RECLAIM - Hope for the Young People of Manchester - Case Study Example

RECLAIM: Hope for the Young People of Manchester s Introduction RECLAIM is a Manchester-based charitable organization involved in a mentoring and leadership scheme set up to target the young tax of Manchester who have been disadvantaged from their background and thus, may be a target of becoming criminal offenders. The broad focus is to eradicate crime amongst the young population by encouraging and motivating them that they have the ability to speak out and positively impacts their whole community. RECLAIM has acted as a preventative youth crime project in the broader aspect, their mission being, uplifting the current level of self esteem, self-belief and aspirations of the young generation; offering opportunities to the young people to challenge the negative perceptions of themselves and their communities by communicating with adults in positions of power; cultivating positive attitudes among the young people and encouraging volunteering; providing a network of trusted and dedicated adults to the community at large(Pawsey, 5). Also, the organization seeks to increase access to mental and integrative health support so that the youths marginalized due to their sexual orientation may be free of oppression of all forms. RECLAIM offers therapy for youths and families, they train practitioners, and partner with the community for social change at the intersection of gender and racial justice. As the project director, Ruth Ibegbuna views youths as people who have been denied opportunities. She attributes this to the lack of understanding of adults to the youths. Adults have failed to fully understand the pressure youths are under. With the saying that youths are the leaders of tomorrow, many have been blocked out of critical opportunities where their effort would have been paramount and life transforming. RECLAIM has worked to highlight positive achievements done by youths, thus improving community relations. RECLAIM Sub-Organizations RECLAIM can be looked as the mother tree with many branches. Each branch signifying a sub-organization launched within RECLAIM to “reclaim” its own society. Each RECLAIM project is underpinned by a manifesto written by the participating youths of that sub-group in their own words. The manifestos usually have eight rules which are usually voted in by the “Reclaimees”. This democratic process allows the youths to play a major part in the selection of the final manifesto which will oversee how the members of that particular sub-organization shall carry out their functions. After this process is done, 5000 copies of each manifesto are usually printed and given to the various groups who then do some door to door on various households and businesses within their community. They hand out the manifestos, and through this they are able to gain adult support for their own ideas and even get the chance to encourage the members of the society to display them in their windows. It is of importance to note that the manifestos had a great achievement by winning a national award for their simplicity and their message in which they laid an emphasis on the community’s share of responsibility for the success of the society and its residents. Listed below are some of the sub-organizations and their manifestos Gorton Boys It is a project aimed at 13-14 year old boys who live or attend school in Gorton. Some of the rules within their manifesto include respect people’s intelligence and not their image; treat people equally and not by their color of their skin, it is what is inside that count; abstinence from drugs; treat others the same way you would like them to treat you; invest in your academics; do not categorize all youths as bad; do not murder; realize your potential in the community. Moss Side It is a project aimed at 13 year old boys attending 6 different schools in South Manchester. Their manifesto rules include report crimes; do not be a racist, all are human; treat others as you may want them to treat you; do not carry things you do not want to be used on you; stop crimes in our streets; avoid crimes and invest in your academic; give a voice to the youths in the community; put your head down sometimes and offer a smile. North Manchester Boys It is a project aimed at 13-14 year old boys who live or attend school in North Manchester. Their manifesto rules include, speak you have a voice; more activities for under 18’s; less knives, more lives; early age apprenticeship; a decent education for all young people; more organized trips and residential trips away; more open days in the community; believe in your dreams. RECLAIM Women It is a project aimed at 12-14 year old girls attending 6 different schools in South Manchester. Their manifesto rules include respect yourself; do not be a stereotype, do something useful with your life; step up to challenges, back down confrontations; live by the positives, not negatives; you can learn a lesson from anyone, young or old; it is not where you have come from, but where you are going; do not let brick walls stand in your way; ‘I cannot’ is just another way to say ‘I will not’. North Manchester Girls It is a project aimed at 12-13 year old girls who live or attend school in North Manchester. Their manifesto rules include, smile, it will both brighten your day and mine; mom and dad need to act as one and be friends; if you have nothing nice to say, then do not say anything at all; kids of the North Manchester need to stay kids, feel joy and stay positive; more drama, singing activities and youth centers; support the vulnerable in the community and protect them; more education