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Through Our Eyes:
A Youth Forum
Sunday, November 18, 2:00 pm to 5:00 pm
Princeton High School Auditorium
Walnut and Houghton Lanes, Princeton
A diverse group of high school students in Princeton will present "Through Our Eyes: the Life and Times of High Schoolers in Princeton." The program is free and open to the public.
The main part of the program will consist of a series of dramatic monologues by different students about their lives both in and out of school as they relate to racism, stereotyping, and similar upsetting experiences. The presentation also includes a broad set of suggestions of ways to create a community where all are safe and respected.
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These recommendations touch on many facets of our common life - individual, institutional, public and private. After the presentation there will be two periods of Questions and Answers. The first will be restricted to interaction with young people in the audience; the second will invite adults to join the conversation. Following the program, there will be a social hour at which light refreshments will be served.
The forum has been organized and sponsored by Not In Our Town (NIOT), an interfaith, interracial social action group dedicated to promoting racial harmony. Co-sponsors are the Coalition for Peace Action, Committed Princetonians, GAIA, Latin American Legal Defense and Education Fund, Princeton Clergy Association, Princeton Human Services Department, and Princeton Public Library.
Many individuals from the community and participating schools (Princeton High School, Hun School, Princeton Day School, Stuart School) have supported this event in various helpful ways. Gifts in kind (edible) were provided at several planning sessions by Iano's Rosticceria, Hoagie Haven, Olives, and Thomas Sweet.
This forum is a response to remarks that "We must hear from the youth" made at a community gathering on February 18, 2007. That event was organized in response to concerns about long-standing problems with racism, exacerbated by some recent events.
Over a hundred residents gathered in the First Baptist Church to explore with a panel of community leaders How to move Princeton toward a community where everyone feels safe and accepted? The need to involve local youth in the discussion was repeatedly stressed by participants. In response to this appeal, NIOT began plans to assemble a group of young people to share their experiences and thoughts and brainstorm about solutions. The November 18, 2007 forum is the culmination of this effort.
Those planning to attend should use the School entrance on Walnut Lane near the intersection with Houghton Lane.
