Advocacy

Stand For Children Ideas

Actions For Kids By Kids

This is a list of actions you can take to improve your lives and your community. You don't have to do everyone of them, just try to do what you can. You can also make up your own actions and remember- every little thing you do counts as standing up for ourselves.

In Your Family...

Speak Out- If your family doesn't feel safe, comfortable or supportive tell someone either inside or, if necessary, outside the family
Have regular family meetings
Limit TV and Nintendo time
Try to eat meals together
Meet with other kids to support each other as sons, daughters, sisters, brothers
Inform your family about injustice to kids you've experienced, seen or heard about

In Your Neighborhood & Community...

Speak Out- If your neighborhood or community doesn't feel or safe, comfortable or supportive then tell someone, the louder and large the better
If there is an issue that is important to you than you can:
- -write a letter to local political leaders
- -hold a rally
- -hold a press conference
- -write a Letter To The Editor of your local papers
- -write up a petition - get people to sign it
Donate a used book to the public or school library, friend or neighbor
Donate a used toy, art supply, musical instrument, or clothes to a day care center, teen center, family shelter or hospital
Have a neighborhood clean-up party
If there is no kids center in your neighborhood demand one
Have a block party
Host a game night, be it sport or recreation
Serve or make food for a soup kitchen in your community

In YourSchool...

Speak Out - just as you would around community and family issues (see above for ways to speak-out)
Demand child friendly school policies i.e. disciplinary rules and regs that are fair and allow the young person involved to defend themselves and receive a fair hearing from administrators
Go to school board meetings to see what they talk about and tell them what your opinions are on school issues
Report all discrimination that you experiences, see or hear about in school
Use school as a place to organize around issues of injustice towards kids

*hey school is a perfect place to get people involved and energized, lots of young people and adult allies have to gather there regularly!

Volunteer to tutor or help in a classroom
Ask your teachers to assign special projects that focus on the cool things that kids are doing to improve their communities and lives

In The Bigger Picture...

Boycott - don't buy, and ask that your parents don't buy products of companies that exploit kids in anyway, i.e. companies that use children to work in their factories in under disgusting working conditions and for unfairly low wages
Conduct a TV and Movie Watch where you monitor which show and flicks are portraying kids in a way that you do not feel comfortable with
Conduct a Radio Watch where you so the same for songs, advertisements and DJs commentary

**lt isn't easy being a kid...these actions won't necessarily make it easier, but they can't hurt-in fact they usually do make things better...you can make a change and you can stand up for yourself!

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