For the past four years, Journalists for Human Rights (JHR) has worked in remote First Nations communities across northern Ontario to provide journalism and media literacy training. This past year, one of the communities JHR worked with was Webequie First Nation where Leslie Spence began amplifying the voices of youth in the community over the airwaves. In September, he was hired by the Band Council as the Comprehensive Planning Coordinator. You can read more from journalists from Webequie here.
Read about Leslie’s experience in creating his weekly youth radio show below. You can donate to Journalists for Human Rights here and learn more about their Mobilizing Media campaign.
Q: What topics do you talk about on the show?
Leslie: Any youth related issues, what the youth are doing out there. There’s a youth councilor in Summer Beaver, or in Eabametoong. That’s they’re being recognized as a youth council.
Q: What do you plan to do in the future with the skills you’ve learned through the Indigenous Reporters Program?
Leslie: The skills I’ve developed. I want to inspire people, and get the youth to be empowered. That they can do this, and overcoming their shyness. That you can do what you want to do — positively.
Q: Why do you think it is should we have programs like the Indigenous Reporters Program?
Leslie: It gives the youth empowerment and to have a voice, and to be heard.
Q: Do you think other communities should have this program?
Leslie: They should. I’m sure there are people out there like me, who are like me who are talkative and very sociable. And who can talk about youth issues.
Q: Why do you think it is important for all Canadians, Indigenous and non-Indigenous, to care about this work and working with First Nations communities?
Leslie: It gives a positive perspective on being First Nations. And sometimes you see on the news, you see very negative…they give us a very negative images in the news. People should care about this program because it puts a whole different perspective on First Nations in a positive way. It puts a positive perspective on First Nations. And to empower the youth to be heard.
Anything else you want to say?
Leslie: JHR is awesome.
NOTE: This story was originally published on JHR.ca
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