FROM SAFE SPACES TO SPEAKING UP: Barneet Kaur on Testifying at City Hall

We sat with current Siblinghood Nasher, Barneet Kaur (she/her), to talk more about her experience testifying at the Committee on Children and Youth Hearing at City Hall and her experience at Sadie Nash.

Barneet Kaur (she/her) is a high school senior who will start at New York University in the fall. She enjoys going out with friends, meeting new people, politics, and participating in school sports. 

1. Tell us a bit about yourself

My name is Barneet, and I’ve grown up and lived in Queens for most of my life. I was born in Punjab, India, and immigrated to New York when I was six years old. I’m about to graduate from high school, and in the fall, I will start at NYU. Within school, I participate in volleyball and track. I am also in the newspaper writing committee alongside Model UN. I am very social, and I love talking to people and spending time getting to know them. 

2. How did you first encounter Sadie Nash?

I discovered Sadie Nash in the spring of 11th grade through Leadership Scholars! I participated in the Spring 2025 cohort. It honestly started as something to throw on my resume, but once I got my foot in the door, I realized that this was a special place. The impact it had on me was so apparent that I wanted to come back for more and get super involved, which is how I’m in Siblinghood Academy now. 

3. Can you tell us more about how your experience in Siblinghood Academy has been for you?

Siblinghood Academy, in my opinion, is what makes Sadie Nash Sadie Nash. It’s all about building community and staying informed. My advisors, faculty member Sammy Aya and Dean Tiana Quon, are so respectful, kind, and informative. Every time I enter, I feel safe. It’s a safe space because it’s a community we built together, and one that I’ve truly become attached to. It has been such a powerful experience. I’ve learned about intersectionality and social justice in so many creative ways. It’s just so awesome! 

4. You testified at the Committee on Children and Youth Hearing at City Hall and urged them to restore and expand funding for NYC Youth. Can you tell us what led you to do that?

Initially, my Siblinghood Academy faculty member Sammy reached out to me to see if I would be interested in doing this. At first I wasn’t sure, but then Sammy told me this would be something I would be perfect at. That made me pause and think, wow, okay, let me do this! I do like speaking and advocating using my own voice, and I really care about Sadie Nash. 

I have seen the firsthand impact of Sadie Nash's commitment to educating young girls and gender-expansive youth about the world and social justice. I’ve seen the difference in myself after being a part of a supportive community that helps young women advocate for themselves. I am way more knowledgeable about politics and feel more confident speaking up because of Sadie Nash. It is truly a safe space that taught me that I deserve a voice and that I deserve to be seen. 

Making young people feel ready to speak in front of an audience is what this program does. So I told Sammy, “Let’s do this! Let’s get this experience in!”

“Because I feel safe speaking in the program, it makes me feel safer and more confident to speak when I am outside of the program too. ”

5. In your testimony, you said, “Programs like Sadie Nash showed me how nonprofits create safe spaces that spark real change and inspire people to speak up.” You talked about how Sadie Nash is a safe space for you, but what do you think is the connection between safe spaces and speaking up? Why do young people need them?

As a young woman, I feel like, as much as people deny patriarchy and claim that women’s rights have made so much progress, the message to young women is still, “Don’t speak up, just comply!” Spaces like Sadie Nash show women that speaking up is important and necessary. These safe spaces spark real change because they’re not just about getting together; they’re about understanding our real lives better. 

Because Sadie Nash is specifically for young women and gender-expansive youth, there is so much acceptance. In normal classrooms, it feels like teachers are just there to do their jobs. It’s like they don’t want to listen to you. At Sadie Nash, people truly care about you, what you have to say, and your input. If I ever made a mistake or said something wrong, I wasn’t penalized for it; instead, I was educated on it. Because I feel safe speaking in the program, it makes me feel safer and more confident to speak when I am outside of the program too. 

Barneet at City Hall after testifying

6. After this experience, are you inspired to speak out more in the future?

This is 100% what I want to do in my future. I want to give back to the community. Especially after the testimony went so well, I want to advocate for more people in the future. I am going to switch my major to political science and maybe even go into law. I care about representation and social justice, so it just feels right.

7. What’s one message you have for Nashers about to begin a program?

Enjoy the time you have in the program, because it is one of the most life-changing programs ever! Don’t forget to speak your mind! Talk! Put yourself out there! 

Sadie Nash started as just an extracurricular for me, but it has turned into something much more. I get to meet people, get paid, and learn about real-world issues! I love this ritual of us young girls getting together every week to be together and speak our minds.