The government of Uruguay has remixed the gun buy back program. The new program, called Weapons for Life, allows Uruguayans to receive things like bicycles and computers in exchange for turning in their guns. Kind of an amazing idea, right?
Below is an original poem I wrote after my childhood friend, Naomi Clyburn, was murdered in my hometown.
Parents, students, and activists from cities across the country confronted the U.S. Department of Education, asserting that widespread school closures violate the civil rights of minority youth. Where do you stand on this issue?
7 year-old Wilson Reyes was accused of stealing $5 from a classmate, and a scuffle ensued. Instead of being sent to the principal’s office, the NYPD took him to a police station, handcuffed Reyes to a wall, and interrogated him for hours.
The 15-year-old King College Prep student Hadiya Pendleton was gunned down yesterday in a park near the school. Just a week ago, Pendelton had traveled to Washington DC and performed at President Obama’s inauguration with her school’s drill team.
A teacher at Las Vegas Academy in Nevada is making headlines for allowing two students to wear KKK outfits for a class project. Was he simply doing his job as a history teacher, or did the project go too far? Should he be punished?
On average, women make only 77 cents for every dollar paid to men. The disparity is much worse for women of color. Black women make only 70 cents for every dollar paid to men, and just 64 cents for every dollar paid to white men.
Tennessee state rep Stacey Campfield introduced a bill that would make welfare benefits contingent upon the grades of a recipient’s children, insisting it will hold parents accountable. But it sounds like another attack on poor people, and seems totally heartless and unfair. What do you think?
Several people were arrested Sunday afternoon during a protest at the University of Chicago Medical Center. An estimated 50 protesters occupied the hospital, demanding that an adult trauma center be opened. There are no trauma centers on the South Side of Chicago.
Every week, the Black Youth Project collects the top news stories about black youth from across the country. Click here to check out our archive of weekly news round-ups, and check back every Monday for a new roundup of headlines about young black America
During a visit to Nevada next week, President Obama will discuss immigration reform. We can only hope that immigration reform is in fact just that–reform–and that the Obama Administration strongly considers Latino youth while composing and enacting the policy.
A controversial ad urging black youth in Boston to pull up their sagging pants is raising eyebrows. Penalties apparently include a $300 fine and up to three years in prison! Is it fair to incarcerate a young person over sagging pants? Is that how we look out for our youth?