Youth Human Rights in the Virgin Islands: A Message to Our Elders & My Fellow Youth on the Importance of Shared Decision Making in Our Community

(Note: This speech was presented by Genevieve during her participation as a guest speaker for the ROTARACT Club of St. Croix’s “Takeover” of the Rotary Mid-Isle Club Meeting at Gertrude’s on September 23, 2009)

Ø KOFI ANNAN (the former U.N. Secretary General) once stated:

Young people should be at the forefront of global change and innovation. Empowered, they can be key agents for development and peace. If, however, they are left on society's margins, all of us will be impoverished. Let us ensure that all young people have every opportunity to participate fully in the lives of their societies."

HE ALSO STATED:

"No one is born a good citizen; no nation is born a democracy. Rather, both are processes that continue to evolve over a lifetime. Young people must be included from birth. A society that cuts off from its youth severs its lifeline."

Ø Kofi Anna’s statements speak to important principles that we must as a community embrace more fully. The principles of full participation and inclusion are at the center of a notion that is often discussion in our community, i.e., the notion of that young people have the right to participate in the shared decision making within their community. To establish context to this discussion, let us first begin start off with a definition of youth participation:

o Youth participation is the active engagement of young people throughout their communities. It is often used as a short-hand for youth participation in any many forms, including decision-making, sports, schools and any activity where young people are not historically engaged…

o Today’s is a great example of youth participation, this Takeover Meeting Rotaract Club of St. Croix taking over/hosting of today’s Rotary Mid Isle meeting.

o The mere fact that Rotary Mid Isle is the sponsor club of Rotaract Club of St. Croix demonstrates that youth participation is important to segments of our population and that Rotary Mid Isle and other organizations like itself are made up of dedicated men and women who have a vested interest in supporting our communities future leaders.

So now, does that mean that the work is over? Far from! Although there are organizations in our community that promote youth leadership development and civic engagement within our community, there are many young adults within our community that are not interested in civics. Too often when I speak to my fellow members of Generation Y and the members of Generation X there is a shared apathy of non-interest in the participation the electoral process and the overall democratic governance.

As one youth expressed to me during one of my radio program episodes, where we were discussing youth Virgin Islands young people/Virgin Islands youth are often tokenized at best and are at times manipulated, placing them at the bottom of Hart’s Ladder (referring to Roger A. Hart, an environmental psychologist who has written numerous pieces on the important of youth participation and is the creator of the Ladder of Young People’s Participation). Picture this ladder…at the bottom of this ladder (termed Rung 1), young people are manipulated in contrast with the top Rung, Rung 8, where young people are part of the decision making with adults. Where does this leave us? And do the words of this young leader have any merit? I believe that they do and believe that the time is now for us to reassess our belief in the following statement that “Our children are our future.” The time is now to equip our youngest citizens with the tools necessary for their success.

I have enjoyed engaging young people in the political process, namely, encouraging young people to become more aware of what is taking place in their community and organizing themselves around issues that are near and dear to them.

We are in a great age, the information age, and so I urge young people to utilize the tools that they have to get together, in fact, I have asked my communication students at UVI to devise model communication models aimed at addressing an issue using social media tools such as Facebook. Perhaps it is a cultural issue why the apathy towards youth participation in democratic governance is prevalent in our community. However, we are not to focus on the problem rather we are to work together to offer solutions and to implement them.

Our youthful leader, President Barack Obama, who said it best in speaking on the topic of youth participation during his visit to Ghana back in July. In speaking before the Ghanaian Parliament on July 12, 2009, President Obama emphasized the importance of young people's participation and the support for their advancement, stating that it is, among other items, critical to the continents’ advancement and way forward to end the corruption. So now, how does this matter fit into the human rights framework? Article 12 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child states that children have the right to participate in decision-making processes that may be relevant in their lives and to influence decisions taken in their regard—within the family, the school or the community (Note: The United States, along with Somalia, remain the only two nations, a party to the UN, who have not ratified this celebrated document). Our young people must be prepared to go out into the world and we must support them in their efforts.

The movement is forward, i.e., a push for the genuine participation of our youngest citizens in the decisions that also affect their lives both right now and into the future! Heal the World as our late brother, humanitarian, musical prophet: Michael Jackson, sang, make it a better place for you and for me! Let us make a better society for our children and by extension a better world for our children!

In conclusion, as a firm believer in Acting upon proffered ideas: Let us call on the members of the Board of Election, Board of Education, the Department of Education, our Governor, our Senators & the members of our Judicial Branch and fellow Virgin Islanders to each reassess their involvement by promoting youth participation.

