This summer, members of the IRC's Youth Leadership Team (YLT)—a group of young resettled refugees working to promote access to reproductive health services in Clarkston—partnered with VOX ATL to speak out on the issues affecting their communities and share their experiences of life in Atlanta.
Dedieu, Moza and Edris outside the new Oakhurst Medical Center at Northlake.
Photo: IRC Atlanta
VOX ATL—an Atlanta-based, teen-led news outlet—gives young people the opportunity to express themselves and give their uncensored perspective on current events. VOX teen reporters, ranging in age from 14 to 19, hosted two media roundtables with the YLT this summer and members Moza, Dedieu, Edris and Mu Ni recorded on-camera interviews about the realities of day-to-day life for a young refugee living in Atlanta.
For Moza, it's difficult to feel connected to national politics as a young person working and taking classes full-time. Her first priority has always been to obtain her nursing degree as well as continuing to help support her family. Edris, however, has felt the effects of national policy more personally. He shared with VOX that his family had to cancel a trip to visit relatives still living in Afghanistan for fear that they would not be able to reenter the country due to the Trump Administration's travel ban. For Edris, the public debate over topics like the travel ban does impact the way he is able to navigate life in America as a young Muslim, but he's determined to keep his focus on his educational goals as he prepares to attend Georgia State University in the fall to pursue computer science. Both Edris and Moza, regardless of national politics, shared that they have been able to build supportive communities in Clarkston.
Dedieu took the opportunity to show VOX reporters the YLT's plans for a youth room—to be completed this summer—at the new Oakhurst Medical Center, co-located with the IRC office in Northlake. He shared the importance of a youth-friendly space where young people in the community can access confidential health services, including things like STI and HIV testing and contraceptive consultations with a doctor. "Many young people in the community do not know that they have these services available to them, so my job is to help them understand what they are and how to get them," Dedieu told reporters.
At the second VOX roundtable in July, YLT members learned more about getting involved with state and local elections. Mu Ni recorded a message for the Georgia gubernatorial candidates, expressing her hopes that the next Governor will do more to ensure refugee families like hers have access to Medicaid and other crucial health services. A U.S. citizen and registered voter, Mu Ni plans on getting more involved in politics this year. She told reporters, “I want to be informed when I vote in November, so I hope that the candidates will hear my message and give more information about what they plan to do to welcome refugees to Georgia.”
Three students working with the IRC in Atlanta over the summer also wrote pieces for VOX, read what they had to say here.
To learn more about the work of the IRC in Atlanta and for information on how you can get involved with the IRC as a donor or volunteer, please contact Senior Development Manager, Kalie Lasiter, at Kalie.Lasiter [at] Rescue.org or 678-636-8941.
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