Students speak up for others

Freedom School scholars call for help for nation's uninsured children

Video

Freedom School students from Carolina Youth Development Center and Metanoia Community Development Corporation marched Park Circle on Friday to advocate for uninsured children. Watch »

Wade Spees
The Post and Courier

Nearly 150 children from Metanoia Community Development Corporation and Carolina Youth Development Center gathered at Park Circle to march for health care in their Freedom School's social action day on Friday. Metanoia's CEO Bill Stanfield said in a political year, half the people think health issues are based on personal choice and half think they're based on social structures -- with the reality being both. The children heard talks on obesity, mental health and other subjects.

Wade Spees
The Post and Courier

Brittani Washington, a 'servant leader intern' with Metanoia Community Development Corp., joined the students from Metanoia and Carolina Youth Development Center on Friday as they 'sent a message' about the nation's uninsured children.

Motorists honked and gave thumbs-up to the kids with the posters marching and chanting around Park Circle. They should have seen them inside the community center.

The "harambee" held there — a bouncing, dancing, screaming, singing, clapping, stomping exuberance of spirit — spoke out loud and clear that the Freedom School scholars mean it when they call for help for an estimated 9 million uninsured children across the country.

"If we don't help, who will?" asked Shayne Kelley, 13, of Charleston, as he jumped up and down at the curb, signaling cars and trucks to sound the horn.

Nearly 150 Freedom School students at Carolina Youth Development Center and Metanoia Community Development Corp. in North Charleston held the march for uninsured children around the downtown circle on Friday, taking part for the first time in a National Day for Social Action.

The youth center is an emergency shelter and help-intervention agency for children. The development corporation is a faith-based neighborhood improvement organization.

Each school is a summer camp-style learning session that emphasizes literacy, culture and social contributions, sponsored by the Children's Defense Fund. It makes a morning ritual of harambee, a Swahili word that translates as "working together for a common purpose."

The march gave the students, age 10-18, "a chance to talk out in the community about everything we've been talking about," said Katrina Wright, a clinical counselor for the Carolina Youth center. "It gives them a chance to get their message across, to make a difference."

The school "develops the child as a whole. It's not just a summer camp. It's something where they can take away a whole new self-image," said Laurie Brinson, of Carolina Youth.

On Friday, they took it to the street, carrying posters that showed hearts and hospitals, ambulances, stretchers and an American flag.

"Leave no child behind!" they yelled.

Yes, they can make a difference, said Dominique Williams, 13, of Summerville. "When people see it, we can send a message."

Reach Bo Petersen at 745-5852 or bpetersen@postandcourier.com