Hello BES members and friends! I am a PhD student at the Hopkins School of Medicine and the chair of the BES Ethical Action Committee. I am gathering people affiliated with Johns Hopkins to create a base of support that can convince Hopkins President Daniels (and other leadership if necessary) to support reinvestment in youth opportunity in Baltimore, and* I need your help*!
As you may know, the Ethical Action committee has been involved in work to bring opportunity to all of Baltimore's youth, especially those in impoverished communities that are suffering the most. BES has joined the coalition Affirmative Youth Opportunity, made up of many dedicated groups in Baltimore, including Safe and Sound. Collectively, we have been working to stop the state from building a new youth prison, and to convince them to reinvest the money ($104 million!) on rehabilitative measures and youth opportunities instead. We have been successful in stopping the new jail (!), but the State of Maryland has not yet agreed to invest positively in our youth. That is where Johns Hopkins comes in. Hopkins is a powerful voice in Baltimore and in Maryland as a whole, and a statement of support for investing in youth opportunity could go a long way to making this reinvestment a reality. Hopkins has recently started their own community revitalization work in the neighborhoods around their campuses, and I think this vision allies very closely with what they are trying to do. Getting Hopkins on board, therefore, seems a very achievable goal, and one that could have a tremendously positive outcome for youth in Baltimore, and the health of the city for everyone who lives and works here. I am working closely with Hopkins alum and Safe and Sound organizer David Avruch to build this base of support, and *we need as many Hopkins-affiliated allies as we can get* to bring our message to Hopkins leadership. If you are a student, employee, faculty member, alumna/us, are in any other way affiliated with Johns Hopkins, or know someone who is, please contact me! I also have lots of material and data on this issue, and if you have any questions please don't hesitate to contact me. Together, I truly believe that we can build a brighter future for Baltimore. In Gratitude and Fellowship, Kate LaClair BES Ethical Action Chair Member, Affirmative Youth Opportunity
_______________________________________________ Friends mailing list Friends@baltimoreethicalsociety.org http://baltimoreethicalsociety.org/mailman/listinfo/friends_baltimoreethicalsociety.org
