ARCHIVES

Voice of the Voiceless

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Editor’s Note: The following article was written by a youth reporter who is a graduate of the Urban Youth International Journalism Program.

Longtime community activist, organizer and veteran journalist Beauty Turner passed away on December 18, 2008. Referred to by many as voice of Chicago Housing Authority residents, she was known as a writer and fighter.

Turner died of complications due to a stroke. It was tragic that Beauty Turner had to leave this world at the early age of 51, but she will be remembered by her outstanding voice and that she fought for what’s right.
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Food Deserts

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Editor’s Note: The following article was written by a youth reporter who is a graduate of the Urban Youth International Journalism Program.

I moved from the Ida B. Wells homes to Wentworth Gardens in 2007. There’s a corner store and a gas station near Wentworth but no restaurants or large grocery stores. So the location is not ideal for a huge, more substantial grocery-shopping trip, which is needed from time to time. What the corner store and gas station do have is lots of unhealthy junk food, some loaves of bread and milk. They both do not have a lot of healthy choices to choose from.

I have to go a farther distance to shop for the necessary healthy foods that I have to eat. So, I am usually limited to unhealthy choices.
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Where I’m Coming From

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Editor’s Note: The following article was written by a youth reporter who is a graduate of the Urban Youth International Journalism Program.

The things that come to a teenager’s mind…

I have realized how it feels to think less of myself. There are times when I just wanted to give up. Family, friends and school stress me out very much. In a way, I have to take care of my family.
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A Day in the Life of a JROTC Cadet

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Editor’s Note: The following article was written by a youth reporter who is a graduate of the Urban Youth International Journalism Program.

A typical day at Chicago Military Academy in Bronzeville begins by waking up at 6 am, or 5 am if you have to take the train. When you get to school, you can rack up demerits, which are penalties, for not wearing black hats, scarves or gloves—and this is not a good thing.

If you can, eat breakfast in the morning, go to your locker and put away all your things. Afterwards, go down to formation where all the students meet up.
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CPS Fan Restrictions

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Editor’s Note: The following article was written by a youth reporter who is a graduate of the Urban Youth International Journalism Program.

While I was standing in the lay-up line during pre-game warm ups at a recent away game at Dyett High School’s gymnasium, something was very different than previous games. My high school basketball team, Wendell Phillips, was playing a game at 3:30 p.m.— an early start time we were not familiar with.

I looked up and around the stands and saw Dyett fans screaming, “Go Eagles,” but not many fans screaming for our team. As I looked further around, I saw a big, empty space that looked as if it could hold a hundred people. In previous games, that space would have been filled with Phillips’ fans. The gym was empty because of a new fan restriction that prohibited fans of the opposing teams from attending games, unless they were pre-approved and screened by the host school.
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A Stacked Deck

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Editor’s Note: The following article was written by a youth reporter who is a graduate of the Urban Youth International Journalism Program.

My life has been hectic from the start. I grew up on the East Side of Chicago and have seen things I shouldn’t have seen and gone through things I shouldn’t have had to face.

I am a 14-year-old female and I know life is hard, so dying should be easy.
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