This past week, the Brownsville
Youth Court began blazing the path for restorative justice practices in
Brownsville! The Youth Court, comprised of 11 young people between the ages of
14 and 18, conducted community circles at Van Dyke Community Center and Langston
Hughes Community Center. The Youth Court facilitated these circles with middle
school youth, during after-school programming at each community center.
The Youth Court members introduced
the concept of circle practice to their younger participants, explaining that
this is a space where one person speaks at a time, honestly and openly, while
everyone else listens respectfully. Each person brings their own unique sense
of self and experiences to the circle, contributing in their own way to the
group’s shared truth. They explained how the talking piece goes around the
circle, the guidelines for the conversation, and introduced their own
individual opening and closing ceremonies to open and close the space. As the
discussions unfolded, participants shared their hopes, dreams and fears for
their own individual futures and the future of Brownsville.
Youth Court members and youth at Langston Hughes participate in a circle activity.
The
extensive Restorative Practice training that the Youth Court members completed
was evident based on their abilities to keep the attention of the participants
and to encourage them to speak freely, setting the example by respecting each
other and speaking freely themselves. These discussions set the bar high for
restorative practices in Brownsville and demonstrated that simple communication and conversation with youth in our community can lead to powerful youth-led community change in Brownsville!
Youth Court members and participants closing a circle at Langston Hughes!
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