Youth Dialogue Corps. invites conversation on divisive issues
Teens Hone Listening Skills as They Engage Fellow Citizens
The 2014-15 Youth Dialogue Corps. (a program of The Dialogue Project) took to the streets outside Councilmember Brad Lander’s office in June to ask adults to engage, face-to-face, in conversations about difficult issues both here in Brooklyn and around the world.
Composing the Youth Dialogue Corps are new immigrants and longtime young citizens alike, ages 13-18, who attend school in Brooklyn. They are Mexican, Indian, Eastern European, Palestinian, Pakistani and African American. Their diverse faith practices range from secular humanist to Jewish, Muslim, Hindu and Catholic.
The 14-member group attends 10 workshops to develop active listening and reflection skills. The teens learn how to move beyond pointing fingers and instead to “speak from the I.” They are challenged to confront their own bias and do this by sharing personal stories and their responses to the many issues that impact their lives, such as police profiling, violent and nonviolent protests, bullying, immigration laws, Islamophobia and anti-Semitism.