A Program for Progress

Part One: Program for Progress Many of today?s youth are suffering through situations that even many adults couldn?t handle. This is especially true in America?s poor urban areas, where the life of an inner-city youth can be often bleak, and seldom hopeful? yet despite the negativity and despair that often plagues America?s poor urban neighborhoods, there are many substantial examples of people and organizations striving to make positive contributions to their community and their people. Voices of Our World is proud to feature such an example on today?s program. Brotherhood/Sister Sol is a non-profit organization based in New York City that for 12 years has dedicated itself to helping the youth of Harlem build character and to overcome the obstacles that continue to hold back so many of our youth. We are joined today by Brotherhood/Sister Sol co-founders Jason Warwin and Khary Lazarre-White and associate director Cidra Sebastien. Part Two: Unity Is Strength The poverty, drugs, broken homes, and crime found in America?s ghettoes can make growing up there a curse for many children. Poor schools and poorer prospects eventually turn these neighborhoods into virtual prisons, where a child?s hopes and dreams can be snuffed out almost at birth, and survival becomes the only goal. The constant poverty, the lack of healthcare, and the poor access to quality education that continually perpetuate this cycle of disenfranchisement, are all products of a public policy that has historically put the needs of the poor and minorities last. Combine that with a consumer culture dedicated to turning women into sex objects and emphasizing wanton materialism, and it?s easy to see how today?s Black and Latino youth have it especially rough. When Brotherhood/Sister Sol was first founded, it attempted to address this glaring lack of leadership by providing mentors to Black and Latino youth who were in desperate need of guidance and support.