Councilman Dee Andrews hosted the 2nd Annual 6th District Youth Forum last Friday to empower local youth with the tools and motivation to succeed. More than 150 kids between the ages of 12 and 18 attended the event at Long Beach City College (LBCC), which featured guest speakers, discussion circles, and information on using resources to further education. Long Beach GRIP, Long Beach Weed & Seed, Peace Partners, LBCC, California Families In Focus and California Conference For Equality and Justice were also involved in organizing the event.
Attendees of the free event heard speeches from literacy advocate and bookstore owner Rueben Martinez, who emphasized the importance of continuing education and talked about his experience as an entrepreneur. Pro skateboarder Matt Ball also spoke about the importance of self-motivation.
In a phone interview this morning, Councilmember Andrews spoke about the importance of reaching out to the kids and instilling them with values of success.
“There, they saw a lot of hope,” he said. “I really thought it was a good day of coming together and exchanging ideas. The discussion sessions were great because they got to speak instead of just hearing us speak all the time. It’s important that they have someone to listen to what they have to say.”
Andrews was most pleased with the amount of middle school-aged children who attended, because they are in a crucial stage of development. It is during that time that kids are most vulnerable to fall into gangs or begin the path to trouble.
“They need to know that somebody out there cares about them,” he said. “They are our leaders and we need to let them know that.”
