Being a kid is not always easy. Youth within the criminal justice system face a whole new set of challenges on top of the ones that all kids struggle with. As they transition out of that system, they can face many more. Some need to deal with having spent significant amounts of time away from loved ones. Some may face more difficulty finding summer jobs or may struggle with their own sense of self worth. Others may have difficulty adjusting to changes in lifestyle, which can result in reduced performance in school and other difficulties. Still others struggle with the stigma that can be associated with them having been involved in the juvenile justice system. Even family and friends may begin to treat them differently. And this is all on top of the normal everyday struggles of being a kid. No child should ever have to face these added challenges.
Sometimes, “the system” cannot meet all the needs of these children, especially the ones that are transitioning out of it. In both the Foster care and Juvenile Justice systems, budget cuts and jurisdictional issues can leave youth without any support. This is a crucial time for children who may not otherwise be receiving the support and services they need from their families and communities. Without a network of support for them to rely on, youth that are supposed to be transitioning out of the juvenile system can find themselves going directly into the adult criminal system.
When that happens, it’s not that the child failed her community, but that the community failed the child. San Francisco’s youth deserve better. No child should find themselves in the juvenile system because their community failed them – because we failed them. If we cannot say that we tried to provide support and services to help, then we did fail. In order to make it through these troubling times, youth on probation or in foster care need all the support they can get. And the sooner it can start, the better.
City Youth Now has programs to help youth whether they are just entering the Juvenile Justice System or are transitioning out of it. Through our author visit program (http://www.cityyouthnow.org/programs/author-visits), we sponsor authors to come and share inspiring stories with the youth detained at the San Francisco Juvenile Justice Center. These visits help to remind them that no matter what struggles they are facing, there is always something better to look forward to. Through our individual grant program (http://www.cityyouthnow.org/programs/individual-grants), we have the ability to tailor our services to the needs of any individual child (in foster care or on probation), no matter what it might be. Oftentimes, we are the only place that youth can turn to for help because our individual grants have the unique flexibility required to meet their needs. City Youth Now will even arrange for internships (http://www.cityyouthnow.org/programs/internship) that provide a positive work experience and help youth develop the skills to succeed in the workplace.
The overarching goal of these programs is to support stability and personal growth, whether through our author visit program, our individual grants, our internships, or one of our many other programs. They help to ensure that no children fall through the cracks, whether they are entering the juvenile system for the first time, or they are ready to transition out of it and begin moving forward with their lives. These programs and services fill the gaps in help and support that contributed to them ending up in the juvenile systems to begin with, thereby leaving no child overlooked.
