Mayor Adams Celebrates Milestone in Making NYC Most Women-Forward City in Nation, Announces New Efforts to Address Women’s Safety

March 24, 2025

One-Year After Announcing “Women Forward NYC,” 

Adams Administration Has Launched or Completed All 43 Commitments 

30 New and Expanded Programs Build off Women Forward NYC’s

Initial $43 Million Holistic Investments to Help All Women,  Including Transgender and Gender Expansive New Yorkers Thrive  

First Announced in Mayor Adams’ Third State of the City, Action Plan Builds on 

Administration’s Policies and Investments to Support Women and Families in New York City 

NEW YORK – New York City Mayor Eric Adams today announced progress toward making New York City a national leader on gender equity, including for transgender and gender expansive New Yorkers, with the ambitious goal of becoming the most women-forward city in the United States. As part of his third State of the City address, Mayor Adams unveiled “Women Forward NYC: An Action Plan for Gender Equity,” a more than $43 million investment aimed at making New York City a national leader on gender equity. In the first year of programming, all of the 43 commitments in the action plan were launched or completed, serving over 300,000 New Yorkers.  

Building off the success of the first year of Women Forward NYC, the action plan is expanding to meet the critical safety concerns felt by women, girls, and gender expansive New Yorkers in 2025. In addition to continued support services provided through ongoing programming from the initial commitments made by the city, 30 new and expanded programs will help to continue to drive towards Women Forward NYC’s 2030 goals. The new additional programming will focus on holistic supports to reduce violence against women, girls, and gender expansive New Yorkers, including community safety, domestic safety, housing stability, health and medical safety, and financial empowerment initiatives. New Yorkers can visit the re-launched women.nyc, a one-stop shop website, to learn more about the action plan and access city services to support women and families.  

“Last year, our administration laid out a vision, invested tens of millions in programs, and brought nearly every city agency to the table with a clear goal in mind: making New York City a national leader in gender equity,” said Mayor Adams. “‘Women Forward NYC’ was our ambitious plan to turn that goal into action, and I’m proud to say promises made, promises kept. We’ve completed or started every commitment we laid out, and plan to go even further by prioritizing women’s safety. New York City leads the nation in many ways — now, it’s time to pick up the baton and run ever further to be the most women-forward city in America.” 

“Under Mayor Adams' leadership, New York City is setting ambitious goals for gender equity and achieving tangible progress in advancing the rights and opportunities of women and girls,” said Deputy Mayor Ana J. Almanzar. “With initiatives like ‘Women Forward NYC’ and the creation of NYC Her Future, we are fostering a brighter, more equitable future, providing critical support and pathways to success for young women and girls across our city. These efforts reinforce our commitment to safety, economic empowerment, and health care access, positioning New York as a model of opportunity and equity for all.” 

“I am excited to celebrate the continued progress of the ‘Women Forward NYC’ initiative as it cements our city’s position as a global leader in advancing gender equity and women’s rights,” said Chief of Staff and Deputy Mayor for Administration Camille Joseph Varlack. “This expansion builds on our success in empowering young women, girls, and gender-expansive New Yorkers by connecting them to essential programs and services. With these 30 new and expanded programs, we’ll carry on our fight against long-standing issues and disparities, and finally make New York City safer, more affordable, and truly inclusive for all.” 

“The Adams administration is working to make New York City the most women-forward city in the country, and that means supporting economic mobility, health, safety, and housing stability for women, girls, transgender, and gender expansive New Yorkers,” said Deputy Mayor for Housing, Economic Development, and Workforce Adolfo Carrión, Jr. “The success of the first year of the program and the addition of 30 additional safety-focused programs exemplifies this administration’s commitment to women and families.” 

Women Forward NYC employs a holistic approach to address immediate needs, tackle long-standing disparities, and solidify New York City’s position as a national leader for advancing women’s issues. The expanded action plan encompasses new and ongoing investments dedicated to supporting safety, totaling an additional $19 million investment between city funding, private funding, and academic partnerships — representing a successful model for public-private partnerships — to address equity across the five boroughs.  

