C2Y: Discussions on Child and Youth Care

On this episode of Your Right to Speak we introduce Jenn as the new co-host. We talk with Laura and Bruce who are member of an Organization called Ontario Autism Coalition. Laura and Bruce talk about the recent IBI age cut off and how there fought for change. The conversation then turns to gaps within the education system and how teachers could better work with student with disabilities.

Ontario Autism Coalition website: http://ontarioautismcoalition.com/

Ontario Autism Coalition Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/4179793644/

If you are a child or youth that would like to be on the show or if you have a topic that you think we should talk about please email Salvatore at yourrighttospeak@gmail.com

On this episode, we talk with Joey who is the lead of digital media for Pride Toronto. Joey talks about how he feels society more accepting towards the LGBTQ+ community however, there are some challenges.  

In this interview: Star, who wrote the zine series “Confessions of a Teenage Transexual Whore” talks about their time doing sex work and making art. They also discuss reasons people do sex work, how to support people who are engaged in such work, and what harm reduction might look like in those contexts. Star, who also uses the name Markus, is a visual artist, writer, student, educator, trans, videographer, and activist. They are currently doing an undergraduate degree in sociology and actively making art. You can find much of their work at starkisscreations.com

On this episode we talk with Megan, a recent graduate from Humber Colleges Child and Youth Care Degree. Megan talks with Sammy and Josh about her thesis on sections 43 of the Canadian criminal code and corporal punishment. The 3 discuss how children are viewed and how the discourse of a child needs to change to match the current times. The discussion then focuses on parenting and the use of corporal punishment as a parenting tool and the challenges with that.  It was also noted that communication with the young person is really important to start moving away from using corporal punishment.  

If you are a child/youth that would like to be on the show or if you have an idea of what you think we should talk about please email Sammy and Josh at  yourrighttospeak@gmail.com       

On this episode of Your Right to Speak, Sammy and Josh talk with Sho and Aki about the use of social media, communications and elevating the voice of young people and social justice movements. There is discussion about how social media and communications should be used together, and how social media has become a new way for young people to express their views. 

If you are a child/youth that would like to be on the show or if you have an idea of what you think we should talk about please email Sammy and Josh at yourrighttospeak@gmail.com 

• Christiane Kerr - "Enchanted Meditations For Kids" or "Calm for Kids"
• Mindful Monkey, Happy Panda by Lauren Alderfer

• Mindfulness for Teen Anxiety by Christopher Willard

• Insight Timer- https://insighttimer.com
• Tara Brach- https://www.tarabrach
• Headspace- https://www.headspace.com
• 10 Mindful Minutes by Goldie Hawn

• Still Like A Frog: Mindfulness Exercises for Kids (and their parents) by Eline Snel, 

• Parenting the Mindful Child by Susan Kaiser Greenland and Child's Mind: Mindfulness practices to help our children be more focused, calm, and relaxed by Christopher Willard

• Acceptance & Mindfulness treatment for children and adolescents: A practitioners guide by Thomas Ollendick, Steven Hayes, Lauren Greco

On this episode of Your Right to Speak, Chelsea, from the Ontario Provincial Advocates Office, talks about a new report called Searching for Home. Taking into consideration the voices of young people, the report looks at barriers within the child welfare system. Chelsea discusses why “family” is not defined in the report, the lack of young people’s voice in developing “Plans of Care”, and how adultism impacts young people. 

Searching For Home Report: http://provincialadvocate.on.ca/documents/en/ResidentialCareReport_En.pdf 

If you are a child/youth that would like to be on the show or if you have an idea of what you think we should talk about please email Sammy and Josh at yourrighttospeak@gmail.com  

In this episode Dr. Stephen Snow talks about the evidence base for Drama Therapy, what it is, and why it is an effective way of working with people. He then goes on to explain a research process called ethnodrama and discusses two ethodrama projects he has been a principle investigator on. One with young women in youth protection and the second with family members who are care gives of people with mental illnesses.

Dr. Snow has developed a specialty in therapeutic theatre. In the past twenty years, he has directed over 25 theatre productions with diverse casts, including persons with mental health challenges, developmental disabilities, young people, and the blind. He has published articles and lectured on various aspects of Drama Therapy, both nationally and internationally, he’s been the principle-investigator in several ethnodrama research projects and is the former Chair of the Department of Creative Arts Therapies at Concordia University.

In the interview Dr. Snow mentions a few authors and the new Drama Therapy journal. Here are some links.

Ethnodrama: An Anthology of Reality Theatre

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2033617.Ethnodrama

North American Drama Therapy Association- http://www.nadta.org/

The Department of Creative Arts Therapies at Concordia University - 

https://www.concordia.ca/finearts/creative-arts-therapies.html

Drama Therapy Review- 

http://www.intellectbooks.co.uk/journals/view-Journal,id=241/view,page=0/

For this black history month episode of Your Right to Speak, Sammy and Josh welcome back past guests Denise and Priscilla. The conversation begins with the meaning of the term black and the impact on young people in the social service system. The discussion then turns to issues the black community faces in the child welfare system. There is also talk around how the system needs to move away from a cultural competence framework, and the need for better ways to understand the different culture perceptive. An interesting point was made that the term neglect needs to be redefined to better fit different cultures. It was stressed that public services and policy makers needs to take into consideration the day to day experiences of communities that policy impacts. 

Serena Thomas speaks about working with people in post disaster contexts. She discusses some of the unique perspectives being a cultural anthropologist provides, and what all who work with “others” can learn from this perspective.

Serena Thomas has worked for several years with people experiencing complex trauma and grief in post-disaster situations.

On this episode of Your Right to Speak Sammy introduce Josh, the new co-host for the show. Sammy and Josh talk with Jenn about stigma faced by people who are members of the mental health community. Jenn discusses the negative impact young people often experience when they disclose that they have mental health issues. She stresses the importance for people working within the mental community to have strong active listening skill and for workers to see the positive side of people who live with mental health challenges.

If you are a child/youth that would like to be on the show or if you have an idea of what you think we should talk about please email Sammy and Josh at yourrighttospeak@gmail.com