Written by: Tamara Manzer When entering the youth movement, new young leaders are often passionate about influencing change, skilled in organizing, eager to do outstanding work, and curious about others’ perspectives. In reflecting on my personal experiences when starting at a youth organization, a few tips came to mind to…
Written by: Kristin Thorp Depressive disorders are common among youth and young adults. In the United States, one in five youth will experience a mental health challenge. Unfortunately, many young people don’t have access to developmentally appropriate and culturally responsive care. At Youth MOVE National (YMN) we believe that young…
Written by: Joshua Calarino I like to think of listening as one of the most important things anyone can do. Listening to others allows you to learn. It can be the thing that someone who confides in you wants you to do. Not to judge nor to help solve problems.…
Most of us at Youth MOVE National started our careers in peer-service or in youth coordinator roles, and grew into national advocacy work. The concept of “Generation NEXT” is a priority on our team, as most of us have experienced it firsthand: we need to build better career pathways for…
Written by Lydia Proulx Unlike our previous blog posts, this one has a more specific intended audience. This post is for me and my white peers. This is our task, not that of our peers, neighbors, friends, and family of color. If this causes a defensive reaction in your gut;…
Written by Tamara Manzer Today, more than ever, our nation must affirm and center healing in the lives of Black youth. Black youth are experiencing a mental health crisis while at the same time they continue to face systemic inequalities and disparities that have been further perpetuated in 2020. In…
A Special Note from YMN: As Youth MOVE National continues it's a commitment to Black Lives Matter, providing resources in response to COVID, and being a leader on youth engagement, we have taken time to create a general flow of blogs for the coming months. Over the last couple of…
Written by Jasmine Boatwright Being black in America has never been easy. For years we have been subjected to public disrespect, violence, lack of opportunities, and disregard of our lives from those paid to support us. Breonna Taylor, Sandra Bland Tamir Rice Trayvon Martin George Floyd are only a handful…
Youth MOVE National is excited to share a new resource that we have created in response to our recent commitment to anti-racism. "Standing in Solidarity: A Guide for Becoming a Better Ally to Black Youth" aims to help youth peers and supportive adults find ways to create change in your…
As we continue to move through 2020, keeping a watchful eye on the world around us as it relates to COVID, anti-racism, an election year, and so many other events that are shaping our daily lives, we think it’s important to take a few moments to reflect on how we…