F.L.Y. Pittsburgh

THE FUTURE OF LATINO YOUTH IN PITTSBURGH

ABOUT F.L.Y.

Over the past few years, Pittsburgh’s Latino community has grown exponentially, bringing with it a new generation of young people. However, the struggles we face as Latino Youth are often ignored, so it is up to us to fight the injustices we face, and create a better future.

The Future of Latino Youth, or F.L.Y., is a youth-led program grounded in the empowerment of Latino voices and stories. This program equips a team of young adults with the necessary tools to dream, design, and develop a plan to make a positive change in society. The team is comprised of ten (10) members between the ages of 14 and 18, five (5) girls and five (5) boys. Each member has a unique story and strength that helps them to make their mark on society. With an emphasis on education, F.L.Y. Pittsburgh aims to create a better future for the Latino community by teaching the lessons we learn.

Making positive change from the grassroots

Members of this program have weekly meetings to learn more about the injustices in the Latino community, while also discussing plans on how to fix them. Each member has the opportunity to take their experience into the world, through various events around the city and state.

Seminars

Youth Civic Engagement

F.L.Y members went to Lawrence County on September, 2020 to support the Get Out to Vote campaign and help Latinos to fill out the census as well as their mail-in applications.

Building Movements for Health, Human Rights & Racial Justice

On Saturday, January 23rd, 2021, members of Casa San José’s F.L.Y. Program took part in the Pittsburgh Racial Justice Summit, by speaking on a short 15 minute “mini-panel” on Human Rights and the framework it can offer for intersectional progress. This panel was part of a larger session coordinated by the Pittsburgh Human Rights City Alliance, Pittsurgh for CEDAW Coalition, Penn Plaza Support and Action Coalition, and Casa San José.

Research Partnerships for Youth Activism

On Tuesday, May 11th, 2021, members of F.L.Y. met for the very first time in person since the summer, due to the pandemic. During this meeting they worked with Dr. Maya and Josi from the University of Pittsburgh to co-develop a Youth Action Research Collaborative for Latinx Youth in Pittsburgh. Through this project, F.L.Y. members will :

1) Create and implement a culturally-tailored curriculum that looks at activism through an academic/research lens.

2) Help guide the youth in actionable projects centered on highlighting youths’ experiences with structural racism, xenophobia, classism, among other issues in the community.

Become part of F.L.Y. Pittsburgh

Learn more about F.L.Y. by watching this recruitment video and join us!

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