Reflections on a weekend devoted to youth media

Randy Villegas, a youth reporter for South Kern Sol, attended the Building Healthy Communities Youth Media conference in Los Angeles in October. The two-day event connected youth journalists from over a dozen cities in California with each other, to deepen and expand the reach of their reporting. Experienced professionals at the event urged youth attendees to dig beyond one person’s story to show systemic issues. "So, for example, rather than ask why one person of color was locked up, we need to ask why minorities are jailed at alarmingly higher rates. Rather than ask why a student ended up in prison, we need to examine the school to prison pipeline that exists in our communities." His reflections on the weekend are on South Kern Sol.