In my teens I grew up in a neighborhood with a lot of violence, present in my own family, among my friends, and throughout my neighbors’ lives. As a community youth worker, I spent a lot of time with young people who faced physical, psychological, social, and emotional violence almost relentlessly. Faced with the oppression of constant struggle and immoral disregard by adults throughout our society, I come to this work of promoting youth voice with the full intent of addressing the hatred, pain, and brutal immorality of violence.
I have found that social, emotional, intellectual, and psychological engagement with young people is the precursor to all non-violence. It is the only way to proceed at this point. Since 2006, I have used this blog to help understand and share my understanding about the relationship between violence and engagement. Here is a collection of my different blog entries related to violence and non-violence.
- Ending Youth Violence – http://commonaction.blogspot.com/2010/12/ending-youth-violence.html
- The Privilege of Disconnection – http://commonaction.blogspot.com/2011/01/privilege-of-disconnection.html
- On Youth Involvement in Social Justice Movements – http://commonaction.blogspot.com/2010/02/on-youth-involvement-in-social-justice.html
- Waiting, or Working? http://commonaction.blogspot.com/2010/06/waiting-or-working.html
- Why Schools Fail Democracy – http://commonaction.blogspot.com/2008/08/why-schools-fail-democracy.html
- Youth Segregation – http://commonaction.blogspot.com/2008/01/youth-segregation.html
- Theory, Discourse, and Freechild – http://commonaction.blogspot.com/2006/03/theory-discourse-and-freechild.html
- Risk Factors: New Pressures Facing Youth – http://commonaction.blogspot.com/2008/11/risk-factors-new-pressures-facing-youth.html
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