Escaping Reality: Brooklyn Youth Group Comes To Cape Cod

by Courtney Alex 

            It is not often you find a 15-year-old who knows housing rights and laws.  Or an 18-year-old who is fighting the standardization of the education system Adriana Mendoza, 15, and Karla Lopez, 19 founded the Y-ACT (Youth Action Changes Things) in Brooklyn, N.Y.  They recently came to town with 2001 Chatham High School graduate Brett Tolley, along with over a dozen of children ages nine to 19 to get these kids out of the city to see what’s out there.

            Tolley, who graduated from Elon University in North Carolina, currently lives in New York with his wife.  He works for the Fifth Avenue Committee in Brooklyn as an immigrant advocate.  He helps new immigrants advance justice around issues of education, work, health and immigration.  He started helping with Y-ACT last May, when Mendoza and Lopez started the group.     

The group takes a ride on Stuart Tolley’s boat at the Fish Pier. BRETT TOLLEY PHOTO

       “The youth in Brooklyn face many problems such as discrimination, racism and unequal opportunities like in school,” said Mendoza.

            Y-ACT started when the two teens realized that a lot of children had health problems due to bad housing conditions.  The girls told story of how they visited apartments throughout the city because some of the health issues were serious like allergies, eczema and asthma, which is what Mendoza suffers from.  The apartments were filled with things like mold and roaches, and some families were using bug repellant, like Raid, with babies in the.  One apartment they visited had a toilet that hadn’t been fixed in over a month and there were holes throughout the walls.  Another’s air was so bad that a little girl had to use a nebulizer.  The girls wanted to make a change.

            They made a PowerPoint presentation to bring to the city department of health. 

            “Fortunately, our presentation got the city’s attention and one of the families had their apartment fixed by the department of health,” said Mendoza. 

            The girls thought it would be good to get other youth involved and get younger kids out of their houses.  Tolley, along with other youth leaders, started meeting with young kids from around the community every Thursday at Sunset Park in Brooklyn during the summer.  Twenty-five-year-old youth leader Karla Sevilla said they arrange different activities for the youngsters, like bringing them to the public pool or parks around the city.

            “When I was young, I didn’t have this,” said Sevilla.  “It’s so cliché, but you do make a difference.”

            This summer, the group focused on another important issue, which is problems within the education system.  Mendoza and Lopez talked about how better trained and more counselors are needed within the New York City school system.  No matter what size the school, only one counselor is mandatory per school.  Lopez had a bad experience in her school when she went to her counselor because she was doing poorly in some classes.  The counselor told her that because she was undocumented and Latino, she would be better off dropping out and getting her G.E.D.  Lopez not only transferred schools, but she also took action.

            There are also zone laws to deal with.  Where you live in Brooklyn, is where you go to school.

            “Because of the zoning, I may not be able to go to a school two blocks away,” said Lopez.

            They wrote a letter to the department of education stating their concerns.  They eventually touched base with someone there, but now that person isn’t returning their calls.  

From City Streets To Pretty Beaches

            Since Tolley grew up in Chatham, he thought it would be a good idea to bring the children to town, since a lot of them don’t get to travel much.

            “Our trip to Chatham was an opportunity for the Brooklyn youth group to get outside the city and be exposed to new and different places,” said Tolley.  “The trip was also to celebrate the effort and difference that these kids are making in their community.”

            The four-day trip started in New Haven, Conn., where the group visited Yale University.

            “Many Mexican-American youth are discouraged from looking into Ivy League Schools,” said Tolley.  “With Y-ACT, we do the opposite.”

            Along with the North Star Foundation, which gave Y-ACT grant money, the town of Chatham donated to the group.  They stayed at the newly renovated Doc Keene Scouts Hall.  Throughout the few days they had different activities, like a scavenger hunt on South Beach, where the kids searched for things that some had never seen like horseshoe crabs, quahog shells and seals. 

            They also went to Marconi Beach in Wellfleet where the director of organizing at the Fifth Avenue Committee, gave the group a history lesson on Mexican-American culture past and present. 

            “We learned that in order to change things, we must know our history,” said youth leader Anselmo BalBuena. 

            Stuart Tolley, Brett’s father, gave the group a ride in his boat from the fish pier down to the lighthouse.  For some of them, this was their first time in a boat. 

            On the last night, Y-ACT went to the community center for games, dinner and discussion.  Some youth from Chatham High School sat down with the Y-ACT leaders and discussed issues of school, race and social struggle, and the importance of positive youth action. 

            “It was great meeting with the kids from Chatham,” said BalBuena.  “We learned how guidance counselors ought to be helping students graduate.”

            After that, they went down to Harding’s Beach to roast marshmallows, concluding their trip.

            Y-ACT also received food donations from New England Pizza, Dunkin Donuts, The Chatham Village Café, The Squire, The Old Schoolhouse Short ‘n Sweet Ice Cream, The Corner Store and the Chatham Recreation Center. 

            Overall, the trip was a valuable lesson in more ways than one.  Mendoza said not only did they learn more about each other, but they learned more about the educational system in Massachusetts.

            “Hopefully, Y-ACT can achieve a ratio of counselors to students just like in Massachusetts or other states,” said Mendoza.

            The group will disperse during the school year, but Mendoza, Lopez and Tolley will still be hard at work.  Lopez said there is now an adult group working for a law to pass for healthy housing.  There are posters supporting the group.

            Y-ACT is also working on a public service announcement for the education crisis they face.  They interview students from elementary to high school about problems they have within the school system. 

            Whatever the group may be doing, it is all to help their community.  They want to avoid the stereotypes and social injustice they may face on a daily basis.  Though the group is small, they have made a huge impact on their neighborhoods and have taught young children everything from the importance of education to companionship. 

            “My hope for this group is that it continues to grow and make positive changes, not only in the community of Sunset Park, but in other communities as we saw happen in Chatham in talking with other youth,” said Tolley.

            For more questions about the Y-ACT or to make a donation, contact Brett Tolley at bretttolley@yahoo.com.