Time for the System to Work with Youth, Not Against

Diane Finnegan

With peace talks underway and another ceasefire in the days ahead, is there any optimism that the truce can be lasting?  That’s what we asked Finnegan at the peace march on Wednesday.

Isani Cayetano

“How confident are you that an initiative such as this, given the fact that we’ve seen several truces in the past, we’ve seen interventions fall apart and what have you.  How confident are you that this can withstand some measure of time, if not the long term, medium [term] or some other measure of time?”

Diane Finnegan, Youth Apprenticeship Program

“In the past, people spoke based on their skills, their knowledge and what they learned along the way.  What we’ve introduced now is real life.  An individual who is just like them, who has walked their path and has done more than what they ever dream of doing in their lives and that’s why I chose to bring onboard Jawhi, because he has the message that truly taps into their souls.  I’m telling you, I stand at the back and I watch what happens when he interacts with both the red and the blue and how receptive the blues are to bringing him into their space and showing them what are their challenges, what are their struggles.  Why is it that we need a Jawhi to help guide us?  And on Monday, there was another shooting and right after the intervention.  They went in, beat up some of the guys, and even with that, those guys are still here, which tells you it’s not about the interventions, it’s not about us.  But their message is that the system must work with them in order for them to reach that level of greatness that I truly see in them.”