Coalition Work and Youth Voice

Stoneleigh Youth Advocacy Fellow Diamond Colbert authored a blog post on why community partnership and youth voice are essential components of effective advocacy.

Youth with lived experience play a powerful role in efforts to reform the juvenile legal and foster systems because they bring firsthand knowledge, unique insight, and innovative approaches to advocacy. Many young people become involved in these movements after experiencing foster care, family separation, incarceration, school discipline, or other forms of system involvement. Their experiences provide a deeper understanding of how these systems impact children and families and help identify meaningful solutions. Organizations like Juvenile Law Center recognize that effective advocacy requires intentionally partnering with youth leaders and community-based organizations so that reform efforts reflect the realities of those most affected. Meaningful changes happen when young people are not only included in conversations but are empowered as partners in decision-making, leadership, and strategy.

Before coming to Juvenile Law Center as a Stoneleigh Fellow, I understood some of the challenges families face because I had experienced them myself. But my time at Juvenile Law Center has helped me deepen that knowledge and better understand how both the family policing and juvenile legal systems operate. I have learned more about the history of these systems and the ways they have disproportionately harmed Black families and communities, and the policies, practices, and systems that contribute to the experiences of children in the system.

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