Community leaders gather to address teen takeovers and subway surfing

A collective group of professionals, including the Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office, clergy leaders, the NYPD, mental health professionals, educators, business and community leaders, and non-profit executives came together to merge solutions to eradicate teen takeovers and subway surfing in New York City. 

It is not a new method of community efforts for most of these community leaders who have worked for decades to engage the teens and young people into significant and established activities to avoid disasters for themselves and their families. This time around however, the group held a two-day summit, focusing on the topic of “Summer Safety Community Conversation.” It took place last week, at the Ebenezer Urban Ministry Center in Brownsville and the Rehoboth Open Bible Church in East Flatbush, and aimed for a broader scope to established better communication methods and “real time coordination” as the summer months sweep through.

The summit aims to provide established programs to enhance the efforts of the NYPD, who will have to tackle and demolish the spiking disasters happening among some young people in the city. 

Individuals delved into group discussions, with each organization explicitly outlining the plans of their organizations and how they have served and intend to continue serving the teens and young adults they are currently working with. 

Head of the discussion, facilitator and organizer, Pastor Gilford T. Monrose, after welcoming the powerful and vibrant group, declared the urgent need to get the community aroused and start building strategies and channels to find real comprehensive solutions, with a wide range to explore the problems the teen takeover and subway surfing are having on the communities. 

“What we are doing is important, but we must find ways for the young people to hear about the resources that are available in the community for them,” Monrose expressed. “Can we collaborate as a group and get the information available to the youths?”

As each leader tabled their suggestions, they inquired about the availability of other groups with similar projects, and about making the resources more central, accessible, and available for dissemination.

It was also suggested that the youth groups be monitored through social media, enabling the NYPD to know at all times who is closest to the problem and can identify the source. 

Throughout the conversations, community leaders representing their various groups re-emphasized the need to understand that the efforts are needed to collaborate and have significant accountabilities in place for the young people.

Thirteen-year-old Joshua Carty, a student at Flushing Christian School in Queens, stated that he endorses the plans of the various individuals and community leaders, but community efforts are not in place to help the teens and young people. Joshua said the ideas presented must be taken to the streets so that the young people can become aware of what is available, have core outreach groups available, and “don’t just send them into probationary period,” but rather “help take them through the programs,” the teen said.

The issue of mental health illness was repeatedly addressed, and where help is needed most.

One of the ideas put forward by the facilitator, Pastor Monrose, was implementing a facility with a mental health repository program — a pro bono therapist pool and a volunteer-based mental health service model connecting youth and families who cannot afford mental health services with licensed therapists who give back through limited pro-bono commitments. 

From this announcement, the group also discussed what licensing and liability structures would govern the pro-bono participants. 

Group leaders suggested that various youth activities, including internship programs, civic, and young leadership classes should be available to expose the young on what can be done in their lives. In addition, a recommendation was made for a calendar of activities allowing community leaders to participate in each other’s events. 

The Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office was the sponsor for the resourceful two-day event.