[385] in peace2
FWD: salvador youth, Oct. 11
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Felix AuYeung)
Sun Oct 1 23:06:32 2000
Message-ID: <378891388.970455808874.JavaMail.root@web340-wra.mail.com>
Date: Sun, 1 Oct 2000 23:03:28 -0400 (EDT)
From: Felix AuYeung <felixauyeung@juno.com>
To: peace-list@mit.edu
CC: bnbrox@igc.org, aditi_v1@yahoo.com
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------Original Message------
From: CHoffman@CI.Cambridge.MA.US (Catherine B. Hoffman)
Sent: September 28, 2000 12:30:06 AM GMT
Subject: (Fwd) salvador youth
Dear Folks,
A young salvadoran man from this group (described below) will be
in Boston next week. He is really interested in connecting with
other youth. If you could come, great. and pass the word along..
The meeting will be wednesday 10.11.00 from 4-6 at the Boston
Women's Fund. It will be a time where Coco will share about what's happening in el salvador.
Boston Women's Fund
14 Beacon Street, Suite 805
get off at park street stop, walk up the hill towards the state house. Turn right on Beacon Street and we're about 1/2 block on the right. Across the street from the a city convenience mini-market. we're on the 8th floor.
if anyone is interested in coming, please have them give Gina a call at 617-725-0035 x3002.
We are Salvadorian youth from the Nueva Generación XXI (NGXXI) Youth Movement who want to share our experience and friendship with you. The following message has been translated to English and sent to you from our center in El Salvador. Two representatives of our group will be on a speaking / fundraising tour in the U.S. starting September 23, 2000 (information follows). We hope you stay in touch. (The following describes
our work ?it’s about 3 pages)
QUOTES FROM TWO OF OUR MEMBERS:
“Nueva Generación XXI is a space where I have learned to share and to make friends. I have found myself here as I have shared not only my joys but my problems. We have learned that together we can overcome many of the negative things which are part of our daily lives.
-Jos?Antonio, member of Nueva Generación XXI, age 19
“NGXXI is a special place where I can find true and sincere friends. What we have here is out of the ordinary?it is a place to feel free.?-Celia, member of Nueva Generación XXI, age 18
WHAT IS NUEVA GENERACION XXI (NGXXI)?
We are a youth movement created by youth for youth. A vision for personal and societal transformation guides our movement as we look for workable solutions to the problems we face. We provide a safe space for youth where they can access the resources and support necessary to realize their dreams.
We offer youth friendship and positive alternatives for their wholistic development within our urban and marginalized community.
OUR COMMUNITY:
The municipality of Mejicanos is one of the most densely populated areas of Greater San Salvador. It is made up of 21 square kilometers with a population of 6,459 per kilometer for a total population of 143,000 people, 65.8% women and 34.2% men.
On average there are 7 crimes committed each day, varying during the year with a high of 13 crimes per day. Of these crimes, 80% are robberies or thefts and 20% are violent crimes.
In our municipality recreational activities are scarce (there are few basketball courts, soccer fields or parks and those that do exist are in very poor condition).
There exists a serious lack of opportunities for employment and those of us lucky enough to finish high school are rarely financially capable to continue at the university level.
Lacking the educational and employment opportunities we prefer, we are faced with streets filled with “cantinas? bars, brothels, drugs, sexism, police brutality and discrimination.
At home, a very small percentage of us actually live in households with both parents. Often we feel a lack of support and sometimes are victims of domestic violence.
MAIN OBJECTIVES:
Construct a more humane and just world by helping youth discover their potential and their responsibility to society.
Strengthen the capacity of youth to be agents of change in their homes and communities.
Support the educational tasks of schools and families by promoting communication and the ability to problem-solve.
Offer and advocate alternatives to the violence that comes from gang activity and other forms ofdelinquency.
Promote individual and communal growth at spiritual and emotional levels.
We strive to promote understanding and tolerance of differing viewpoints and beliefs and also work for a true equality between young women and men.
WHO ARE THE YOUTH?
We are a diverse movement open to all youth regardless of their political or religious affiliations, social-economic level, sex or sexual orientation, and past or current participation in gangs. Members vary in age (13 to 24 years old) as well as formalized education (5th grade dropouts to university
students).
