It's been too common in the news recently: A young person commits suicide because of some type of bullying. Bullying is a serious problem that causes harm, including death. It is estimated that 2.7 million students are bullied each year.
The headlines motivated a nonprofit in North East D.C. called Neighbors of Seaton Place Inc (NSP) to put together a summer youth program called Positive Youth on the Move! "I started NSP-Positive Youth on the Move! to bring all the positive energy of young people and create something meaningful by them that could be used to help others, particularly other young people," said Neighbors of Seaton Place Inc Founder and Executive Director Cleopatra Jones. The six-week program started in the middle of June and lasted through the beginning of August, and enrolled over 80 Summer Youth Employment Program (SYEP) /DC Public School (DCPS) participants from Wards 1-8 that met at the recently remolded state of the art Wilson High School in Northwest D.C. In addition to focusing on an anti-bullying campaign, participants were also taught career exploration, job readiness, and life skills.
One of the main parts of the program was the development of an anti-bullying campaign video by the participants. The four minute and 30 second-long video is made up mostly of original footage and photos of the participants. The youth engaged in role playing and drafted a message that they believe young people will relate to. "I am very proud to have participated in the development of this video and I hope it gets wide exposure so our message can be heard," said 14-year-old Jamica Frye, who plays a character in one of the scenes of the video. "This was a very unique summer for me and I will never forget it, because I feel like I was part of something important," she concluded. Neighbors Seaton Place Inc -- Positive Youth on the Move! was sponsored by the Department of Employment Services (DOES) and the D.C. mayor's Summer Youth Employment Program (SYEP). The mayor's Summer Youth Employment Program, provides young people in D.C. ages 14-21 employment opportunity for the summer months. In the last six years, the program has been very successful, giving young people in the city the opportunity to be involved in real life changing experiences. The four minute and 30 second-long anti-bullying video by Positive Youth on the Move! is below.