Women across the country are still facing systemic, gender-based inequities. During the COVID-19 pandemic, almost 250,000 mothers left or downshifted their jobs in New York City due to lack of access to quality child care. Finally, 75 percent of women in New York City reported being harassed during their daily commutes in 2018.  

With additional expanded programming, Women Forward NYC will support New Yorkers through a wide range of targeted programming:  

Community Safety 

The city will increase programs and campaigns that reduce violence and enhance safety for women and girls in their daily activities, including by:  

• Expanding city’s first gender-responsive program for lesbian, gay, bisexual girls, and transgender or gender nonconforming youth who are involved or at high risk of involvement in the juvenile system from Brooklyn, Queens, and the Bronx. 
• Awarding grants to LGBTQ+/transgender, non-confirming serving organizations to implement anti-violence projects in their communities.  

Domestic Safety 

New programming will fortify interventions, trainings, and connections to resources to curb domestic violence and support survivors, including by:  

• Piloting a coordinated community-response that brings together representatives from the criminal justice system, local government, and community-based domestic violence organizations to assist survivors who have been identified to be at a high-risk for homicide.  
• Training hospital-based staff, advocates, assistant district attorneys, and first responders on supporting survivors who have experienced near-fatal strangulation and then implement best practices to treat victims of near-fatal strangulation and connect them to resources.  

Housing Stability 

As it provides a continuum of services for homeless, at-risk, and low-income households, the plan will help to keep women and families in their communities or accelerate their leave from shelter, including by:  

• Launching a new pilot program to support pregnant people applying for shelter to create pathways to permanent housing and avoid babies being born into homelessness.   
• Increasing connections to housing vouchers through Family Justice Center referrals to get survivors into permanent housing.  

Health and Medical Safety  

These interventions will bolster partnerships that address health inequities and promote wellness practices, including by:  

• Launching a pilot of the Maternal Home Collaborative to provide community-based clinical care, brick-and-mortar community spaces, and social supports (peer-to-peer groups, counseling, home visits, etc.) to pregnant New Yorkers. 
• Providing needed supplies for post-partum and newborn care to new parents and connecting new families to city and community resources at four NYC Health + Hospitals sites in the Bronx, Brooklyn, and Queens. 

Financial Empowerment 

The expansion of mentorship opportunities, trainings, and career supports to increase women’s economic growth and protect financial security, including by:  

• Engaging banks and financial education entities in the city to help identify, prevent, and address financial abuse and exploitation of older women through trainings that will help them recognize warning signs of financial exploitation, as well as help these financial institutions implement enhanced fraud detection systems. 
• Relaunching family literacy programs in Family Justice Centers, with the support of the Brooke Jackman Foundation, to create a safe space for families of domestic and gender-based violence survivors to learn together.  

Under Mayor Adams’ leadership, the city has made significant investments and enacted policies to support women in New York City. The first year of Women Forward NYC programming made investments in a wide-range of areas — focusing on economic mobility, health, and safety and housing stability — with a special emphasis on supporting historically marginalized populations. Highlights from the first year of programming include:  

Economic Mobility  

• Developed new partnerships with the Real Estate Board of New York, Con Edison, and the Intrepid Museum's Tech of Tomorrow on an internship program to provide more than 300 girls and gender non-conforming students with internships and career exploration opportunities in non-traditional fields through the city’s Summer Youth Employment Program. 
• Launched NYC Her Future, a new office to foster positive change and create a brighter future for all young people as a companion office to the Young Men’s Initiative, with a special focus on young women and girls in communities of color across New York City.  
• Graduated expanded cohorts of the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) Childcare Business Pathways Program and Food Business Pathways Program to provide support entrepreneurship pathways for NYCHA residents, supported by the JP Morgan Chase Foundation.   

