Youth Perspectives on Brownsville

Yesterday, we celebrated the release of Looking Forward: Youth Perspectives on Reducing Crime in Brownsville and Beyond, the latest report from our Youth Justice Board, an after-school leadership development program that recruits teenagers from across New York City to study a public policy issue of importance to young people. The event, which was held at John Jay College, featured a keynote address by Brooklyn District Attorney Joe Hynes, who talked about his commitment to improving public safety in Brownsville, his history of partnership with the Center for Court Innovation, and his eagerness to hear and respond to the concerns of young people. After that, the Youth Justice Board presented their findings to a crowd that included foundation executives, NYPD officials, and other city bigwigs. The highlight for me was during the Q and A session when NYC Probation Commissioner Vinny Schiraldi asked the kids what advice they had for him about reforming probation. The moment encapsulated what we are trying to achieve with the program: getting the perspectives of young people taken seriously by city decisionmakers. For more information about the Youth Justice Board's latest report, check out this blog post from Linda Baird on the Reclaiming Futures website.