Regardless of our diverse backgrounds, we are all at risk as El Salvador continues to rank as one of the most violent countries in the world; even after the 1992 Peace Accords ended a brutal 12-year civil war, in which many young people still show symptoms of from post-traumatic stress disorder.
We work with an idea that has become our slogan: “Jóvenes Unidos por un
Nuevo Mundo? in English, “Youth United for a New World?
WHAT WE DO:
We have created and offer a space where young people can be themselves and discover new interests by participating in healthy, educational and entertaining activities.
CURRENT FOCUS AREAS:
ARTESANS GROUP: We make candles, bracelets, necklaces, mind-games, T-shirts, and much more! A percentage of the profits are used for keeping our doors open and offering services while the youth artisans also receive a percentage.
YOUNG MOTHERS GROUP: We share our experiences and support each other. We create arts and crafts and are discussing plans to create a Day Care Cooperative and / or a Soy Food Program.
COMPUTER CENTER: With the support of Empowering Others International, a US based NGO, we have received donations to offer computer classes. A pilot project is in process with the goal that in 2001 we will offer a wider range of computer classes and services supporting the youth in our community.
ART / CULTURE: Mural painting, guitar classes and folklore dance have been staple activities. We also hope to create a theater group, offer lessons with other musical instruments, etc.
PUBLIC LIBRARY: The first and only in our municipality, population 143,000..
Our library is small but growing with over 1,000 books. We are presently compiling a list of books we are lacking and consider essential to assist our youth and the community in general, with the hopes of acquiring them in the near future.
VISITS FROM FOREIGN DELEGATIONS: Numerous NGOs, religious institutions and schools organize visits to El Salvador and want to know the reality of youth after surviving the civil-war and the current violence. We offer experiences to share with us that last from one hour to 3 days. Many of the delegates accept invitations to sleep over night in NGXXI members homes to
understand better and receive a firsthand account as to our situations.
We also offer the following activities on a limited basis with hopes of making them a more permanent part of our work:
Educational and Recreational Field Trips, Scholarship Program, , Spiritual / Reflection Groups, Sporting Events and Tournaments, Young Men’s Group, Young Women’s Group,
Exchanges with other Salvadoran and Central American Youth Groups, Amnesty International Letter Writing Group, etc.
WORDS FROM INTERNATIONAL SUPPORT TEAM:
“NGXXI is a great example of how young people who organize are capable of achieving small and large goals at both the personal and community level.?-Marco Venegas, Swedish Social Worker of Chilean origin exiled during the Pinochet era.
“At NGXXI differing and often conflicting viewpoints such as politics, religion, gang affiliation, sex and sexual orientation co-exist in a non-violent atmosphere. Youth here have created a unique space in Salvadoran society where they have come to respect differences and learn from each other. It’s an impressive accomplishment that the whole world can learn from.?-Matthew T. Eisen, Social Worker and Community Organizer sponsored by the Catholic Archdiocese of Cincinnati, Ohio.?
HOW YOU CAN BE INVOLVED:
NGXXI is a youth movement supported by a team of professionals made up of Salvadorans and Internationals. Created in 1993, we hope to become a legalized NGO recognized by the Salvadoran Government in early 2001. Nueva Generación XXI needs the on-going support of people who are sensitive to the difficulties facing Salvadoran youth today. We believe that together we can
meet the challenge of preparing the leaders of tomorrow by creating opportunities for them to lead today.
If you have received this message directly from NGXXI
(nueva-gen21@hotmail.com), you should be receiving future email updates about our work. We also hope to be creating a newsletter to send to donors on a quarterly basis beginning in 2001. If you are interested in making a donation and receiving the newsletter?send non tax-deductible donations (checks payable) to:
Matthew Eisen
c/o Nueva Generación XXI
458 Sunaire Terr.
Cincinnati, OH 45238
Or tax-deductible donations to:
Empowering Others International
c/o Nueva Generación XXI
458 Sunaire Terr.
Cincinnati, OH 45238
Correspondence:
Nueva Generación XXI Youth Movement
Centro de Gobierno
Apartado Postal 1353
San Salvador, El Salvador, C.A.
(011-503) 282-0786
nueva_gen21@hotmail.com
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