Real Talk: Help Save DC Youth Court

Republished from Throat Chop University:

I’m going to cut through the usual sarcasm and get right to it on this one, SAVE DC YOUTH COURT! I caught this from a friend in regards to Time Dollar Youth Court in Washington, DC losing their funding and causing them to shut down at the end of this month. She’s a law school student down in DC and has worked with Time Dollar Youth Court and has heard first hand from participants how the program has impacted their lives. I called DC home for almost four years and even if I didn’t live there, I’d still be behind supporting this cause (just like Philly libraries). This is a big issue and demands our attention. We can't throw our youth into a screwed up system. They are doing good work and have the numbers to prove the work that they are doing. Programs like this need more funding, not for their funding to get cut. Please check the info below on how you can support.

The following message is forwarded at the request of UDC-DCSL students who are working to save Time Dollar Youth Court. On August 31, 2009, the Time Dollar Youth Court received formal notice that its application for funding for 2009-2010 had been DENIED. Unless further action is taken, Youth Court will be FORCED TO SHUT DOWN on October 1, 2009. The Time Dollar Youth Court is the ONLY court approved diversion program in DC that provides alternatives to detention, prosecution and residential placement/prison for juvenile offenders. The Time Dollar Youth Court operates at a cost of $511 per child. According to a recent study, taxpayers save $9,200 for each case diverted to a Youth Court; therefore, the Youth Court has already saved the District over $5 MILLION this year and almost $9 MILLION last year. (Download a fact sheet in PDF format)

WHAT YOU CAN DO:

We are asking you to contact the Mayor and your Councilmember IMMEDIATELY and tell them to save Youth Court. To contact the Mayor's Office, call 311 or (202) 727-2980. To contact your Councilmember, click here: www.dccouncil.washington.dc.us/contactuscouncil

Also, you can: Rate videos on YouTube: www.youtube.com/TimeBanksUSA

Support our cause on Facebook: Time Dollar Youth Court

Tweet us at: @saveyouthcourt

Visit the Youth Court website at: www.tdyc.org

Send an e-mail of support to Youth Court at: saveyouthcourt@tdyc.org Please take the time to show your support for this important DC program!

Thank you.

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