Once Out Of School & Jobless Youth Fighting For Their Communities

Teens and Young Adults Leading a Movement against Violence & for Getting Involved in Civic Life

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May 23, 2019, 09:28 ET

CHICAGO, May 23, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Breaking the Chains, was the title of a workshop facilitated by formerly out-of-school and out-of-work youth, who know firsthand the impact of violence in their lives, leading a discussion about guns and gang violence in underrepresented communities and how it deteriorates these communities from the inside out. This and several other youth-led workshops were featured at the Democracy Strong! Summit, attended by 150 young people from Chicago and across the country and hosted by Alternative Schools Network in partnership with Opportunity Youth United.

The program also included youth-led workshops on:

The impact of gang violence on Chicago, looking for solutions by listening to the experiences of young people who have felt the violence in their lives;
How young people can become and stay engaged in the life of their community;
How to make a podcast with the creators of the popular #VOICEOFTHECITY podcast;
How to use your voice as a youth leader, by young people who have fought against the system of race-based mass incarceration;
Identifying the problems that justice-involved youth face when returning home from incarceration and developing solutions; and
The effects of gentrification, and how it negatively impacts communities.

The event also included a community resource fair, youth-led panel discussions, networking, music and socializing.

Illinois U.S. Sens. Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth, and U.S. Rep. Robin Kelly, D-Ill Introduce Key Youth Employment Legislation.

At the same time, Illinois' U.S. Sens. Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth, and U.S. Rep. Robin Kelly, D-Ill, 2, have introduced two pieces of legislation to expand and increase access to employment opportunities for at-risk youth – something sorely needed by the young people who participated in the summit. The Helping to Encourage Real Opportunity (HERO) for At-Risk Youth Act and the Creating Pathways for Youth Employment Act will increase federal resources for youth employment programs and provide tax incentives to businesses and employers to hire and retain youth from economically distressed areas.

Click on the link for more information:
http://www.asnchicago.org/docs/HERO_Act_PressRelease.pdf

Speakers at the program included, Jack Wuest, executive director, Alternative Schools Network; Corey Reynolds, Chicago Community Action Team Lead; Lashon Amado, National Coordinator, OYU CAT; Andrew Taylor, Community Action Team Member, Olive Harvey Middle College; Eber Lopez, Community Action Team Member, Latino Youth High School.

Alternative Schools Network partners with Opportunity Youth United, a national movement of young leaders committed to creating a society that invests adequately in the education and welfare of its children and youth, supports family and community life, ends mass incarceration and discrimination of all kinds, promotes a robust participatory democracy, and is structured to provide opportunity and responsibility for all.

OYU comprises locally anchored Community Action Teams that use their voices in the political process and mobilize to create community improvement projects of their own design. The Democracy Strong! Summit was a project of the Chicago CAT, which is anchored by the Alternative Schools Network.

For more information, visit asnchicago.org, and follow them on Twitter @asnchicago.

ABOUT ALTERNATIVE SCHOOLS NETWORK
The Alternative Schools Network (ASN) is a not-for-profit organization in Chicago working to provide quality education with a specific emphasis on inner-city children, youth and adults. Since 1973, ASN has been supporting community based and community-run programs to develop and expand training and other educational services in Chicago's inner-city neighborhoods. In addition to supporting direct services, ASN has been a consistent and effective advocate for community-based services whereby the people involved are active participants in developing and running programs – not passive recipients of services. To shape policies and programs, ASN has built an impressive track record of operating successful education, employment and support service programs. For more information please visit www.asnchicago.org.

FOR MORE INFORMATION:
CONTACT: LAURIE R GLENN
PHONE: 773.704.7246
EMAIL: [email protected]

SOURCE Alternative Schools Network