by Joi Officer, 16, and Jake Thornburgh, 16, Y-Press
In the past 10 years, youth activism on behalf of the poor and unfortunate has increased exponentially, “which is a very important thing because back in 2001, a lot of youth were attacking [homeless] people on the streets,” said Michael O’Neill, director of Faces of Homelessness for the National Coalition for the Homeless.
“A lot more people now when they see someone on the street will say ‘hello,’ have a conversation, give acknowledgement instead of just walking by and ignoring someone,” he continued. “I’ve talked to people on the streets who have noticed that change in a lot of young people they’ve encountered.”
Alynn Woodson also has seen more youth compassion for the needy. As director of youth volunteer engagement for Habitat for Humanity, she says more than 50,000 students
become involved each year, “and that number rises with every year.”
While helping the economically disadvantaged has been a cornerstone of youth activism for years, in the past decade it has evolved into a powerful weapon for fighting poverty across the United States. This evolution has been the result of many factors, including the recent recession.
“We’re seeing more and more families homeless,” O’Neill said. “A lot more people are realizing it can happen to them. … People don’t like to see a family or an individual sleeping outside in the snow or in the rain.”
Engaging more youth
However, reasons for increased activism go even deeper than that. One of the least examined aspects of this change has been the demographics of youth involved. Steve Culbertson, president and CEO of Youth Service America, says historically, the trend has been youth of privilege going in to struggling communities and helping out in venues such as soup kitchens and child-care centers. However, a new population has stepped forward.
“Kids who actually live in those low-income communities are addressing these issues themselves,” he said.
Culbertson emphasized the significance of this shift. These youth are aware of the problems in their communities and are eager to be a part of the solution, he said, but until recently these communities lacked opportunities for them to get involved.
“They want to be part of the solution, but nobody asks them to help. And it turns out the ask is the key. It is what motivates us as human beings. Whether you’re rich, poor, it doesn’t matter,” said Culbertson.
Youth Service America is devoted to increasing “the ask.” Since 1986, it has promoted youth service around the world in many ways, including its microfinance programs, which give grants directly to children to solve problems in their communities.
YSA also pushes elected officials to include youth in decision-making roles in their communities. “Kids in low-income communities in particular are deeply engaged and are assets. They’re not victims. They’re not problems, you know, they’re resources,” Culbertson said.
More interest in world
The political climate of the past 10 years also has given rise to increased activism from youth, the experts agreed. Culbertson emphasized that today’s youth have lived through several life-changing events —including the 9/11 attacks, wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and Hurricane Katrina—that have opened their eyes.
“All of this has a huge influence on waking people up and getting them interested in what’s going on in the world,” he said.
These events have galvanized youth, to host fundraisers, gather donations or volunteer where needed. “We’re seeing extraordinary response to Haiti, for example, kids doing amazing things,” said Culbertson. “Immediately they jumped into full fundraising mode, you know, where they’re doing road races and lemonade stands and book sales and all kinds of bake sales and fundraising drives.”
Youth also find creative ways to help the unfortunate. O’Neill described a recent trend in which kids, in lieu of birthday or Christmas presents, will request donations to a favorite charity.
It’s not only tragedy and hardship that sparks youth activism. The recent election of Barack Obama has given youth around the world hope and a drive to initiate change.
“We have an administration in the White House that is very open to hearing youth voices, and not just hearing them, but really listening to them and making changes,” said Woodson.
The Obama administration also has made youth service a key component of his agenda. Service learning is an academic requirement not only at many high schools but at most colleges as well. About 1.2 million students are involved in programs with grants from the Corporation for National and Community Service, a government agency that finances such programs.
Education is key
Though activism differs from service, it does benefit from the same events that spur interest in such opportunities. Behind both activities is a well-educated volunteer base, and technological advances in the past 10 years have made being informed easier than ever.
Popular social-networking sites such as Twitter, Facebook and MySpace are constantly tapped to inform others about issues and rally them for events. “For Facebook, students will say, ‘Hey, come to work, come to the soup kitchen,’ or ‘We’re trying to collect canned food,’” O’Neill said.
But even more basic is the ease of finding information now. Satellite and Internet connections allow instantaneous updates around the world. They also make researching issues a breeze and create bonds between people miles apart.
“There’s just a much better understanding because of technology and better science out there about the problems of climate change, about the problems of hunger, about the problems of the economic disparity,” Culbertson said. “Health care and health issues, education, literacy, high-school dropout rates, things like that are all much more visibly promoted and discussed in the news. And I think again, those are things that drive activism and cause people to want to make change.”
Technology also helps spread messages. O’Neill is especially pleased with the new view of the homeless that Americans are adopting. “We’re really breaking down the stereotypes and misconceptions about homeless people, thinking they’re all lazy and they’re all alcoholics and they’re all crazy.”
But many kids act without online motivation.” They know what’s wrong with their community. They take the bull by the horns without anyone asking them, and they go out and solve the problem,” Culbertson said.
Future trends
Youth activism on behalf of the unfortunate is expected to continue to snowball. Culbertson points to growing government investment in nonprofit organizations. “Since 1993, when the Corporation for National and Community Service came into existence under President Clinton, it was grown by President Bush and it’s been grown by President Obama. You’re going to see a much larger increase in government investment and government expectations, and this is going to feed into school- and community-based organizations and also into faith-based organizations,” he said.
In addition, Culbertson expects to see more volunteerism among younger youth in the future. Right now, there are higher rates of service among college-age students because there are more opportunities for service at that age. But that is changing, he said. “We see that really pushing down. We now see service programs in kindergarten and first grade, second grade, third grade, fourth grade.”
And expect this younger generation to feel empowered at earlier ages. O’Neill described a group of Florida teenagers who fought an ordinance that would have prohibited distributing food to the homeless in public parks. “They changed that in Fort Myers, Florida. They didn’t think they could. They went down there, they contacted local media and stuff, contacted us. Our community organizer went down there and they got the law changed,” he said.
With reporter Moira Corcoran, 13
