We Are the Possible: Meet Loryn C. Wilson

This is the third interview in this week’s We Are the Possible series, so named after my favorite Maya Angelou poem, “A Brave and Startling Truth”. I’m profiling several young nonprofit leaders I admire not only for their professional work, but for the values they live out for themselves. Stay tuned next week for 2 more insightful interviews with inspiring Gen Y leaders!

When we come to it
We must confess that we are the possible
We are the miraculous, the true wonder of this world
That is when, and only when
We come to it.

Loryn C. Wilson is the Communications Associate at the Center for Progressive Leadership. A native of Los Angeles, California. While attending The George Washington University, she founded the Black Women’s Forum, a discussion series for African-American female students. She has worked on media and communications campaigns for Microsoft, MGM MIRAGE, and the Service Employees International Union. Loryn is a guest blogger for the Women’s Rights Blog on Change.org where she covers issues affecting women of color. Her personal blog, Black Girl Blogging, explores women’s issues and black society. Loryn is passionate about public service, youth engagement, women’s and rights, music, and Womanism. She also enjoys music, art, basketball, and reading.

I met Loryn last year at a leadership conference at Howard University, and was blown away by her enthusiasm for social media and promoting the well-being of Black women and girls. We met up for coffee soon after, and have since formed a great friendship where we learn from and inspire each other, and catch a happy hour or a dope concert along the way! Loryn is one of those rare young leaders that’s not afraid to speak up for what she does, and does not believe in. I’m proud to call her my friend in our journey to change the world.

Loryn C. Wilson, Blogger at Black Girl Blogging, Communications Associate for the Center for Progressive Leadership
Age: 25
Lives in: Washington, DC

How did you become involved in doing the work of social change?

For most of my childhood my parents did work in our church community and they were devoted to education and creating better opportunities for youth in our neighborhood and in our congregation. They developed a series of training for young people about everything from STDs to preparing for college. Seeing the way they connected to the needs of teens inspired me to do that kind of work when I got to college. I tried to find the best possible ways to reach out to the Black community on campus and not on help amplify our voice at a predominately white school, but also to build safe spaces for Black women on and off campus.

What causes are most important to you?

Access to reproductive health is pretty important to me. It goes beyond abortion for me; in my opinion every woman and girl should have the access to quality reproductive healthcare and sexual health education. I am also passionate about closing the achievement gap and providing creative outlets for inner-city youth. I believe that by providing safe spaces for youth they will have healthy alternatives to drugs and gangs and ultimately will be excited about furthering their education and bettering our communities.

What do you do at the Center for Progressive Leadership?

I am the Communications Associate for CPL. I am responsible for helping create communications strategies for our programs, including our New Leaders program. New Leaders is geared toward young people from diverse communities who are passionate about social justice issues. Our paid summer internship places college students with social justice organizations in DC. The Fellowship program places recent graduates in entry level positions with progresive organizations in DC and in our 5 states: Colorado, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Arizona. As I’m sure you know, communications and fundraising go hand in hand, so I also assist with creating materials for our development and fundraising efforts as well.

You’ve been writing about black society and women’s issues for a year now on your blog, Black Girl Blogging. How has blogging impacted your career?

Blogging has made me more attractive to non-profit and Public Relations employers looking to expand their social media efforts. If you have a well-written blog and also blog for larger, more well-known entities such as Change.org, it lets people know that you have the comfort level and experience with using social media tools that some people are still not as familiar with or as ready to use. Having people from younger generations who can maneuver through the “interwebs” of today can absolutely help.

In addition, my posts on Black Girl Blogging has given me opportunities to write for other blogs as well. I was a writing for Pushback, a short-term project of Campus Progress, for a while leading up to the 2008 Election. Black Girl Blogging also got the attention of Jen Nedeau, the editor of the Women’s Rights Blog at Change.org I know write for them as a guest blogger and get to cover women of color in media and politics which is one of my favorite topics.

So you’re a rockstar blogger, full-time nonprofit professional, and a volunteer for numerous causes and organizations. How do you hold it all? Are there any daily rituals or spiritual practices that help you stay centered?

I try to take some time to reflect every day. I read a daily devotional and go to yoga once sometimes twice a week when I can. I often remind myself that there are only 24 hours in a day. As much as I am capable to do, I believe that everything happens in God’s timing. Also, listening to Stevie Wonder tends to help.

How would you like to see your generation change the world?

I would like to see my generation expand on the older generations’ successes. We have so much technology and so much more access to opportunities, and if we can use our resources to better our homes, our work places and our communities instead of just increasing our own material wealth, we can truly be the people who our ancestors prayed and hoped for.

You can follow Loryn @loryn24 on Twitter at http://twitter.com/loryn24

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