On Thursday July 8th, the room was buzzing with the voices of about 70 youth, parents, activists and leaders from King County. All convened to share culture and to confront adult community leaders about how the effects of institutional racism affect young people’s education and quality of life.
It was hosted by a group called Youth Undoing Institutional Racism (YUIR). YUIR is a youth-centered, youth-run initiative started out of the Seattle Young Peoples Project (SYPP) back in 1999. YUIR meets weekly to empower youth with tools, support, resources and experience to organize for social change. Read up about YUIR here at their website.
If you have a chance to attend there next event, you should. It was rad. After opening with traditional Samoan dances and some spoken word, young people got down to business by posing challenging questions to some of Seattle’s top community leaders. Here’s the list of adults on the panel:
Glen Harris from the mayor’s Race and Social Justice Initiative
Julie Nelson from the Seattle Office of Civil Rights
Nick Metz, Deputy Chief of the Seattle Police Department
Larry Evans, a legislative aid for Larry Gossett
Sili Savusa from the Highline School Board
Questions posed by young people were deep and direct. Questions like “why do schools not teach the histories of People of Color as much as they teach white history? Why do police mistreat communities of color? Why does immigration status bar students from getting financial aid for college? Why is our prison systems spending money to lock people up, but not rehabilitate? Why aren’t teachers evaluated on their understanding of racism? Who keeps police accountable to communities of color? And on and on, like that. Great questions all around!
The answers were honest, too. Nick Metz acknowledged our city’s history of racial division. Julie Nelson said squarely “We need cultural competency training all over this city.” We heard alarming statistics about King County’s prison system—King County is 5.8% black, however 45% of incarcerated youth are black. AND, in the last 10 years incarceration rates have been cut in half but the racial disparity continues to GROW. We heard about changing the ways schools communicate with parents and families. Most paperwork sent home is only in English, which is a huge burden for parents and families where English is a second language.
At the end, all the community leaders present committed to meeting back with YUIR at least 4 times a year in the future to further the conversation (Metz said he wanted to meet more frequently).
As YUIR’s button pins declare, it was a brilliant night of “Speaking Truth to Power.” This group of young folks and their mentors engaging issues of racism in schools and juvenile justice (pointing out the history of linkage between these two institutions) was powerful!!
For a full review of the Q and A’s, check it out here.
Ambien
18 January 2012 at 3:33 PM
bdtpduiftpbqcpy, Ambien, TdtHdMQ, [url=http://sleepdisorder-symptoms.com/ambien_treatment_for_insomnia.html]Ambien abuse[/url], mpMEmtJ, http://sleepdisorder-symptoms.com/ambien_treatment_for_insomnia.html Ambien, wiCwsvs.
Foergeten
13 January 2011 at 6:08 AM
I almost accidentally went to this site, but stayed there for long. Delayed, because everything is very interesting. Be sure to tell you about all my friends.
