Creating youth civic spaces in low -income communities of color: Claiming democracy and promoting civic action.

Abstract

Youth civic spaces are environments in which youth participation in civic action is fostered. They include physical places which promote civic behavior through activities for young people to come together and take initiative, and other spaces which promote collective action and empowerment. For youth in low-income communities of color, these spaces provide an opportunity for young people to act upon their right to participate in civil society and, in so doing, to challenge societal stereotypes which pathologize and exclude them from participation in the public sphere. Despite the importance of youth civic spaces, however, there is relatively little literature about them. This dissertation critically analyzes three examples of civic spaces created by organizations in low-income communities of color in the United States. The research is based on a community-based participatory evaluation of youth groups, and uses a qualitative approach which draws on various sources of data including interviews, focus groups, archival materials, and site visits collected from 1999--2004. The case examples provide a rich discussion about the rise, evolution, and activities of civic spaces in Old Mission City, Riverside, and East Grafton. Cross-case analysis of these civic spaces suggests a number important themes: (1) developing and sustaining civic spaces depends on key elements such as organizational buy-in, adult allies, and the larger socio-political environment, (2) civic spaces serve as alternative educational institutions and youth public spheres by providing civic education, training, critical dialogue, and opportunities for meaningful democratic action, (3) through their group participation, young people develop relationships, create networks, draw on collective resources, and in doing so articulate a youth civic and social capital, and (4) within these spaces young people develop into civic agents with their own conceptualization of a civic identity and civic habitus. This research raises implications for extending theory about the public sphere, reinserting the importance of a structural and physical analysis of youth civic engagement, exploring concepts of youth civic habitus and youth civic and social capital, and creating a new social role for youth as civic agents. Finally, this research calls for further analysis of the way young people use civic spaces to claim democracy and promote civic action in low-income American communities of color.