By an overwhelming majority vote of 318-103, on June 25 the U.S. House of Representatives passed HR 6358 (previously HR 5876), the Stop Child Abuse in Residential Programs for Teens Act of 2008. This watershed legislation will enact necessary reforms intended to stop the abuse and torture of young people in behavior modification facilities, or…
NYRA’s famous (or infamous) annual meeting is now less than two months away. The annual meeting is an opportunity to network with other NYRA members and youth rights supporters from across the country, plot the course of the organization over the year to come, and become actively involved in the cause. Participants will see informative…
Jeff Nadel is the young, eloquent founder of NYRA’s newest chapter, NYRA-Boca Raton. This chapter has just been approved in the last few weeks, but already looks very promising. Jeff has been talking with Alex Koroknay-Palicz, NYRA Executive Director, and together they have formed some exciting plans. The chapter has decided to use the summer…
Time is running out to become a candidate for NYRA Board of Directors; the election begins next month. There are currently 12 candidates for nine available seats. All it takes to run is a paid membership to NYRA and a passionate dedication to youth rights. A seat on the Board of Directors is an excellent…
In a bombshell article, presidential candidate Ralph Nader has come out strong in support of one of our most important goals: lowering the voting age to 16. Mr. Nader supported lowering the voting age from 21 to 18 during the Vietnam War, but he, like many other Americans young and old, doesn’t want to stop…
Every day, young people are tortured or otherwise abused in “behavior modification facilities” or gulag schools, residential “treatment” facilities designed to set troubled and misbehaving teens on the straight and narrow. Young people at these facilities are beaten and subjected to other physical and sexual mistreatment. They are forced to exercise in the heat until…
While NYRA isn’t in the business of generational warfare, we have seen our share of artillery barrages from older generational warriors. So now and then it doesn’t hurt to peak out from our trenches and fire back. A fascinating new study gives us some nice ammo: Political science professors Richard R. Lau of Rutgers University and…
What should be NYRA’s and any other youth advocate’s top priority now is HR 5876 (read full text here) Take action on the Stop Child Abuse in Residential Programs for Teens Act of 2008 here. Bill could give federal oversight to private clinics for children and would require FDA inspections In a move that could…
At the same time that strides are being taken for youth rights in New York, progress towards a lower voting age is being made across the country, in California. In the state Assembly, Speaker-elect Karen Bass supports a lower voting age, and has been in contact with local youth rights activists, including NYRA Director Alex…
New York may soon take a big step towards equality for youth by lowering the age at which one can sit on community boards in New York City to 16. After a press conference on April 13 by the Future Voters of America announcing the initiative, legislation was introduced in both state and city governments…
