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NYRA Freedom
ISSN 1933-5229
Scott Davidson and Adam King
Volume 6, Issue 8
August 12, 2006
Contents:
Introduction
NYRA Holds Annual Meeting
Election Held, New Board Elected
Board to Elect Officers
Activists Fight DC Curfew
WWASPS Sued for $100,000,000
Student Rights Handbook Complete
Feature: Continuing progress on student representation
News From the Web
Upcoming Events
Staff Changes
Conclusion
Introduction
By Scott Davidson
The past month has shown a great deal of promise. NYRA’s annual meeting
attracted activists from throughout the country, the membership elected
a fantastic board of directors, Adam King continues his struggle for
student representation on school boards, and WWASPS is facing a serious
threat to their evil empire. Perhaps most importantly, NYRA’s annual
report indicates that the past term was, while not without its
downsides, better than many people had thought in fundraising, which is
so essential to our success. I am certain that with our new national
leadership and concrete commitments from the grassroots the 06-07 term
will be even better than 05-06.
NYRA Holds Annual Meeting
By Scott Davidson
On August 5, 2006, NYRA members met at Saint Paulus Church in San
Francisco, Cali., to listen to speakers, hear about the events of the
past year, and discuss youth rights with activists from throughout the
country. This year’s annual meeting was the best NYRA has ever had.
The meeting began with a film entitled Les Enfants Perdus De Tranquility
Bay. This powerful, moving documentary exposes the atrocities committed
by The World Wide Association of Specialty Programs and Schools. Even
those familiar with WWASPS left the meeting with a greater understanding
of the behavior modification industry. After the film, Jordan Riak of
nospank.net gave an enlightening speech about gulag schools and corporal
punishment. Riak’s speech was a convincing and articulate defense of
the basic human dignity that young people posses, which is too often
ignored by parents, teachers, and lawmakers. Riak also provided an
abundance of literature. Riak’s words and pamphlets should be able to
convince all but the most sadistic, ageist individuals that corporal
punishment is wrong, and that laws concerning assault should grant equal
protection to young people.
After lunch, those attending the meeting heard from Dr. Mike Males.
Males is currently a sociology professor at UC Santa Cruz. He is also a
member of NYRA’s Board of Advisors. Males is the author of “Framing
Youth” and “Scapegoat Generation,” two must-read works for anyone who
wants to understand the war against youth taking place in the media and
the halls of power.
Males spoke about how problems generally associated with young people
are either fabricated or exaggerated by the media and policy makers.
Males went on to explain how older people are actually engaging in more
negative behavior, and how a lot of ageism is actually rooted in racist,
xenophobic fear. He also spoke about how real problems facing young
people (poverty, etc) are largely ignored by baby boomers, who are using
ageism as a sort of defense against the inevitability of a culturally
diverse, forward looking pre-figurative society where society is made
in the image of the young, not the old.
After Males’ speech, NYRA’s Executive Director Alex Koroknay-Palicz
delivered the annual report. Koroknay-Palicz’s report was cautiously
optimistic. He noted that while NYRA had many shortcomings over the
past year, most of these shortcomings were intensified by unrealistic
expectations. He also noted that while chapter activity declined,
NYRA’s financial situation has actually improved. The report lead to a
lot of positive, constructive discussion.
Due to some technical problems, election results were not available at
the meeting, but they were made available soon after.
Attendees included two former NYRA presidents, every NYRA officer from
the 05-06 term, and eight current or former NYRA board members. Special
thanks to Dustin Manuel for setting up the meeting location, and to the
(Chris) Howell family for hosting many out of town attendees. In
total, eighteen people attended the annual meeting equalling the
number from last year's annual meeting in New York City. Thank you
all who attended.
The annual meeting generated two press hits:
The Last Civil Rights Movement
http://www.youthrights.org/forums/article.php?t=8395
National Youth Rights Association Meeting Discusses Ageism, Promotes Youth
Voting
http://www.youthrights.org/forums/article.php?t=8391
The annual report will be available online in the next week or two.