rorknoreKap
8 January 2011 at 12:32 AM
comment4, phentermine vs adipex, chairs, hydrocodone acetaminophen 5 500, merrily, viagra wholesale, >:-D, prozac 40 mg, :’-D, buy valium cod, 1655, levitra discount, 2924, prednisone side effects in cats, 1833, tramadol seizure, 855, online propecia, festering, 50mg viagra, ]:->
Flutssuntee
8 January 2011 at 12:22 AM
comment5, viagra switzerland, whither, phentermine hydrochloride, :_(, prednisone tablet, 7323, us cialis, :-*, viagra buying online, unburnt, prozac and clonazepam, 2587, ultram 06 59, 7398, 10 mg prozac, ride, phentermine not working, scoffed, levitra information, 6186
Greleduar
8 January 2011 at 12:22 AM
comment5, valium uk, dismissing, zithromax order, :’(, hydrocodone with codeine, 3853, prednisone oral, \o/, adipex online without prescription,
, is ativan a narcotic, :-@, propecia over the counter, 5479, viagra arginine, Ý:-), 1 mg ativan, 8167, phentermine mexico, crazy
Voleepiliot
8 January 2011 at 12:13 AM
comment6, no rx vicodin, 5726, phentermine prescribing information, keenness, ambien sleeping pill, through, diazepam vs clonazepam, weighs, phentermine us, only, low price viagra, merriment, how long does valium stay in the body, :-/, buy viagra generic, :-X, tramadol 537, 613, legal cialis, :-0
GlalleakSog
8 January 2011 at 12:00 AM
comment4, lasix oral, hurling, viagra warszawa, :-X, viagra china, 5621, buy valium cod, handful, zithromax price, :-E, phentermine hcl 37.5, professed, buy cialis canada, songs, hydrocodone and codeine, :-E, ativan and alcohol, \m/_, purchase propecia, during
avergadog
7 January 2011 at 11:59 PM
comment5, prozac alcohol interaction, î-), klonopin and anxiety, ], codeine and breastfeeding, 5236, over the counter viagra, 2677, nolvadex or clomid, =-O, proscar propecia, temerity, phentermine in stock, commanded, vicodin medicine, 8678, generic soft viagra, {:ˆ, xanax vicodin, ferguson
ferrorgoGub
7 January 2011 at 11:58 PM
comment6, viagra for women uk, 2221, buy phentermine without rx, <|-), valium blue, livelier, zithromax z pak, :’-), levitra canada, 9170, how does phentermine work, \o/, diet drug phentermine, carelessness, canada pharmacy viagra, guarding, us pharmacy phentermine, irish, ativan tablet, 6916
Naradlysark
7 January 2011 at 11:40 PM
comment3, prednisone without prescription, indecencies, phentermine a159, converse, viagra recipe, ::-), buy cialis without prescription, î-), oxycodone no prescription needed, *:O), singapore viagra, 6438, tramadol wiki, equipped, diflucan and oral contraceptives, riding, find phentermine, 2325, levitra overnight, xviii
Ovazyevedly
7 January 2011 at 11:26 PM
comment5, propecia info, 9912, prozac prescription, 4138, codeine tablets, *:O), erowid ambien, 5214, viagra purchase online, furled, mix hydrocodone and oxycodone, 1642, phentermine online, ], viagra to buy online, roses, ativan anxiety, postponed, buy viagra online australia, (_!_)
taveAttig
7 January 2011 at 11:06 PM
comment4, hydrocodone overdose symptoms, 7364, does phentermine really work, :-!, snort tramadol, profession, ativan 0.5 mg, supreme, tramadol uses, 4605, drugs prozac, tacked, phentermine no rx needed,
, how much klonopin is lethal, misguided, xanax commercial, 847, vicodin 357, explode
Alexpexvoilla
7 January 2011 at 11:06 PM
comment7, phentermine shipped overnight, 8-), how to buy phentermine, \m/_, xanax compared to valium, 473, zithromax for sale, 1149, lasix sulfa allergy, abatement, prednisone ingredients, 1173, diflucan 200 mg, 7031, phentermine long term effects, %0, viagra online in canada, :-Ú, codeine allergy symptoms, merriment
arrosmete
7 January 2011 at 10:45 PM
comment6, purchase phentermine without a prescription, yellow, phentermine hydrochloride 37.5, :*), vicodin valium, ,’-/, zithromax for kids, :-] lasix 500 mg, D-:, prednisone psoriasis, D-:, diflucan online, 9355, mexican pharmacy phentermine, violation, internet viagra, 7917, ibuprofen and codeine, imperative
AppoliFlows
19 December 2010 at 12:53 PM
I am certainly not enough that the meaning of fasting, but I will try to overpower.
Quopomilult
18 December 2010 at 2:41 PM
Interesting. We are waiting for new messages on the same topic:)
GreecyFueve
18 December 2010 at 2:14 PM
Something I do not see a feedback form, or other coordinates the administration of the blog.
duetCeabede
20 November 2010 at 5:57 AM
Hello! How do you feel about young composers?
Leavimmetle
10 November 2010 at 6:24 AM
Hello! Nice position!