Boys & Girls Club Teens Taking Leadership Role In Social Justice Movement
DENVER (CBS4) – The Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Denver offer programming in three key areas: academics, healthy living, and leadership. This year, teens at the Broncos Boys & Girls Club are leading the way for social justice.
"The Boys & Girls Club is my second home. I've been coming to the Boys & Girls Club since I was six," said 15-year old Ray Ray.
The high school sophomore weathered all the disruptions of the pandemic, including the club temporarily closing, school disruptions, and the economic impact on her friends and family. It was the Black Lives Matter movement that brought her inspiration.
"Just because I'm a woman of color, this is big for me. Because all these things are happening to African Americans, and it could have potentially happened to me," she told CBS4.
Nashara is a 14-year-old club member, social justice is also a topic of conversation in her household.
"My mom is very open about the subject, and we talk about it all the time. Especially being Native American and African American, so I have both perspectives on it," Nashara explained.
The two teens joined about 20 more teens at the Broncos Boys & Girls Club to join a national organization called RISE, which uses sports to address racism and champion social justice.
"We talked about racial discrimination that people had faced, biases, perspective, privilege, and how different people handle situations," Nashara said of a recent zoom meeting of members from across the country.
"Within our community, everybody feels like teens are a bad thing," Ray Ray said. "This group helps us show that all teens aren't bad. And that there are teens in Colorado who are trying to make a difference."
These teens want to make a difference by planning a March for Peace in their neighborhood. They're hoping to schedule it for March 2021.
"I'm trying to show that not everybody is bad," Ray Ray said.
"I think the biggest thing I've learned from being in the group is definitely making sure that we speak up," Nashara added.
They're working together to create a better future, and becoming leaders among their peers.
LINK: Together 4 Colorado Toy Drive
The Together 4 Colorado Toy Drive supports teens and all the children that go to the Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Denver. CBS4 is collecting new toys appropriate for children ages 6 to 18. There are collection bins in all participating King Soopers stores until Dec. 24, 2020.
