The Clubhouse Network has a long history of activism and advocacy. This new initiative aims to enhance and amplify the work already being done in Clubhouses throughout the Network. It’s an opportunity to be explicit in the Network’s commitment to “valuing and centering the voices of young people who are the most impacted by the intersections of oppression, including, but not limited to, structural racism.” The program was proposed in 2020, shortly after George Floyd was killed by the Minneapolis Police Department. There are five Clubhouses located in Minneapolis. It was evident that young people who attend Clubhouses are impacted by social justice issues in their community and that they have a desire to create change. The young people in Clubhouses throughout the world are impacted by many intersecting issues by proximity.
One of the goals of the program is to create an infrastructure that supports youth in activism projects/initiatives on an ongoing basis. Young people at individual Clubhouses throughout the Network have produced high-quality and well-researched projects with the goal of making community members aware of social issues. The expertise and creativity that go into their awareness campaigns have the potential to create systemic change.
We are currently supporting the following 10 sites:
- YWCA Canberra Clubhouse, Australian Capital Territory, Australia
Education about identity, sex, gender, and sexual orientation in an effort to combat transphobia and homophobia in schools. - Redwood City Boys & Girls Clubs of the Peninsula, Redwood City, CA
Undocumented immigrant rights. - Summit Academy OIC, Minneapolis, MN
Transportation safety
- La Chorrera Clubhouse, La Chorrera, Panamá
Environmental justice
- Eden Youth & Family Center, Haywood, CA
Gentrification
- The Best Buy Teen Tech Center @ PHASE 4 Learning Center, Pittsburgh, PA
Food insecurity
- VSDEC South LA Best Buy Teen Tech Center, Los Angeles, CA.
Food insecurity
- Brian Coyle Best Buy Teen Tech Center, Minneapolis, MN
Advocacy for youth and community at large.
- Al Bireh Youth Development Resource Center, Al-Bireh, Palestine
Youth apathy in Palestine
- Sci-Bono Clubhouse, Johannesburg, South Africa
Economic disparities