A West Philly grandmother decided to save summer with a PlayStreet. Then, tragedy struck.

Samantha Melamed

August 08, 2020 |

The Philadelphia Inquirer (Philadelphia Media Network) |

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Response Location: United States, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Philadelphia's PlayStreets program is a nearly 60-year-old program that began as a meal service during the summer "hungry season," when school lunches are not served, but has evolved into a summer camp on 300 city blocks. Fifty blocks are designated "super streets," where high levels of poverty and violence are met with extra resources. On top of the usual meals and games, the city provides play equipment, DJ dance parties, and mural making. In a summer of extreme violence, neighbors say it also provides a sense of security and normalcy, which police credit as a violence-preventive measure.

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Program offers alternative for youth who commit misdemeanors

Anthony Wallace

August 05, 2020 |

Cronkite News - Arizona PBS |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Seattle, Washington

Choose 180 channels Seattle-area young people into an alternative to court and jail when they commit relatively minor offenses. This "offramp" from the traditional justice system, serving a disproportionately Black and brown clientele, helped 400 clients in 2019, 87% of whom did not commit new offenses. Research shows such diversion programs have a better track record for preventing future crimes. A Choose 180 "sentence" comes in the form of a workshop introducing young people to mentors and giving them a chance at the stability and frame of mind they need to seek more lasting change in their lives.

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Virtual LGBT+ support group creates a space for youth

Angelica Cabral

July 30, 2020 |

The Salinas Californian |

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Response Location: United States, Salinas, California

When in-person meetings became impossible during the pandemic, Epicenter's youth-run, drop-in resource center for youth made its LGBTQ+ support group virtual, and attendance went up. The group, called Our Gente, provides a place for youth to support each other. Those trapped at home with families that are unsupportive can still participate online using text chats, rather than having to speak aloud. Youth at the center create their own programming, but work closely with Epicenter's deputy director, who grew up queer, non-binary in a family that at first did not support them.

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The Perks of Roommates With a 50-Year Age Difference

Daniel J McGraw

July 10, 2020 |

Reasons to be Cheerful |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States

Intergenerational home sharing is a mutually beneficial option for seniors and young people. There are about 60 programs, run by cities, nonprofits, and platforms in the style of Airbnb, that connect seniors and young people for cohabitation. Seniors benefit by being able to stay in their homes, collect income, and have someone to help with social isolation and household chores. Young people benefit from access to affordable housing options in high-cost areas and engaging in rich relationship building. Home sharing services are facing legal challenges and the Covid-19 pandemic made cohabiting more risky.

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How 12 Teens Who'd Never Met Before Organized Honolulu's Black Lives Matter Protest

Suevon Lee

June 22, 2020 |

Honolulu Civil Beat |

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Response Location: United States, Honolulu, Hawaii

Twelve Honolulu high school students, who had only ever met online, used social media to organize a Black Lives Matter protest that drew over 10,000 people. The teens used online forums to communicate about their goals for the protest and also to provide details to the public regarding the march's route, reminders to wear masks, remain peaceful, and abide by city laws. The teens also enlisted the support of established organizations to provide volunteers and bring hand sanitizer, water bottles, face masks, and bullhorns. The result was an entirely peaceful and emotionally stirring protest march and rally.

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From Settlement to University

Veronika Folentová

June 22, 2020 |

Denník N |

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Over 3000 Words

Response Location: Slovakia, Levoca, Presov

The Romani Education Fund in Slovakia is helping children from the Roma community, which has a history of social and economic disadvantages as well as being subject to ethnic discrimination, overcome challenges to finish high school and pursue higher education. The REF works by providing qualifying students with a stipend to pay for educational supplies, as well as providing school guidance and personal mentorship to help both students and parents overcome the social hurdles that impede the student's desire or ability to fulfill their potential.

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In the quiet of a shutdown, students and seniors forge new friendships

Tara Bahrampour

June 19, 2020 |

The Washington Post |

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Response Location: United States, Washington, District of Columbia

When the Covid-19 pandemic resulted in widespread lockdowns, a Washington, D.C. Episcopal day school partnered with a retirement home to help students and seniors provide companionship to one another and decrease loneliness. To help alleviate nerves about talking with someone they've never met, the program trained the students in skills such as cold-calling and offered an introductory script for the initial conversation. The students have reported valuing the conversations while the seniors have said "the connection has been a lifeline."

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Canada's largest school district ended its police program. Now Toronto may be an example for U.S. districts considering the same.

Kalyn Belsha

June 19, 2020 |

Chalkbeat National |

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Response Location: Canada, Toronto, Ontario

Prompted by Black Lives Matter protesters and informed by a controversial survey of high school students on their feelings about having police stationed in their schools, Toronto pulled police from its schools in 2017 and since then has refuted warnings of a spike in misbehavior and crime. While arrest numbers and data on students’ current feelings about safety are unknown, Canada’s largest school system at least proved that it could address unhappiness with a police presence without decreasing safety.

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These Black Students Have Fought Over-Policing In Schools for Years

Zach Schermele

June 17, 2020 |

Teen Vogue |

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Response Location: United States, Minneapolis, Minnesota

The Minneapolis school board’s vote to remove police from public schools arose not only from protests over the police killing of George Floyd, but also from a long-term advocacy project to end the so-called school-to-prison pipeline. Local youth activists for years have piggybacked on a national movement to stop the racially disparate practice of criminalizing student misbehavior. A coalition of groups, nationally and in Minneapolis, marshaled evidence of the racial inequity of such policing and the benefits of reinvesting the money saved on police in restorative justice programs and other services.

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Food drives around Chicago continue a tradition of revolutionaries feeding the community

Matt Harvey

June 17, 2020 |

The TRiiBE |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Chicago, Illinois

Many organizations are holding food drives, providing hot meals, and delivering essential items like groceries and diapers to children and their communities in underserved Chicago neighborhoods. Based on a tradition of providing free breakfast to kids started by the Black Panther Party, the initiatives began as a way to serve those participating in Black Lives Matters protests and shifted to reach communities, most of which are food deserts that rely on corner stores that have closed because of protests. The communities have many needs and some organizations plan on continuing to provide additional services.

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