Women’s Health 

• Expanded the reach of the Abortion Access Hub, which has helped to provide information and access to abortion services to more than 9,000 individuals since its launch in the fall of 2022.  
• Expanded the access to menstrual products in school buildings serving New York City Public School students in grades 4-12 and created a student guide to menstruation in 10 languages.  
• Invested $8 million to open a substance use disorder clinic for families at NYC Health + Hospitals/Lincoln in the Bronx to support healthy birth outcomes, reduce the likelihood and impact of postpartum relapse, and address the needs of older children living in these families. 

Public Safety and Housing Stability 

• Hosted a Mayoral Summit on Women’s Safety, in partnership with the New York University Marron Institute of Urban Management, bringing together service providers and city agencies to discuss interventions and strategies to reduce violence against women, girls, and transgender and gender expansive New Yorkers.  
• Expanded the Home+ program, which provides free and confidential security resources to survivors of domestic and gender-based violence who want to stay in their homes instead of entering shelter or going somewhere else, to include lock, door, and window repairs and replacement services, as well as offering flexible funding.  
• Provided reentry services to over 400 women leaving incarceration, including parenting education, mental health services, employment services, housing assistance, and more.  

“When women and girls thrive, the whole community thrives,” said New York City Mayor’s Office to End Domestic and Gender-Based Violence (ENDGBV) Commissioner Saloni Sethi. “We’ve made progress toward our ‘Women Forward NYC’ goals across a range of areas, including housing, public safety, and health equity. We will continue to do the work of implementation to see that our efforts get us ever closer to our ultimate goal of making New York City the most supportive and inclusive city for all women, girls, transgender women, and all identifying as gender expansive. Empowering survivors through programs that prioritize their safety, housing stability, and financial empowerment is paramount to their healing. The collaboration created through ‘Women Forward NYC’ has been critical to ENDGBV's ability to enhance community-based supports for survivors, develop new programs to intervene with young people who have demonstrated abusive behavior, and identify models to better support at-risk survivors. We are looking forward to building on these successes with new initiatives focused on enhancing hospital-based responses and adding capacity at our five borough-based Family Justice Centers to support family literacy and meet survivors' housing related needs.”  

“Women's health has been an afterthought for too long,” said New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene Acting Commissioner Dr. Michelle Morse. “At the Health Department, we are proud to collaborate with our partners as we work to increase lifespan and meet the goals outlined in HealthyNYC, including reducing health inequities, maternal mortality, and chronic conditions by connecting the women in our city to critical services. We will continue to prioritize women’s health, including reproductive health — now and always.”  

“At the heart of our vision for a more equitable city is the belief that every woman, girl, and TGNCNB New Yorker deserves the support, access and opportunity to reach their fullest potential,” said New York City Chief Equity Officer and Mayor’s Office of Equity & Racial Justice Commissioner Sideya Sherman. “With initiatives such as NYC Her Future that are creating pathways for young women and girls of color to succeed to the efforts of the New York City Commission on Gender Equity in championing reproductive knowledge and justice, we are empowering young women and girls, especially those in communities of color, to build successful futures. These investments reflect our commitment to addressing disparities and creating lasting opportunities for all.” 

“I am proud to serve as the founding executive director of NYC Her Future a dedicated city office focused on advancing the lives of young women throughout New York City. At NYC Her Future, we understand that empowering young women means not only investing in their futures but also recognizing the rich cultural backgrounds and families they belong to,” said NYC Her Future Executive Director Nathifa Forde. “As Sojourner Truth powerfully asked, 'Ain't I a Woman?' — this question reminds us of the strength and resilience inherent in every woman, challenging us to honor and uplift all voices, especially those of young women from diverse backgrounds. Over the last year, NYC Her Future has launched nine new programs in collaboration with our city agency partners, emphasizing STEAM education and career exploration, mentorship, workforce development, and financial literacy. In addition to hosting multiple community events across the boroughs. Collectively, NYC Her Future has proudly served over 50,000 incredible New Yorkers to date. We are just getting started, and we look forward to remaining grounded in community, continuing to uplift young women and girls. Together, we are shaping a brighter future for the city, where every young woman can thrive and shine.” 

