GATHERING OF THE YOUTH: 2019 CONFERENCE

GOTY+Groupshot.jpg
 

AN OVERVIEW

Gathering of the Youth was a 3-day, movement-building youth conference focused on dismantling the school-to-prison pipeline through Juvenile Justice Reform, Gun Violence Prevention, Gender Equity, and Transformative Politics.

The first Gathering of the Youth took place in 2005, immediately after Harry Belafonte convened his peers from the Civil Rights Movement to commit to a Covenant to End Child Incarceration. Following that convening, he brought together youth leaders from across the country to Epps, Alabama for an intergenerational gathering with the elders from the movement. This convening was grounded in community, centered on youth--particularly those directly impacted and honed into intentional organizing--and focused on leadership development and movement-building rooted in Kingian Nonviolence. 

Aiming to find the agenda for the next generation of leaders and movement builders in our country, the 2005 Gathering of the Youth highlighted the powerful parallels in their civil and human rights struggles. The message of inclusivity, intersectionality, and the work of uncovering common ground to unite people from diverse communities and cultures is what came out of the 2005 gathering, with a commitment to one another and a larger mission.

The 2019 Gathering of the Youth served as our movement’s present day solutions-based convening, bringing together 100 youth leaders to engage in conversations, panel discussions, workshops, trainings, artistic performances and more. While developing an agenda for dismantling the school-to-prison pipeline.

For a look into the incredible conference, Check out these recaps: First, Gather the Elders. Then, Gather the Youth. - Medium, kulturehub.com/youth-gathering