Let us remain spirited, Let us work together as ONE to devise a plan to address youth participation, let us demonstrate that we BELIEVE in our young people by taking on this CHALLENGE, A CHALLENGE CRITICAL TO THE ADVANCEMENT OF THE VIRGIN ISLANDS SOCIETY!

THANK YOU!

Youth Human Rights & Youth Political Participation in the Virgin Islands (U.S.): Empowering our youngest citizens

“Our children are our future.” We have heard this statement time and time again, however, have we taken the time to provide our youngest citizens with the tools necessary for their success? What are these tools of success?  I had the great opportunity spending much of the month of June and most recently this past Saturday, speaking with upcoming young leaders, having them serve as guests on my program. I also reached out to other upcoming youth leaders utilizing the power of the internet, namely the premier social networking site: Facebook. I agree with the sentiments expressed by the owner and co-host of a local radio program (I called into the program last week).  He stated that our  young people must learn responsibility, i.e., how to fend for themselves, but this he stressed, requires proper preparation in the area of hands-on training and experience. On May 8, 2009 Governor deJongh held a summit on Poverty & Economic Opportunity, entitled  “A Call to Action: The Road to Family Economic Success”. I applauded him in his efforts, viewing the conference as a first step in dealing with the issue of poverty in the Virgin Islands, however I also expressed during the Panel Discussion on Family Structure, that young people should have been incorporated into the conference and should be included in decision-making, as there we were discussing what children need. Did we ask them?

Now turning to a youthful leader, President Barack Obama, who said it best (on the topic of youth participation) during his visit to Ghana. In speaking before the Ghanaian Parliament on July 12, 2009, President Obama spoke about the importance of young people's participation and the support for their advancement, stating that it is, among other items, critical to the continents’ advancement and way forward to end the corruption. So, now how does this matter fit into the human rights framework? Article 12 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child states that children have the right to participate in decision-making processes that may be relevant in their lives and to influence decisions taken in their regard—within the family, the school or the community (Note: The United States, along with Somalia, remain the only two nations, a party to the UN, who have not ratified this celebrated document). For too long young people have been tokenized and as expressed by one of my former youth guests,  “…the support for children in our territory is wishy-washy”.  Our young people must be prepared to go out into the world and we must support them in their efforts.  The movement is forward, i.e., a push for the genuine participation of our youngest citizens in the decisions that also effect their lives both right now and into the future! Heal the World as our late brother, humanitarian, musical prophet: Michael Jackson, sang,  make it a better place for you and for me! Let us make a better society for our children and by extension a better world for our children!

Women’s History Month (Part II of II): Reflecting on our Past and Embracing our Future

As Women’s History Month comes to a close, I would like to take the time to reflect on history taking into account occasions such as this day: Transfer Day in the U.S. Virgin Islands and in doing so thinking about the future of the women of the Virgin Islands. Today, March 31, 2009 (Transfer Day),  marks the 92nd Anniversary of what the pioneer of the VI Reparations Movement has termed as the sale of a people and a day that has been filled with concerts and other festivities: Concert, speeches to mark Transfer Day.  

Now, do not misinterpret my sentiments, as there are aspects of our history that we should be proud of and that we should celebrate, however, the notion that we can simply speak, dance or sing about our history without a true sense of what that history entailed means that a level of consciousness needs to be raised to engender some sensitivity about both the good and bad aspects of our past. For a moment, in the spirit of remembering our foremothers let us come to terms with the fact women, many of whom were with child or had small children,  were forced to brave the brutal and merciless transatlantic slave voyage to live in captivity, subjected to torture and rape, that following Emancipation women in the former Danish West Indies were forced to work on many of the same slave plantations they worked on as slaves enduring slave-like conditions our 3 Queens fought against, women who 92 years ago today, became part of a nation that denied women the right to vote (the 19th Amendment was not passed until 1920).

The time is now,  let us now work together as women and men to dialogue on the state of women in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Are women in the Virgin Islands properly represented? What is the state of the family (See 11/20/07 VI Daily News article: Voices  for V.I. Children for Nov. 20 Demographics of V.I. families? What is state of the girl child?These are just  a few of the many questions plaguing our society as there are other issues that also  need to be discussed so the next time we can all sing, dance, and talk, this time about how the plan we put together resulted in women’s issues being place at the forefront of legislative actions, families coming together,  more young girls with high self-esteem. 