Election Held, New Board Elected
By Scott Davidson
After a close election, NYRA’s membership has spoken. The membership
has elected Jessica Campbell, Scott Davidson, Zach Hobesh, Alex
Hull-Richter, Adam King, Alex Koroknay-Palicz, Keith Mandell, Katrina
Moncure, and Pamela Tatz to sit on the NYRA board of directors for the
2006-2007 term. All of the candidates were well qualified, and everyone
on this board possesses unique attributes that will strengthen NYRA over
the next year.
The board of directors provides leadership for the organization and
hires the organization's staff. Directors serve one year terms and
all members may run for the board.
NYRA members also voted on proposed bylaw amendments. The bulk of
NYRA’s important chapter policy was approved, but an essential provision
defining chapters as separate legal entities failed to receive the
necessary two-thirds majority. The new board is expected to re-approve
this bylaw, and bring it to the membership for a second vote next
summer. The membership also approved bylaw amendments regarding
attendance requirements for directors and officers, and other matters.
With well over sixty voters (members must pay dues in order to vote),
turnout was decent but could have been better.
Congratulations to the new board of directors. NYRA extends its
gratitude to everyone who voted in the election and everyone who ran for
the board.
Board to Elect Officers
By Scott Davidson
At its first meeting, the new NYRA Board of Directors will elect a new
president, vice president, treasurer, and secretary to serve through
August of 2007. The treasurer and secretary positions are open to all
NYRA members, and the current secretary is not seeking another term in
that office. The president and vice president must be members of the
Board of Directors. If you are interested in running for the position
of treasurer or secretary, e-mail us.
Activists Fight DC Curfew
By Adam King
On Friday, Aug. 4, civil rights groups protested Washington, D.C.’s
restrictive curfew provision which makes it illegal for teenagers aged
16 and under to be outside after 10 p.m.
Protesters assembled at the Reeves Center at 14th and U, NW. According
to Adam Schwartz, an area DC member, “There were perhaps 12 -15
protesters, mainly members of the DC Anti-War Network (DAWN). We stood
on the streets outside of the juvenile booking and holding HQ, one of
the two places were young people who are swept up during the curfew are
taken. We held signs like ‘end the police state,’ ‘jobs, not curfew,’
‘end the ageist, racist curfew,’ and ‘youth is not a crime.’”
Protests are legal and constitutional, and they get the message across
if enough people participate.
NYRA and many other organizations in the district area are opposed to
juvenile curfew laws. “As long as any segment of our population is under
house arrest for crimes that they did not commit, this is not a free
nation,” said Alex Koroknay-Palicz, NYRA’s Executive Director. “This
curfew mocks the American legal principle of innocent until proven
guilty by treating young people as criminals just for being who they are.”
Furthermore, independent research has found no evidence to support the
claim that curfews reduce any type of juvenile crime. In their 1999
study for “Western Criminology Review,” professors Mike A. Males of
University of California Santa Cruz and Dan Macallair of San Francisco
State University examined juvenile curfew laws across California. They
reported, “[The] analysis of curfew laws point to the ineffectiveness of
these measures in reducing youth crime."
Many police officers across the country feel curfew laws create a drain
on police time and resources, forcing them to not only serve and
protect, but also to parent.
Nighttime is not the most common time for juvenile crime. According to
the FBI, youth between the ages of 12 and 17 are most at risk of
committing violent acts and being victims between 2 p.m. and 8 p.m.
The parents of teenaged violators of this ongoing curfew may be issued a
fine of up to $500 or community service, and teenagers may be ordered to
work up to 25 hours of community service. Parents who do not pick up
their teenagers from the two curfew centers in the district by 6 a.m.
will have their teenagers taken to the Child and Family Services Agency.
WWASPS Sued for $100,000,000
By Scott Davidson
The World Wide Association of Specialty programs and schools, a corporation
that brings in millions of dollars every year by torturing young people,
is facing a large class action suit. While WWASPS is being sued for
misleading marketing tactics and accreditation issues rather than its
blatant disregard for human rights, the lawsuit could put a serious dent
in the organization. NYRA extends its sympathy to all the victims of
WWASPS, and all the plaintiffs in this recent class action suit.
Student Rights Handbook Complete
By Adam King
After nearly four months into the making, the Student Rights Handbook
2006 published by the National Youth Rights Association is now available.
The Student Rights Handbook was made possible mostly because of Stefan
Muller, Adam King, and several other researchers, writers, and graphic
designers. The handbook is offered to the public as a service for
students who may not know what their rights are when in a controversial
situation at school.
