BLOOMINGTON, IL – YWCA McLean County’s Director of Mission and Equity Consulting, Dr. Hannah Mesouani, has been named as one of 205 leaders selected to join the Obama Foundation Leaders program. The program trains participants around the world in leadership development and civic engagement to help build their skills and scale their work across public, private, and nonprofit sectors. Mesouani will be one of just 100 leaders participating in the Leaders USA program.

Mesouani’s work is focused on desensitizing DEI conversations and centering immigrants, formerly incarcerated women, and survivors of sexual assault. She has also made it a priority to mend fraught relationships with local law enforcement through personal engagement to find human connection and areas of convergence. Originally from Tangier, Morocco, she pulls from her multifaceted experiences to strengthen interfaith dialogue and bridge alliances across differing viewpoints.

As part of the six-month program, these dedicated changemakers will convene virtually each week for interactive sessions designed to help them drive change by honing their leadership skills, building deep relationships with their peers, and engaging with thought leaders and members of the Obama Foundation community. They will also have an opportunity to participate in various virtual experiences and special events, including one-on-one conversations with experienced mentors in the Foundation’s global network. 

Mesouani will draw from her expertise to host a Week Without Violence community workshop Thursday, October 24^th from 12-1pm via zoom on the topic of financial trauma as related to other incidences of violence against women. Through adopting an intersectional lens that addresses race, gender, class, and immigrant status, we will present on how financial trauma and its effects disempower at every level. We will discuss how financial trauma is generational and plays into the increases of homelessness, human trafficking, and class inequity that are present in our community. Individuals interested in attending can register here: https://www.ywcamclean.org/wwv/

Week Without Violence is part of a global movement with YWCAs across the country and around the world to end violence against women and girls. At YWCA, we know that not all violence is acknowledged or responded to equally and that some victims go unrecognized altogether. That’s why, for more than 20 years, YWCA has set aside one week in October as a Week Without Violence.

For more information about YWCA’s Mission and Equity Consulting services and its programs and services, please visit ywcamclean.org or contact Dr. Hannah Mesouani at hmesouani@ywcamclean.org.