“NYC Service is proud to have connected hundreds of young women and gender expansive youth to mentorship opportunities, where along with their mentors, they create stronger communities, healthier lives, and brighter futures,” said New York City Chief Service Officer Laura Rog. “Together through the ‘Women Forward NYC’ initiative, we are building a culture of service and advancing gender equity in New York City.” 

“Thanks to Mayor Adams’ commitment to ‘Women Forward NYC,’ the Mayor’s Office of Criminal Justice has been able to expand our investment into New York's justice-impacted women and their families,” said Mayor’s Office of Criminal Justice Director Deanna Logan. “The Visiting Family Assistance Program at Rikers Island is helping women rebuild their lives and restore family cohesion. Strong families create healthy communities and a safer New York City.” 

“Since the start of this administration, the Department of Youth and Community Development has prioritized lifting up women within our agency and throughout our programming,” said New York Department of Youth and Community Development (DYCD) Commissioner Keith Howard. “Our success stories include supporting more than a thousand women in growing their own businesses and connecting hundreds of young women in the Summer Youth Employment Program to high-paying career fields traditionally filled by men. In partnership with NYC Her Future, the Mayor’s Office of Sports, Recreation, and Wellness, and Nike, DYCD promotes team sports activities, with a strong focus on empowering girls and women in athletics. In fact, this past summer, more than half of our Summer Night Lights baseball and softball league players were young women. DYCD is proud to advance Mayor Adams’ historic commitment to make New York the most women-forward city in the United States.” 

“Finding creative and targeted ways to connect women and families to permanent housing and easing the burdens for vulnerable New Yorkers facing housing instability drives the work that we do every day,” said New York City Department of Social Services Commissioner Molly Wasow Park. “With groundbreaking initiatives like the recently announced ‘CRIB’ pilot that provides a roadmap to stable homes for New Yorkers who are expecting, and the Affordable Housing Services program that is creating permanent homes, we are satisfying our mandate to serve at-risk New Yorkers and help them move from shelter to housing.”  

“‘Women Forward NYC’ represents a groundbreaking commitment to ensuring the safety, stability, and success of women and gender expansive New Yorkers,” said New York City School Construction Authority (SCA) President and CEO Nina Kubota. “At the SCA, we are committed to advancing women in the construction industry by creating opportunities for women-owned businesses, supporting workforce development, and fostering an inclusive environment. We are proud to empower women to build not just schools, but successful careers in construction.” 

“Women veterans are critical to New York City's success and vibrancy. Last year, through our ‘Women Forward NYC’: Pink and White Empowerment Luncheon, we brought women veterans together to focus on their health, wellness, and access to vital services,” said New York City Department of Veterans’ Commissioner James Hendon. “This year, we are building on that foundation by creating new pathways to careers in banking, insurance, and law — ensuring women who served continue to thrive in civilian life and contribute to the strength of our great city.” 

“NYCHA’s Business Pathways Program has created tremendous opportunities for so many of the female entrepreneurs who call NYCHA home,” said NYCHA Executive Vice President for Resident Services, Partnerships, and Initiatives Ukah Busgith. “By harnessing the talent and passion inherent in many of our residents and providing them with the tools they need to excel as business-owners in competitive industries, we are truly setting them up for success.” 

“The progress made in the first year of ‘Women Forward NYC’ proves the value and strength of creating public-private partnerships to quickly and effectively help meet the needs of New Yorkers,” said Sara Gardner, chief executive officer, Fund for Public Health in New York City. “The Maternal Home Collaborative will expand on the city’s longstanding commitment to improving maternal health through enhanced collaboration and coordination with advocates, providers, community-based organizations, health systems, and other relevant stakeholders to streamline and improve a fractured maternal care landscape.”