Yo! Youth OutLook

Editor's Note: As people across California head over to their local polling place, some of the young people in Fresno are getting their chance to have a say in the way their local government is being run.  Recently, the youth of  Fresno got a chance to talk to the candidates who have been campaigning to be elected as representatives for their local districts. The young people challenged the candidates on a variety of topics from transportation, safety, budget cuts, and education. Min Lee, Donny Lumpkins and Eming Piansay are senior producers at YO! Youth Outlook Multimedia. 

On Thursday, May 20, 2010 the Boys & Girls Club of Fresno county, Stone Soup of Fresno, The kNOw Youth Media and a handful of other youth based organizations hosted the We Wanna Know: Youth Candidate Forum at the Zimmerman Boys & Girls Club in Fresno.

The event was organized and hosted by the youth of Fresno in an effort to connect some of the candidates in the district elections in Fresno to the youth that live there.

The youth had a clear and concise view of what they wanted to improve in Fresno and came to the event with challenging questions and opinions for the candidates.

The youth that put the event together ranged in both age and race. They took tickets for the raffle, setup the refreshments for after the forum, and moved chairs and taped up banners. They had completely taken over the gym at the Boys and Girls club.

In a small room off to the left of the gym, the youth organizers sat the participants in a circle. They broke down the districts on a big colorful map and explained why the district elections are so important to them and their neighborhoods.

Fresno is broken up in to seven districts. The event focused on districts 3, 5 and 7. On June 8th these districts may elect a new supervisor.

On the map of Fresno the youth leaders describe the seven districts in Fresno as little villages and the candidates as little “village leaders”.

Some of the questions the youth wanted to address with candidates were how they are going to create more jobs for youth, how they are going to improve the Fresno city bus system, how they would insure public safety, how to create more recreation options for youth and  how they could help create healthy communities.

Angelina Thau, 17, from Fresno says the forum was organized for youth to address youth issues with the council member candidates. “They should be aware of issues that are affecting us,” she continued. “The candidates decisions are going to affect us and the future generations.”

Thau continued to say that it is important for the youth and the city council hopefuls to get together and plan the future. Thau said she was not leaning towards any candidate yet but she wishes all the candidates luck.

Many of the bigger issues like safety on Fresno’s bus system weighed on many of the young people's minds.

Omar Barraza, 19, from Fresno says the forum is unique because it’s the candidates chance to communicate to the youth about how they will improve their lives in Fresno.

Barraza thinks politicians pay attention to youth, but only to a certain extent, but they don’t pay as much attention to youth needs as much as they do about the adult issues. He says since many teens don’t drive, making pubic transportation a big issue. “I’m very passionate about public safety, about kids being safe and being able to walk in the streets and be safe.” He wants the issue to be addressed, but it’s not the only problem. 

The event fostered a discussion necessary to include youth in the activities of their government that directly impact them.

Maricela Hernandez, 20, from Fresno goes to high school in district 5 says it can be hard to organize youth events like this one but thanks to a number of youth organizations getting together it's been made a little easier.

Hernandez said sometimes politicians don’t always follow through with their promises, but she wants to help to change that. "I think were gonna gave to get on their glutes and make sure they are always behind us and make sure they really support us. she” said the whole reason the youth organizers invited the positions there was to see who they truly are and what they represent.

Unfortuatnely, not all the young people in Fresno are actively involved in the on-goings of their government.

Miriam Hernandez, 16, from Fresno is with Californians for Justice, a non-profit working to better schools. “I live in district five,” Hernandez said, “the community isn’t as involved as they should be and they are not notified about events and how to keep their children healthy.”

She feels like her neighborhood is pretty safe but there are still things like drugs that she’s worried about. Miriam says there aren’t many places for her to exercise around her district and that is a major concern for her. “I’ve lived in Fresno for 16 years and in my option it has gotten better, I’ve seen them (politicians) being involved in a way that was different from before, they are bringing healthier choices and youth organizations that I didn’t know about.

Many young people appreciated the candidates attempt to reach out to improve their communities. 

Maria Ortaga, 17, has been in Fresno for 12 years, She says since she has lived in Fresno she hasn’t seen Fresno change that much. “It’s kind of been really like the neglected part of town, not much economic development.” 

Ortaga lives in district five and wants to see better things for her community she says the roads are bad and some of the stop lights don't work in her part of town and there are not enough grocery stores. “I want to hear what the candidates have to say about my district and what they plan to do.” She wants the politicans to commit to improving her district and Fresno as a whole. Even though she is too young to vote she says she will encourage the people she knows who can to do so.

Once the forum began, candidates arrived and sat behind a set of tables labeled according to district. The youth settled into their seats Angelina and Omar moderated the event. They thanked the candidates on behalf of the youth planning team and welcomed everyone in the room and the forum was on.

The candidate attempted to speak candidly to the youth. They answered their questions with respect and honesty. The youth kept the candidate in check by keeping their comments timed.

The one issue not addressed by the candidates that was a major issue with the youth is crime in Fresno. Keeping the community safe should be the main objective of all politicians. But that seemed to be the one issue that went unaddressed.

They did though have a number of solutions to other problems the youth wanted addressed: such as re-routing buses to make transportation more convenient, as well as creating bus passes for students.

Almost all candidates agreed that they would not support to any more cuts to the school in Fresno, and youth liked that.

At the end of the day, there seemed to be a sense that the candidates had the youth’s best interests at heart, and really wanted to help Fresno while keeping them in mind. 

 

Related Stories:

Young People on Budget Cuts and Their Futures

Community Comes Together for Carnival in San Francisco

Napa Youth Respond to Mexican Flag Burning Incident 

 

 

1 of 1