the question ? what does true unity, intersectionality and equity look like? Panelists will be lifting up stories and case studies from their own work, and sharing lessons and best practices for the LGBTQ and racial justice movements.

Speakers: paulina helm-hernandez, Aisha Moodie-Mills, Robert Espinoza, CJ Frosch