and job opportunities; encourage others to do good things for others in the community. East Bolton It is a project aimed at 13-14 year old boys who live or attend school in East Bolton. Their manifesto rules include, give young people a chance; Bolton does not accept racism; respect others in the community and build a relationship with them; be proud of your background; more youth centers and activities keep the off bad influences; no to drugs; take care of the environment; invest academically and not in crimes. Gorton Boys It is a project aimed at 12-13 year old boys who live or attend school in Gorton. Their manifesto rules include, more facilities and activities in Gorton; do not be involved in crimes; stop racism; police to mix more with the community; take care of your environment; you have a voice and respect community; teamwork. Gorton Girls It is a project aimed at 12-13 year old girls who live or attend school in Gorton. Their manifesto rules include, do not fear to be different; youths to be role models for young children; celebrating different cultures in Gorton; treat teenagers appropriately age wise; responsible parenting; give back to the community; more businesses, more jobs; more activities and facilities for all ages to express themselves. RECLAIM Our Name It is the most recent. It encompasses youths between the ages 14 and 21. It was launched in September 2010. Their mission is to create a positivity and empowerment for the young generation of Manchester by working around the clock to combat against negative stereotypes surrounding the today’s youth that have penetrated the media. This has been proven in recent studies in which76% of all UK media coverage negatively portrays youths and 79% of youths feel down, looked upon by the older generation (Pawsey, 16). This has worked to give the youths a brighter future. Lately the media fraternity has uniformly been painting a rather negative impression of the today’s youths. All the so many wonderful and talented young men and ladies out there are sadly overlooked. In an attempt to challenge these, the organization has established other aims which it wishes to achieve in the long run. These may include building relationships with media and influential figures, and partnering with local businesses that would promote their manifesto. Most recently, they have been able to carry out activities such as customizing T-shirts having the slogan ‘ask me-I dare you’ aimed at encouraging dialogue between younger and older people. With determination, the organization seeks to convince politicians, media and the community at large that there are better spoils when adults and youths work together. Promotional Materials With the aim of promoting their manifesto, RECLAIM has established various avenues to do this. They include: Social Media They include RECLAIM Blogs and tweets. The blogs are aimed at boosting local awareness of RECLAIM and RECLAIM Our Name. To such an end, it is primarily aimed at parents, teachers and other individuals who may either know a youth who could benefit from RECLAIM’s services or are willing to become mentors themselves. Other targets include potential sponsors. Blogs written by a youth are aimed at young people and also print and online media since a personal aspect lends itself to a human interest news angle. RECLAIM Our Name will use these media to combat negative picture the media has portrayed of youths. Broadcast Media Local radio stations have been targeted since RECLAIM is a Manchester-based charity with unlikely prospects of gaining national attention. Though local stations remain a priority, some emphasis is still made at regional stations. Print Media Since RECLAIM is based in Manchester, the media distribution list will focus much on Manchester-specific publication. However, these will not exclude the publication in Greater Manchester. The organization aims to receive coverage in newspapers and on radio with possible interview opportunities in both platforms. Photography Photography of the mural commissioned by RECLAIM as part of their aim in showing the creativity and talent that youths have inside them is set to be unveiled on the19th of May 2013. It will be a focal point in a story in any media. Since all stakeholders in RECLAIM and even the director will be present, group and individual photo shoots that will bring a different angle to the story could be taken thus reinforce the organizations objective of portraying youths in a positive light. In addition to all these, RECLAIM will use their website (www.reclaimproject.org.uk), leaflets and even upload their videos to You Tube (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7F1pQ21BVk) as they aim to boost the organization profile. Special Feature Sacha, 18, is an example of a beneficiary of the organization. She originally was from Moss Side. She has managed to complete RECLAIM programme and now she volunteers for the RECLAIM Our Name and other organization. She has won Manchester City Council’s Woman of the year award in recognition of her charitable work and perseverance in the face of turmoil. She is currently the young person’s representative on the RECLAIM board of trustees. In her own words she attributes her political awareness, achievements in life and better family relations to RECLAIM. Conclusion RECLAIM has been structured in such a manner that it offers people opportunities to be leaders in their own community. It empowers the youth to be a force of change within the culture, not help them adapt or adjust to the culture. It is the culture that ought to be adjusted. Bibliography Pawsey Adam. Reclaim Press Park. Available at Read More