I applaud all of the individuals and groups who are sensitive to the ills of our society and have taken a stance to embrace CHANGE.  In order to genuinely embrace the change we as a people so desperately need, steps must be taken to build sensitivity rather than tolerance for a past that some want to forget. The time is now to establish a plan to deal with the outlined issues and other issues women and girls of the Virgin Islands face: a Virgin Islands Women’s Agenda. Join the dialogue, unite for a cause, become part of the answer!

Women’s History Month (Part I of II): Recognizing our Virgin Islands Foremothers

We take this month: Women’s History Month,  to celebrate the lives of women who have made an indelible mark in the Women’s Movement by promoting and advocating for the rights of women. I am not necessarily referring the women’s movement in the context of women’s suffrage in the U.S. vis-à-vis the advocacy efforts for the passage of the 19th Amendment, equal pay (See  NY Times Story on the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act) and other points of equality advocated by American women (See Women’s Rights Movement in the U.S.)  but the efforts of our Territory’s illustrious foremothers who blazed amazing paths.  On October 1, 1878, also known as Contract Day (See St. Croix Source Article on discussion of Bill No. 27-0170) our 3 Queens: Queen Agnes, Queen Mathilda and Queen Mary long before women leaders from around the world gathered in Mexico City to convene the First World Conference on Women (1975) to discuss and develop among other things a Plan of Action to address gender equality and gender discrimination, literally carried the torch not just for rights of women but rights of all those affected by the conditions of the post-slavery Danish West Indies era. Queen Mary, Queen Agnes, and Queen Mathilda understanding that they were essentially sharecroppers: victims of economic imperialism; living in a post-slavery society reminiscent of slave-like conditions, wherein the chattel-slavery shackles were removed but they were still bound to toil the land, laboring often times for free, burned 43 sugar cane plantations - 879 acres - from the Prosperity Estate to the Peter's Rest Estate (See VI Daily News article: Chanting crowd bearing torches observes Fireburn's 129th birthday). Our Queens in carrying  out this huge act of bravery, paved the path of the Virgin Islands Labor Movement!

I believe that their actions set the tone for future community activism by Virgin Islands women and should be and should have been an inspiration for our past and current women leaders in taking hold of a torch to illuminate the rights of all.  Let us take this time to embrace the work and lives of our Virgin Islands women: women business pioneers, political party founders and politicians, educators, lawyers, doctors, all of the Virgin Islands women of our past who have taken their place in history by grabbing hold of a torch and blazing an admired pathway: a pathway leading to the recognition and advancement of human rights for all.

U.S. Virgin Islands Politics: A Need for a Paradigm Shift

This is the first of what I hope will be many entries and commentary bringing my fellow Virgin Islanders from home and abroad to engage in dialogue aimed at addressing the most pressing issues within our Virgin Islands community and providing solutions to those problems. There are those of us who are of the understanding that the current Virgin Islands political topics fails to account for and to address the "baseline issues" (a term that I use to describe the issues that serve as the basis to the underlying problems in our society) in our society. I am of that opinion and that the term: "grassroots" is a term that is not well understood. Grassroots as defined by an online dictionary (thefreedictionary.com) is:

1.     fundamental; "the grassroots factor in making the decision" (basic - pertaining to or constituting a base or basis; "a basic fact"; "the basic ingredients"; "basic changes in public opinion occur because
of changes in priorities")
2.     of or involving the common people as constituting a fundamental political and economic group; "a grassroots movement for nuclear disarmament" (common - having no special distinction or quality; widely known or commonly encountered; average or ordinary or usual; "the common man"; "a common sailor"; "the common cold"; "a common nuisance"; "followed common procedure"; "it is common knowledge that she lives alone"; "the common housefly"; "a common brand of soap")
The key term is basic: "basic fact", "basic ingredients", "basic changes….because of change in priorities". I underlined the word: priorities. If we analyze the ills that plague our society, it is arguably our leaders failure to put the people's basic needs first. What are those needs? Before I begin, I want to make a disclaimer; as an avid human rights activist my lenses (my analytical bifocals) are centered on human rights and so I begin my analysis with the following statement: VI Politics should consist of topics and solutions that embraces Virgin Islanders' civil, political, economic, social, cultural rights as well as rights unique to women and children. This forum will bring to the forefront topics that involve the detailed rights. A Renewal of VI Politics asks you: What are your greatest concerns as a Virgin Islander and what is your take on the state of VI Politics?