Teen Action
Partnership
Mission
The Teen Action Partnership is a youth
leadership initiative designed to get adolescent victims the help they need, to
reduce the incidence of repeat victimization, and to develop youth leadership.
This initiative, which was launched in early 2003 in four sites around the
country, is supported by a grant from the U.S. Department of Justice Office of
Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS).
The
Problem
Facts:
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1.65 million American
teenagers were victims of violent crime in 2002.
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Teens are twice as likely to
be victimized as adults.
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Teen Victimization:
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Disrupts the normal process of
adolescent development and has long-lasting and damaging consequences for
youth, their families, their communities, and society at large.
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Exacerbates normal adolescent
tendencies, such as isolation and low self-esteem, and works against the
normal developmental process.
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Significantly increases a
teen's risk for: teen pregnancy, substance abuse, low academic
achievement, mental health problems, delinquency, suicide.
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The Answer
The National Center for Victims of
Crime recognizes the tremendous positive influence that young people can have on
other young people. The Teen Action Partnership gives youth-both victims and
non-victims-a unique opportunity to become resources to themselves and to their
communities, and empowers teenagers to address the problem of teen victimization
in a meaningful and productive way.
Elements of the Teen Action
Partnership
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Youth partners lead a process
that includes assessment, advocacy, and outreach to peers and community
leaders.
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Teens learn and teach others
to address the needs of teen victims and prevent violence in their
communities.
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Teens learn and teach others
to address the needs of teen victims and prevent violence in their
communities.
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Groups of teens
in four different sites around the country are:
- Completing a community assessment
focused on the local experience of teen victimization and
the resources available to teen victims;
- Advocating for public policies
that support teen victims;
- Conducting a peer outreach
campaign to raise awareness of teen victimization; and
- Encouraging teen victims to get
help.
The National Center for
Victims of Crime works directly with each of the sites to provide the
organizations with up-to-date information on the impact of crime on adolescence,
as well as training, troubleshooting, communication strategies, and technical
assistance throughout the project. In all stages of the project, the youth hold
leadership positions and work to effect positive change in their
communities
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