The hope is that members will distribute the books or link to the book
throughout their schools and communities. Members can order one book or
in bulk from NYRA with a low charge to handle processing and shipping,
print the book off NYRA’s website or they can send it through a variety
of mediums, including email and MySpace.
“Basically, I'm hoping that this can make sure students all over the
country know what rights they're entitled to have,” Muller said. “If
students everywhere know their rights, schools will be held accountable
to uphold them.”
The handbook can be found online at
www.youthrights.org/StudentRightsHandbook.pdf and will soon be available
to order in print edition through NYRA’s website. Stay tuned for more
information and updates.
Feature: Continuing progress on student representation
By Adam King
On Thursday, July 20, I held a public forum and press conference in
downtown Asheville. My goal in doing so was to show the Buncombe County
Board of Education how many people actually support having a student
adviser on the school board.
Members from the media included WLOS-TV, 570 AM WWNC, and Mountain
Xpress. All of the preceding ran stories on my press conference, and
although reporters did not attend, the Asheville Citizen-Times ran two
stories about my forum.
The next day, I was a guest on a morning radio show on 96.5 FM WOXL for
about an hour. I was able to meet with the hosts before and after the
show, and they are very supportive of my project. During the show, we
talked about my activism in the community, the project, and other
things. I had a great time.
On Thursday, August 10, I spoke at the school board meeting. Five board
members spoke against it, and the others seemed to agree with the ones
who are against it. The chair told me that I may still come to the
meetings to talk about it, but they more than likely will not take any
more action on it. Some of the ones who spoke out against it put words
in my mouth and acted as if I did not address issues that I had already
addressed.
The one who said he would support it was the first to speak against it,
and the other one who said he would support it did not even say
anything. They claim that they are active in the school districts they
are supposed to represent when most staff members never see them.
I do plan to keep on attending school board meetings whether I speak or
not. By the time the last half of most board meetings come about, there
usually is no one from the general public there. Therefore, they can say
whatever they want and no one but their support staff will even know.
Anything else that is controversial is handled in closed session.
On a side note, I will soon be working with the Buncombe County Board of
Commissioners to add a youth adviser or youth council onto their board.
It certainly has enough support from the Commissioners, so it would
likely pass.
And on another side note, I will soon be blogging about my project and
daily high school issues on the Asheville Citizen-Times website. Only
six applicants from the public were given an opportunity to have an
online blog.
News From the Web
The Last Civil Rights Movement
http://www.youthrights.org/forums/article.php?t=8395
DC Curfew Now Earlier
http://www.youthrights.org/forums/article.php?t=8219
Tech Seminar Touts Web as Springboard for Civic Action
http://www.youthrights.org/forums/article.php?t=8363
National Youth Rights Association Meeting Discusses Ageism, Promotes Youth
Voting
http://www.youthrights.org/forums/article.php?t=8391
Over the Edge
http://www.youthrights.org/forums/article.php?t=8250
“Infidel” Texts Banned in Schools
http://www.youthrights.org/forums/article.php?t=8413
Upcoming Events
Tuesday, August 15, 2006 at 8:00 p.m. EST – Informal Youth Rights Chat
Sunday, September 3, 2006 at 7:30 p.m. EST – First Board Meeting of the Year
Monday, September 4, 2006 at 8:00 p.m. EST – Informal Youth Rights Chat
TBA – First Chapter Informational Update Meeting of the Year
Unless otherwise specified, all chats are held in the AIM chatroom “NYRA”
Staff Changes
Two applications have been received for captain of the central region of
chapter formation. After the initial evaluation by Adam King, the
applications have been sent to Alex Koroknay-Palicz and Keith Mandell
for selection.
Adam King is seeking a replacement for his position as South Region
Captain. All interested candidates should apply at
www.youthrights.org/chapterformation.php.
Conclusion
By Adam King
It is almost time for school to start back in many places yet again, and
the new board of directors has been selected yet again. Wow. I must
say, Congratulations to all of you. It will be a pleasure working with
you in the coming year. If you did not run for the board this year, I
encourage you to get involved in the organization in some way if you are
not already. The work ahead that faces all of us cannot be tackled by
just a few – It takes the coordination of everyone to make a difference.
------NYRA------
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