Dubai 2022: Expose youth to international travel

Survival is the primary focus for many families in underserved communities. Between crime, the lack of school funding for proper education, police tensions and the struggle to make a decent living wage, “survival” covers a multitude of concerns.

In a city like Atlanta — particularly in black and brown areas — children live in segregated “bubbles.” These bubbles — in addition to operating in survival mode — mentally affect the way children move and think. While many activists and mentors venture into neighborhoods to fix the problems that exist there, it is also imperative to create opportunities that take kids out of those same areas. This would expose the children to outside experiences in efforts to help them see the world and themselves differently.

This is where the gift of travel comes into play. Exposing underprivileged youth to travel sparks positive change in those who rarely — if ever — get a chance to see other parts of their own city, much less the country.

We are currently working on several programs that would afford our mentees an opportunity to travel to Dubai in February of 2022 to learn about the culture and food.

The opportunity to see more encourages kids to be more. The sense of freedom, awareness and self-esteem gained through travel is more valuable, even, than what a child can gain from a book. Obviously, it won’t solve all the problems of youth in poor communities, but travel is certainly one of the many vehicles to push toward positive change.