#ParkHillTalks Online - Covid-19 - December 14

We host #ParkHillTalks in places that people feel comfortable to share their experiences and stories. These are often places that people already congregate regularly.

In response to COVID-19, we have had to find flexibility in reaching people at home using video conferencing to keep the conversation going. These talks are intended to provide a space for community members to be updated in real time, find resources, and ultimately continue to build community.

#ParkHillTalks have unofficially been occurring in places in the community and online for as long as the neighborhood has existed. Bringing the structure of community organizing to video conferencing helps provide the platform to turn the conversations to action.

December 14, 2020

• 14 attendees

• Key topics

  • Civic engagement

    • There is hope in seeing activism and advocacy from young adults. We discussed the need for youth leadership around issues like mental health and division.

    • There is a need for youth to directly interact with elected officials to represent their age group. We discussed the need for more young adult liaison or youth board opportunities to be involved with elected officials.

    • The United States is very divided point. We discussed the need to understand this division and have open conversations on how we can’t continue to be red and blue against each other, but unite.

  • Community engagement

    • Seeing new developments being built get filled with black owned businesses gives hope. We discussed how meaningful it is to see the neighborhood growing in a way to reflect the community.

    • There was mention of engagement in the development of the Park Hill Golf Course. We discussed the opportunity to engage the community from an equity stance.

  • Young adult voice

    • There was mention of how it has been inspiring to watch young adults hard work through the pandemic. We discussed how stepping out of their comfort zones has impacted community work.

    • There is excitement to see more youth participation. We discussed how there are young adults involved in the community supported by great leaders that want to foster youth voice involvement.

    • It’s surprising how aware young adults are. We discussed how anger and frustration due to the pandemic resulted in civil activism, protests, and social movements.

    • Students are not taught about taxes or making a budget. We discussed how it would be beneficial to prepare for these things and know options before completion of school.

    • Mental health really needs to be talked about. We discussed how most students weren’t able to talk to counselors, pointing out that schools need a lot of support when it comes to mental health.

      Outcomes

    • We agreed that there needs to be more opportunities for young leaders to have representation in community conversations.

    • We agreed that there needs to be more youth boards that can speak directly to elected officials on issues concerning youth.

    • We agreed that mental health is an issue that needs to continue to be advocated for.

    • We agreed that the older generation and younger generation need to work together to make systematic changes.